Friday, November 11, 2011
Because We Are Idiots
This blog is a bunch of questions we have asked ourselves. They are regrets. They are also a lesson learned about doing things you want to do when you have the opportunity, because later you may wish you had.
OK, I have given you the answers to the first couple of questions, but you will have to fill in the answers for the rest. It is pretty easy because the answer is about the same for each one.
Why did I only buy ONE murano glass charm for €3 in Venice?
Because I Am An Idiot
Why didn't we take pictures of Aly with her jewelry?
Because We Are Idiots?
Why did we not take pictures of the seven course meal on the-day-we-nearly-ate-ourselves-to-death?
Why didn't I take a picture of Manuele? Who is Manuele? Someone I really should have taken a picture of, obviously. If I had a picture, you would know why I should have taken his picture. :)
Why didn't we get off the bus on the beach at Ettrick Bay on Bute?
Why did I almost miss the last train from Robecco d'Olio back to Brescia and end up standing between two train tracks in the foggy dark by myself hoping the train would come? (Ok, so this one should read "because I am an idiot")
And why didn't I take a picture of the station in Robecco d'Olio?
Why didn't I go see Mario?
Why didn't I get pictures of the inside of the church in Pontevico?
Why didn't we ask for a picture of the Guardian Angels that escorted us to our hotel from the train station in Brescia?
How did we forget to go into the walls in Lucca?
How did we spend five weeks in Europe and not go into one museum?
How did we spend five weeks in Europe and only see the inside of two churches (make that one for Becky)?
How did we spend 2 1/2 weeks in Italy and not see any art except a fresco on the side of a hardware store in Porcari?
Why did we go in October when Nomadi doesn't do concerts?
Why didn't we get more pictures of us with the people we met there?
Why didn't we do this years ago?
I am sure there are more, because our (my) level of idiocy is well developed, and as I think of them, I will add them on to future blogs.
We are still doing some notes from the trip, and want to get them down before we forget them. You know how it is when you go on a trip, there are so many great things that happen, and you think you won't ever forget them, but years later you remember the big things, and forget some of the smaller ones. If you are tired of getting these blogs, let me know and I will unsubscribe you, and I will understand, but I have a bunch of things I want to write about. Some of these things are from early in the trip, and some are just thoughts, and some will be just quotes. We will see.
Senza Parole (Without Words)
Where Does One Go
You know, to write you a letter
is not an easy thing.
You know, I feel so fragile,
the bombs don't listen to you.
But,
this war will not change me.
Ever.
Where does one go,
what does one do
to cling to life
while outside the night explodes?
Where does one go,
what does one do,
if to live in this place is like casting lots?
You know time is slipping away,
but it has not all been useless.
Me, I know I will see you grow,
it is a promise that I will not fail.
And then, still another day will come
for us.
For us.
Where does one go,
what does one do
to cling to life
while the night outside is exploding?
Where does one go,
what does one do
if to live in this place is like casting lots?
And I am no longer surprised,
and the craziness dances inside of me,
and I think I should protect myself,
but it is hard to fight
if the weeping of a mother cannot save the night.
The night.
Where does one go,
what does one do
to hold on tight to life
while outside the night explodes?
Where does one go,
what does one do
if to live in this place is like casting lots?
You know, to write a letter
has never been easy.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Lest We Forget
Veteran's Day
November 11, 2011
November 11, 2011
This Blog is dedicated to all of our family members who have served their country. If I have forgotten anyone, please let me know and I will fix it.
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| Peter Tozer, Continental Army |
| Chauncy E Bliven Union Army, War of the Rebellion George L. Final Grand Army of the Republic |
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| WWI Recruiting Poster Wilfred Benoit. US Army George I Final. US Navy |
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| George I. Final, Great White Fleet Richard J. Campion, US Nuclear Submarine Service Ralph Schaffer, Vietnam Era Dana Schaffer, Desert Storm |
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| Canadian Forces Andrew Wilson, Killed in Action James B. Wilson, Killed in Action |
| James A. Final US Marine Corps WWII, Korea Purple Heart II |
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| Liberty Ships Gerald W. Tozer, Merchant Marine WWII |
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| Ralph Schaffer, USN Vietnam Era |
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| USS Sculpin Richard J. Campion, USN Nuclear Submarine Service |
| Patrick W. Benoit, WWII Dana B. Schaffer Iraq, Afghanistan Bronze Star II Luke P. Benoit Iraq, Korea |
With love, respect, and gratitude, Dee and Becky
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Always Make New Mistakes.....
