CHILLED TO THE BONE ROAST

The Australian couple finally asked me to join them on their blanket. It was a warm night in Switzerland and I bought us all a round of canned beers. We drank and talked about the road. By now most of my stories were well rehearsed. They talked over each other competitively. Their's weren't. They had the same stories to tell, and no way of delegating the role of speaker. I got up to get ready for bed. We said we'd see each other in the morning. That night a storm was brewing. When I stepped out of my tent in the morning it was raining and the Australians were gone. 

I HAVE MISCALCULATED. It's not hot
and sunny here everyday like in France.

I got to Pully only to find an email from my host saying his son was in the hospital and couldn't host me. I biked down lakeside and immediately found two campsites. I parked at the one in Vevey and set up shop. 

There was wi fi at the campsite restaurant so I packed myself a sardine dinner and stepped inside. The waiter watched me open a store bought beer and expressed his anger. After apologizing, I chugged the whole beer in front of him. He darted off, returned and placed an 8 Franc beer in front of me that in was forced to drink and pay for. Now I was a little tipsy and borderline angry. 

In rebellion, I fixed and ate a greasy sardine sandwich right outside the entrance to the restaurant. I made sure to drain the can on the restaurant's property. The owner of the campsite sprayed me and my hobo mess with a garden hose after I told him to fuck off. 

Later, I snuck back into the restaurant where my broken computer was charging secretly under a table. Earlier in the day I'd taken the computer to a repair man in the city. To my dismay it worked perfectly for the first time since it stopped working. The computer man laughed at me. When I tried it again at the campsite it was broken. Switzerland is haunted. 

The girl who works the reception desk is cute. Later, she was pulling weeds in the garden. I like her little, white gardening shorts. 

I went for a swim in the lake and then took my four minute, one dollar shower. I read my book and walked around. I ate some more of the 18 granola bars I bought at the supermarket the day before. The 2-for-1 granola bar deal was the only promotion in the market. I drank beers with Austalians and played cards with some German Swiss girls. Lesbians? Dude, awesome. In the middle of the night the wind blew my tent around. The morning was a hard rain situation. It was so bad I didn't even say good morning to Ginger.  I played cards with the Swiss girls again and read. My friend emailed me trying to get me to come to Berlin but it's not as easily done as he claims it is. It's expensive. Everything is. My breakfast (a
baguette and a coffee) cost 11 francs. My next destination is to meet up with the owner of a ski resort. A friend got me in touch with him and it could be great. But if I'm cold here, how cold will I be up there at 5000 ft elevation?

In my experience so far Swiss French speakers have a serious attitude problem.  Why would you openly hate tourists at a campsite? Did they make a campsite just to have a place to gather victims and channel their hatred? 

The rain is bringing me down. I long for Germany and Garric. 

ALONE