So, we went to Vienna. I slept on the train, in the hostel, napped a few times each day, and slept on the train back. We did step foot out of the room and had quite a jolly time. However, even with the beautiful places we saw and the abundance of laughter we shared while out and about nothing, and I truly mean nothing will be such a lasting and laughable memory as our roommate.
The three of us girls shared a hostel room meant for four. We though we might be lucky and not have a fourth, but we were wrong. Just as Becky said something about there only being 3 pillows in the room in walks an Australian... guy. He was pretty cool, and along with this other guy we'd met on the metro, we all shared a few drinks (age and health appropriate ones) downstairs and played some foosball and shot pool before the healthy adults went out to a club - the kid and I retired to our room.
Before I go any further I must let you know that the Australian who shall forever be known as Vegemite laughingly, and in passing, mentioned to me that he used to sleepwalk, talk in his sleep, and sometimes get up and do things while he slept. In the past. Right. Wrong.
After safely returning to the hostel intact and unharmed Becky and Vegemite went to sleep - I was still awake as the stupid combination of opiate/amphetamine medication hadn't quite worked its way out of my system. I did manage to doze off however and was truly grateful for the rest... which lasted about an hour and a half.
At that point, Boy Wonder from Down Under fell out of his top bunk. In his sleep. Not being familiar with sleepwalkers, especially ones who claim to no longer sleep walk, I didn't understand the situation... and when he stumbled the few steps and sat down on the foot of my bed, doubled over, in what I perceived to be pain, I had no reason to think that in his mind he had just walked the distance from his bed to his bathroom. No reason at all until there was the sound of liquid steaming on to a hard surface.... actually, even then I didn't quite grasp the situation - I thought he was bleeding for an instant - but only an instant. I tried to reach out, find a light, check what was going on, etc, yet Becky warned me to be careful since he was still asleep - apparently she has a lot more experience with sleepwalkers than I have. We talked at him but he just mumbled at us to shut up, shut up, shut up without ever hearing us...
After he finished tinkling he stood up, stumbled back in to the lockers, knocked the fan across the room, threw open the bedroom door and started pacing the hostel hallway, mumbling to himself, until he finally turned in his tracks and disappeared.
A few moments went by with the three of us in a state of shock. It was all quite a bit surreal. And then we got up, not the youngster, she stayed safely tucked in bed, and surveyed the damage... the edge of my duvet was damp, the Kid's shoes were wet, a strap on our large pack, and a giant puddle of sterilized beer was on the floor. At about this point Vegemite walked back in, climbed back in to his bunk, and was out - again.
This time, since he was no longer walking/talking/peeing we woke him and explained what had happened.... he seemed a little unclear about the extent of it all, however, and buried himself in his pillow, quite clearly expressing he just wanted to die at that exact moment. We found his towel to clean up, I stripped my bedding and switched it out for his dry stuff, and after he promised to buy her new shoes and us all breakfast we all went back to bed.
Well, when we woke up he had to have it all explained to him all over again as he'd jumbled it up in his head and wasn't quite sure it had happened... he was quite rightfully mortified but carried it off like a champ - finished dealing with his mess, and even though he forgot about treating us all to breakfast, we did in fact all eat together - actually he spent the day with us, rested in the later afternoon, and then joined us for a dinner out, too.
Before he left he did give the Kid 50 Euros for new shoes - but being the honest and frugal person she is she gave him 20 Euros back, telling him that since the shops were closed both Sunday and Monday she'd have to buy her shoes in Prague and she could get what she wanted for 30.
We went to some palaces, took lots of goofy pictures, took lots of naps, saw some amazing places, walked over the Danube, and came back home. I'm still sick, still on a ridiculous amounts of stuff, and being treated, again, for pneumonia. I have to wait another week for more breathing tests as the doctor wants a better baseline to work with - right now I'm too asthmatic for anything useful. I'm super glad I went - the air was a bit cleaner and a little easier to breathe in Austria - and the company was excellent. The Kid is a champ and Becky is.... well, Beckomo. Vienna is beautiful.
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