A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.
-- George Bernard Shaw
-- George Bernard Shaw
So, I am going to throw some things out in a list. They are not in chronological order, and there is no particular importance between one or another. Some of these things will cause people to wonder "what were they thinking", but others may prevent someone from making the same mistake. I am going to just make some statements, and if someone wants further information about the statements, I will be happy to elaborate.
1. Don't forget to make a reservation on a train for which you are using a pass in Italy. Yes, you have the pass, but you need to make a seat reservation on some trains. This is the reason they say that passes are not always a good idea in Italy, because there is not much of a time or money savings. And you can end up with a large fine if you don't have a sympathetic conductor. Fortunately, we did.
2. If you ask someone on the street in Italy for directions, they may or may not know where your destination is, even if they have lived there for years. They will even sometimes stop other strangers on the street to get for directions for you (this happened twice to us). The directions will usually involve "sempre dritto (straight ahead)", or a couple of "destre" or "sinistre" (rights or lefts), and may be the actual opposite of the directions you just got from someone else, The fact that they have no idea where they are sending you won't stop them from giving you directions on how to get there. But they are so dang helpful while they are doing it, even if you end up twelve block further from where you wanted to go than when you asked them.
3. When you pay someone in Italy for a counter service, don't give the money directly to the person, place it on the dish that is there to receive it. The person will place the change on that same dish, not in your outstretched hand. No matter how long you have your hand out. I have thought about this, but still don't have a really good expaination why. Maybe it is easier to see someone count it into the dish than into a hand. Just how it is done.
4. "Clam chowder" means something SOOOO different from New England or Manhattan clam chowder, but that gave me another chance to try something I have never tried.
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| Zuppa della posteria Note translation: Clam Chowder |
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| Zuppa della posteria Note reality |
5. You can't buy something "take-out/take-away" and then sit down at a table outside the restaurant. If you want to sit at the table, you sit down and you will be waited on. This was true in Scotland and in Italy.
6. When the train stops, be ready to get off. And if you get off on the wrong stop, be even faster figuring it out and getting back on the train. You won't have much time to figure it out.
7. If you are a (Scotch) Whisky (no "e") drinker, don't even try Dailuaine 27 year old whisky. You will regret it. Trust me on this one.
8. Homemade wine, however is easily found in Italy, and really good. We were there for less than three weeks and had homemade wine three times and sent some home. It was always better than the house wines we had. Oh, you actually have to be in a "home" to have homemade wine, though. Try to get friendly with some Italians. Trust me again, here... not that hard.
9. Haggis is neither bad enough to make fun of, nor good enough to ever want again.
10. Plan on pay toilets. Have an assortment of coins, because if it says €.30, it means €.30, and you have to have exact change.
11. If the nice person coming out of the pay-toilet offers to let you sneak in without paying, don't do it. There is an automatic total bathroom cleaner that kicks in as soon as you exit and the door closes. There is a reason why there isn't a toilet seat, and why there is a drain in the floor, and it isn't for overflows. On the up side, they are really clean, and you eventually get used to the cold seat.
12. The dates and times of train strikes are announced several days to weeks ahead. Pay attention. Otherwise you will add the word "soppresso (cancelled)" to your Italian vocabulary. You don't want to learn this word.
13. Be really careful which parts of your paper work you throw away. Sometimes one part of a multipart ticket is the ticket, and the other parts are just seat reservations. Say you have a train trip with two to three train changes, but only one ticket. You will have 3 seat reservations. If you use one of the seat tickets and then throw it away, that is alright, but if you throw the ticket part away (by mistake), the seat ticket won't let you through the electronic gate, so even if you have the seat ticket....you get the idea. This is one time that being a "foreigner" is a benefit; sometimes you can claim ignorance. In any case, don't throw anything away until that part of the trip is complete. The ticket also doesn't work upside down.
