This June, I look forward to visiting Salzburg, Alpe di Siusi, Fussen, Wengen and Chamonix in a group with which I expect to enjoy traveling. I would love to get to know others who will be part of that group. By way of introduction, I am a retired man, who lives on an island near Seattle, and greatly enjoy walking (especially since very beneficial hip-joint replacement surgery, 2 years ago). I used to travel to Europe occasionally on business, but haven't gone there for more than 30 years. Mt.Blanc is the only area we will visit where I have been, and that was 50 years ago.
The concept of traveling "My Way" appeals to me very much, as I am used to roaming the mountains and shores of western North America, primarily on my own. One way I have applied this in my planning is my response to learning that we are scheduled to stay at a Bolzano hotel, that is located a couple hours distant from the area where I'm keen to take photos near sunrise and set. I have made a reservation for our first night to stay in the Piccolo Hotel at Compatsch up near the meadows and trails. That's the only night I expect to be away from the, as yet unidentified, individual with whom I will be sharing a room throughout our travels. You may know that the schedules for bus, gondola and even car transportation are peculiar in that area, so implementation of my scheme may be somewhat contingent, but I think it's worth trying to maximize time near the Dolomites.
Beyond our time together under the Rick Steves aegis, I plan to return from Chamonix to spend three nights each at Zermatt and Pontresina; then enjoy a couple of those spectacular railways the Swiss have carved through their mountains and into Italy, winding up at Lake Como, before flying home via Reykjavik.
I hope this note may be seen by some of those who will be traveling with me, and that you may respond so that we might begin to get acquainted before the group's rendezvous in Austria. In any case, I can hardly wait until June. By the way, this will be my first trip with a Rick Steves group and I have rarely traveled with any group.
Bill O'Neill
P.S. As I wrote this, PBS has been broadcasting a "Nova" episode about Otzi, the fossil iceman whose 3D image is displayed at Bolzano, and the "Secrets of the Dead" about Hanibal crossing the French Alps. Both are worth viewing, through PBS' Passport, especially by those of us planning to visit the Alps THIS YEAR!