Jennica & Matthew Geddert's Ramblings

Sep 10 Ferry to Venice by Matthew

The ferry from Patras to Venice was chosen for its speed and simplicity: no navigation, no gasoline, no border crossings - just 32 hours on the windy deck of a large ferry with the car tucked away in its bowels. Throughout our first night we were frequently awoken by a pack of Teenaged Unashamed Ridiculous Drunken Singers (acronym fully intended) with Czech accents butchering bad popular modern English music.

We slept fitfully as they sang on and eschewed all requests to be quiet. By the second night, after the pleas of the majority of passengers could no longer be ignored, a person from the crew had this discussion with them (in English, the only common langauge between the two groups).

Sailor: These families are trying to sleep. Please be quiet.

Singers: We tried to hang out over there (on the port side) but there are people sleeping (who were tough looking bikers).

Sailor: Please be quiet.

Singers: Listen, we are outside. We can do whatever we want. It's our right to do whatever we want outside.

Sailor: But this is a boat (points his arm over the starboard rail) - that's outside!

The singers disbanded and we slept the rest of the night in peace, bundled in our sleeping bags with the what seemed like gale force sea winds passing over us.

When we woke up we were in Venice.