14. On your way to Europe (or probably any other country), don't get upset with any of the security measures, delays, or other travel irritations you may come across. Believe me, coming home is a whole lot more frustrating. For example, if you are in a duty free shop and you buy some liquids (Lemoncello, perhaps or olive oil in a really cute little bottle), they have no way of really knowing where you are going to be traveling after the purchase. They will seal your purchase in a plastic bag along with your receipt, and you will think you are good to go. After all, you are behind the security checks. This is fine if you are going say from Italy to Switzerland, but if you are going to be traveling BACK to the USA, you will probably lose your purchase. This is probably only when you leave a secured area and enter another country where you will have to go through security again, but I don't know that I would take the chance. In Zurich, we did have a designated custome/security check line for US citizens.
15. Just after I mentioned to Becky that the drivers in Italy weren't as bad as I thought they would be, we took a cab from the hotel to the train station in Viareggio. The sterotypical Italian driver is out there, just not so stereotypical after all.
16. Ok, so we still don't quite have this one figured out, but don't try to have lunch at lunch time, like say from 1230 to 1300. Even restaurants are closed during the lunch hour, except some of the Japanese or Chinese pizza places. (Yeah, I know. Why go to Italy for Bonzai Pizza? Perhaps because they are the only ones open at "lunch time")Many stores close at 1230 and don't reopen until 1600. Dinner is hard to find until around 1900, but is served until around 10.
17. Coffee sold at a "bar" is about €1-2, and you drink it standing up, and usually pretty much taken as a shot, after you have stirred in a couple of teaspoons of sugar to the 30cc of liquid you have, in effect turning it into coffee flavored syrup. If you want to sit at a table, it goes up about €0.50, but you will get service.
18. If you do something, or meet someone and it is something or someone unique, take a picture. Otherwise it will end up on the "Because we are idiots" blog that one of us may eventually write.
19. Take a list of names and addresses of everyone you think you even MAY want to send a postcard to, because as some of you know, you didn't get one, and even if we fully intended to send one, it was because we didn't have an address that you didn't get one. Or we didn't think you actually are interested. Or we just didn't bother. Or we were busy doing something much more important. Pick one.
20. I really can't think of another one, but I don't like ending a list on an odd number.
Ok, so that is enough for now. If we get around to the "idiots" blog, there may be some overlap, but not enough that it should matter. I am sure Becky will have some to add to this, but for now:
Experience is that marvelous thing that enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.
-- Franklin P. Jones
-- Franklin P. Jones
Dee
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
WEKYN, Parte Due (Where Everyone Knows Your Name, Part 2)
Italy
One of my facebook friends is Stè Bassan. He has a tavern in a small suburb of Padova called Albignasego (I can spell it, but have a really hard time saying it, especially to cab drivers. Fortunately, they seem to be able to figure it out, and gently correct me. Still can't say it very well).
He has had the tavern for about a year, and it is also the Triveneto headquarters for the Danilo Sacco fan club. For those who I maybe haven't talked to in a couple of years, he is the lead singer of an Italian group I like. That is how I became acquainted with Stè.
When I told him we were planning a trip to Italy, he said to come by the tavern, and we could try some beers. There were several reasons why I picked Padova, including the nearness to Venice, the lower cost for rooms, and because it is near the tavern. It was going to be fun to meet someone I felt I knew a little, and it would be the first contact with someone in Italy that also sort of knew me. I was very nervous about speaking Italian to Italians, and I was hoping that I would be able to have some kind of conversation with him.
We arrived in Venice early in the morning at the Santa Lucia station, checked our packs, and took off walking through the alleys of the city, over the canals, around corners, always following the signs to Piazza San Marco. Venice is a great place. It was Sunday, but it wasn't yet busy. Many of the street venders were just setting up, and a lot of the shops weren't open. We eventually found our way to San Marco (NOW it was crazy busy!),
and then caught a vaporetto (a canal bus) back to the train station. (Hopefully, there will be a Venice blog, although it will be rather late.)
