TRIVIA

THIS AND THAT TRIVIA

In 1683 fleeing Turks left behind bags of coffee beans, after their second attempted invasion. The Viennese soldiers thought they were fodder for the camels and were about to burn them. However, King Jim Sobieski gave the beans to one of his officers, George Franz Kohchetsky. He roasted the beans and opened the first kaffeehaus in the Vienna. The coffee (black soup) spread rapidly and as they say the rest is history.

When escalators were installed in Harrods in 1980 people were skeptical about riding them.After a little brandy was offered to shoppers, people slowly started to use the escalators. The brandy wasn’t offered for very long.

In New Zealand the Barossa Valley is referred to as a hung valley because one end of the valley is 450-feet lower than the other end.

It was a strange but, common sight, to see cows grazing with bobbed tails in New Zealand. This is common practice as the cows tend to swat the milker with its tail. Some kind of organism in the cow’s urine cased illness so the farmers solved the whole problem by cutting off the tail of their cows.

In France coffee follows a meal, and you might as well get used to it as it is nearly impossible to get coffee served with a meal.

Also in France City Halls are referred to as hotels which can be confusing for the 

unsuspecting tourist.

In Costa Rica tiled floor porches are common and a sign of one’s wealth. A great deal of pride is wrapped up in these lovely tiled floors and they are always kept clean.

The only bridges I’ve run into where there are shops on the bridge are the Realito Bridge in Venice and the Pultney Bridge in Bath, England. At one time it was a fairly common occurrence.

The hot air balloon ride in Kenya over the Masai Mara was not my first balloon ride, but it was an exciting one. We were awakened, in what I think of as the middle of the night, for the early morning flight.

    The balloon rose up into the sky just as the sun peeked over the horizon. Floating over the Mara the only noise breaking the incredible silence was the occasional swoosh of the helium being pumped up into the balloon. The swooshing noise did not seem to bother the animals below. We floated right over their heads, so the animals were not dwarfed by height.

    With no roads, the support van was able to follow the balloon to the landing site shortly after the balloon descended into an open field. In record time a galley appeared and a delightful champagne brunch, including eggs to order, was enjoyed. What a delightful morning!