There we purchased tickets to Padova on the slow train, and arrived about 1/2 hour later. Because I didn't do a very good job giving Becky the hotel information, we sat around outside for about 1/2 hour until I could figure out which way we were to go to the hotel. It was only about a 15 minute walk, but by that time, we were getting a little tired. We finally got there, checked in, and I really can't remember what we did after that until about evening.
We called a cab, and took off for a town I really couldn't quite pronounce, and hoped they were open (yeah, I know). We arrived about €22 later, and went in.
Stè wasn't immediately seen, but I asked the bartender if he was there, and as I did, Stè came around the corner. Such a nice man. And the tavern is wonderful. We immediately felt welcome, and started by having a small meal, even though I think we were a little early for them. We have found out that most "evening" in Italy don't even begin to start until about 9 pm, and we were there about 7, I think.
We shared a wonderful tender bruschetta, Becky had a pasta with mushrooms, and I had what was like an Italian quesadilla, but with a definite Italian touch.
Becky had planned to purchase some Italian wine while we are in Italy for Steve and Diane, and we also wanted to get some for Eric and Lin, so we asked Stè for his recommendation, and he asked how much we wanted to spend. Since the cost of shipping was going to be rather high, we figured we would get something around €20-22. He said he had some wine that he and his dad made, and that we could have some of that for €3 each. We thought that would be great. As it was, we would have no idea how any wine we bought would taste, and at the very least, this wine had a great story. He said there would be karaoke the next night, and we said we would like to come. He then said he would bring the wine then, however then he said he was going to go get his fiancé and would be back in 15-20 minutes. We had a nice time watching people, chatting a little with the bartender who spoke a little English, and enjoying our wine and food.
About 20 minutes later, Stè returned.... with six bottles of wine: Three white, and three red.
He gave them to us. For free. I think his dad also came in, but he didn't stop by the table. It was such a kind gesture. I can't wait to try the wine. (I also mailed myself two bottles. We used post office wine boxes, but still are not sure how well they will transport. The bottles have bottle caps on them, not corks. There also aren't any labels on the bottles. We only claimed €20 on the customs forms, hoping we won't be levied a high tariff, but won't know until they get there. We really don't even know if they will allow them into the country. We will see.)
[For the recipients to consider:
So, the next night, we gave the cab company another €22 (yes, it was the same on the way back the night before..... the wine is becoming more expensive). We had an incredibly fun time.
The DJ was insane.
There were a number of people who sang who had beautiful voices. They played several
songs that were for me (Nomadi...the group I like), and although I didn't go up and sing, Stè did, and he has a really good voice, and everybody sang with every song anyway. His girlfriend, Monica also sang several songs, and sings well. We felt very welcomed, and even though we didn't speak the language well (or at all), and didn't know a lot of the songs, and couldn't remember anyone's names, nor they ours, it didn't matter. Sometimes, "everyone knows your name" is just a figure of speech, and it is the thought that counts.
Dee
One of my facebook friends is Stè Bassan. He has a tavern in a small suburb of Padova called Albignasego (I can spell it, but have a really hard time saying it, especially to cab drivers. Fortunately, they seem to be able to figure it out, and gently correct me. Still can't say it very well).
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| Luke's Beer |
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| It was WAY busier than it looks |
There we purchased tickets to Padova on the slow train, and arrived about 1/2 hour later. Because I didn't do a very good job giving Becky the hotel information, we sat around outside for about 1/2 hour until I could figure out which way we were to go to the hotel. It was only about a 15 minute walk, but by that time, we were getting a little tired. We finally got there, checked in, and I really can't remember what we did after that until about evening.
We called a cab, and took off for a town I really couldn't quite pronounce, and hoped they were open (yeah, I know). We arrived about €22 later, and went in.
Stè wasn't immediately seen, but I asked the bartender if he was there, and as I did, Stè came around the corner. Such a nice man. And the tavern is wonderful. We immediately felt welcome, and started by having a small meal, even though I think we were a little early for them. We have found out that most "evening" in Italy don't even begin to start until about 9 pm, and we were there about 7, I think.
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| Looks like "just" spaghetti with sauce, but boy, would you be wrong |
Becky had planned to purchase some Italian wine while we are in Italy for Steve and Diane, and we also wanted to get some for Eric and Lin, so we asked Stè for his recommendation, and he asked how much we wanted to spend. Since the cost of shipping was going to be rather high, we figured we would get something around €20-22. He said he had some wine that he and his dad made, and that we could have some of that for €3 each. We thought that would be great. As it was, we would have no idea how any wine we bought would taste, and at the very least, this wine had a great story. He said there would be karaoke the next night, and we said we would like to come. He then said he would bring the wine then, however then he said he was going to go get his fiancé and would be back in 15-20 minutes. We had a nice time watching people, chatting a little with the bartender who spoke a little English, and enjoying our wine and food.
About 20 minutes later, Stè returned.... with six bottles of wine: Three white, and three red.
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| Mystery wine at bottom of picture |
[For the recipients to consider:
- Air fare to Italy: $880
- Cab fare to Osteria: €22 x 3 plus one for €44 (don't ask)
- Packing boxes, postage: ~ €50 each
So, the next night, we gave the cab company another €22 (yes, it was the same on the way back the night before..... the wine is becoming more expensive). We had an incredibly fun time.
The DJ was insane.
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| Nicola Schiavo, the DJ |
songs that were for me (Nomadi...the group I like), and although I didn't go up and sing, Stè did, and he has a really good voice, and everybody sang with every song anyway. His girlfriend, Monica also sang several songs, and sings well. We felt very welcomed, and even though we didn't speak the language well (or at all), and didn't know a lot of the songs, and couldn't remember anyone's names, nor they ours, it didn't matter. Sometimes, "everyone knows your name" is just a figure of speech, and it is the thought that counts.
Dee
Where Everybody Knows Your Name
Whether they are called bars, pubs, taverns, or (in Italy), osteria, there is something special about a place that you can go into where the same group of people show up every evening and socialize together. There is sometimes good music, sometimes singing, sometimes just catching up on the days events. The conversation can be about sports, politics, the economy, or the recent layoffs and factory shut downs. They are places where you can receive emotional support, laughs, tears, or if not solutions to your problems, at least understanding. Inverness, Scotland
One of the first places we went to in Scotland was not even really open. It was probably about 4:00 pm, and there were only a couple of people at the bar. We ordered a drink, and sat for a bit, but it wasn't really time to be there yet, so we left. I did like the inside, though. It was the type of place we wanted to find, but not the right time of day.
The next night there was another group playing at a pub called Hootananny's. This is (of course!) a Thai restaurant/pub, and although the group that was playing was ok, it was more Irish-celtic jig music than what we had enjoyed the night before. It was heavy on fiddle, and not as enjoyable....but the Thai food was excellent.
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| Hootananny's, Inverness |
Next door to our hostel was the Castle Tavern, and actually the first place we went to after we got set up in our room. We had a nice meal, and a drink. No inside pictures, but we do have some of the outside. And you can read more about it here.
Edinburgh
On to Edinburgh.... a real party town. Going from the very quiet of Bute to the moderately restrained Inverness, and then hitting Edinburgh was like going from Estacada to Salem to Portland. Ok, maybe a little wilder than Portland. Quite a surprise. The parties didn't exactly stay in the pubs. They seemed to continue all night at times, and right under our window in the hostel. The tall old buildings, cobblestoned streets, and long alleys make for excellent acoustics, and the sound carries quite well... both up, down, and across everything.
We went to several interesting places. One wasn't even a pub, but a whisky store. There Brian, the whisky expert, gave me a "wee dram" of an incredible 27 year old scotch whisky that he warned me (rightfully so) would ruin me for any other scotch.
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| Dailuaine 27 year old Scotch Whisky |
The other place we went that was a pub, although we ate there upstairs in the restaurant, is worth a mention for the ceiling. Oh, and it was the place I had Haggis.
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| Ceiling of the Deacon Brodie's Tavern |
I think I will continue with Italy in a second part. It seems the more pictures I ask the program to insert, the longer it takes.
Dee
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Dreams of a 9 Year Old Realized
In about 1959, I saw a movie that impressed me greatly (as a 9-year old). It was "The Miracle of the White Stallions". Since that time I have wanted to go to Austria and see the Spanish Riding School. Today that dream came true. We arrived in Vienna last night and checked into our hostel.
Although unassuming from the outside, it is really nice inside.
This morning, we had a reservation at the Spanish Riding School (the Winter School) for a 2 hour training session. I had decided that I would rather do that than just attend a performance. In addition, I made reservations for us to join a tour of the school afterward.
Unfortunately, no cameras are allowed for performances or training sessions, however, I was happy to get some other good photos that I can share with you. The School is located in a very different place than I anticipated. It is in the middle of a very famous plaza, in the Hofburg Palace.
On arrival and after finding the school inside the Palace, we were ushered into the hall, or arena where we had come to observe 2 hours of training sessions.
The riders were dressed in their uniforms which I thought was amazing for a training session. Each trainer starts as an Elevey, around the age of 15, and is entrusted with one horse they are to train up the level of being put into a performance. This takes 4-6 years. After that time, they become an assistant rider. Then as an assistant rider, they are assigned 5 horses and are under the toutelage of a chief rider. When the trainers are assigned a horse, it is assumed that that trainer will stay with that horse for it's entire performing life - which can be up to around 23 years of age. The horses are not started until they are 4 as they are allowed to grow up and mature before starting the training.
I was surprised to see that the horses are often given treats while being trained. The riders have a special pocket in the back of their jackets in which (I was later told) they keep sugar cubes. When a horse does a particularly good job, they are given a sugar cube. Another thing of interest I learned is that they do very little warm-up before either training or performing. These horses are apparently well built for the work they do, which looks, and is, VERY collected, and they do not require a big warmup. I noticed the trainer would walk maybe twice around the arena, then trot for a couple minutes and would then begin asking for the exercise, whether it be passage, tempes, side passes, whatever. And always in collection. They would however, after a particularly long session of collection, drop them and let them stretch out. I noticed one horse being worked very hard on the Piaffe (trotting in place). After the exercise that looked very hard, the horse was allowed to trot out for a few strides - like a release.
During the training session we watched, assistant riders working their charges. (No photos allowed inside at that time). There were four 1/2-hour groups of 5 horses trained. Only one horse did airs above the ground and it was only 2 times. He was practiced on the courbette - raising full height on the hind legs and completing a series of jumps forward. One amazing note was the the rider had no stirrups. Later I asked and was told that NONE of the airs are ever ridden with stirrups.
After the training session, we had signed up for a tour of the school. It was wonderful to see the barns which are also in the palace.
There is 3 story courtyard, built by a early king who wanted his son to live in the quarters in the second story, above the horses. The son thought it was too small for living and chose a different home (he was obviously crazy). The whole bottom story is the stalls. Some of the stalls face out into the courtyard, there are two more rows of stall behind those that are facing out. These stalls house a total of 76 stallions - IN the palace which is in the middle of Vienna - just amazing.
We had noticed one beautiful blood bay horse in the training session. We were told it is because it is considered good luck for there to be at least 1 horse "of color" in the stables. They currently have two.
We visited the tack room which was stacked ceiling high with all of the saddles and bridles.
Each has a name plate as every saddle is made custom for each horse and because they are fit for the horse, they require no padding.
There are 1/2 pads that go behind the saddle (seen on the far wall in the frame). The green ones are for those horses that still do only flat work. The red pads are for those horses that can do Airs Above the Ground. Stripes on the pad signify the rank of the trainer, whether assistant or chief.
Two bridles were red and those signified those horses as worked from the ground (long reins).
Finally we went outside and saw the outside training ring, although it was located inside the hot walker. The hot walker was actually a oval shaped building which they put the horses into, seperated by large hanging rubber dividers. The horses are put into the walker loose and between two of these dividers. When the hot walker begins to move, the horse is gently prodded along by the divider. The section they are in is quite a bit longer than they are. When the walker changes direction, the guide said the horses know and will automatically turn around inside their section. You can almost see the arena behind the hotwalker, which goes around the entire perimeter of the arena.
I have much more information and many more photos, but that is all I could fit in here. I have to say it was one of my best days - EVER. I hope to share more with my horse-friends who may be interested.
Becky
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| One of the hallways |
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| Front sign |
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| Our room |
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| Outside patio |
Unfortunately, no cameras are allowed for performances or training sessions, however, I was happy to get some other good photos that I can share with you. The School is located in a very different place than I anticipated. It is in the middle of a very famous plaza, in the Hofburg Palace.
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| Many carriages around the Palace |
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| Hofburg Palace, home of the Spanish Riding School |
On arrival and after finding the school inside the Palace, we were ushered into the hall, or arena where we had come to observe 2 hours of training sessions. The riders were dressed in their uniforms which I thought was amazing for a training session. Each trainer starts as an Elevey, around the age of 15, and is entrusted with one horse they are to train up the level of being put into a performance. This takes 4-6 years. After that time, they become an assistant rider. Then as an assistant rider, they are assigned 5 horses and are under the toutelage of a chief rider. When the trainers are assigned a horse, it is assumed that that trainer will stay with that horse for it's entire performing life - which can be up to around 23 years of age. The horses are not started until they are 4 as they are allowed to grow up and mature before starting the training.
I was surprised to see that the horses are often given treats while being trained. The riders have a special pocket in the back of their jackets in which (I was later told) they keep sugar cubes. When a horse does a particularly good job, they are given a sugar cube. Another thing of interest I learned is that they do very little warm-up before either training or performing. These horses are apparently well built for the work they do, which looks, and is, VERY collected, and they do not require a big warmup. I noticed the trainer would walk maybe twice around the arena, then trot for a couple minutes and would then begin asking for the exercise, whether it be passage, tempes, side passes, whatever. And always in collection. They would however, after a particularly long session of collection, drop them and let them stretch out. I noticed one horse being worked very hard on the Piaffe (trotting in place). After the exercise that looked very hard, the horse was allowed to trot out for a few strides - like a release.
During the training session we watched, assistant riders working their charges. (No photos allowed inside at that time). There were four 1/2-hour groups of 5 horses trained. Only one horse did airs above the ground and it was only 2 times. He was practiced on the courbette - raising full height on the hind legs and completing a series of jumps forward. One amazing note was the the rider had no stirrups. Later I asked and was told that NONE of the airs are ever ridden with stirrups.
After the training session, we had signed up for a tour of the school. It was wonderful to see the barns which are also in the palace.
There is 3 story courtyard, built by a early king who wanted his son to live in the quarters in the second story, above the horses. The son thought it was too small for living and chose a different home (he was obviously crazy). The whole bottom story is the stalls. Some of the stalls face out into the courtyard, there are two more rows of stall behind those that are facing out. These stalls house a total of 76 stallions - IN the palace which is in the middle of Vienna - just amazing.
We had noticed one beautiful blood bay horse in the training session. We were told it is because it is considered good luck for there to be at least 1 horse "of color" in the stables. They currently have two.
We visited the tack room which was stacked ceiling high with all of the saddles and bridles.
Each has a name plate as every saddle is made custom for each horse and because they are fit for the horse, they require no padding.
There are 1/2 pads that go behind the saddle (seen on the far wall in the frame). The green ones are for those horses that still do only flat work. The red pads are for those horses that can do Airs Above the Ground. Stripes on the pad signify the rank of the trainer, whether assistant or chief.
Two bridles were red and those signified those horses as worked from the ground (long reins).
Finally we went outside and saw the outside training ring, although it was located inside the hot walker. The hot walker was actually a oval shaped building which they put the horses into, seperated by large hanging rubber dividers. The horses are put into the walker loose and between two of these dividers. When the hot walker begins to move, the horse is gently prodded along by the divider. The section they are in is quite a bit longer than they are. When the walker changes direction, the guide said the horses know and will automatically turn around inside their section. You can almost see the arena behind the hotwalker, which goes around the entire perimeter of the arena.
I have much more information and many more photos, but that is all I could fit in here. I have to say it was one of my best days - EVER. I hope to share more with my horse-friends who may be interested.
Becky
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