The year was 1968.
We had moved back to Germany from Canada in 1965. (See previous instalments for details. Click HERE.)
Weekdays, living on the base, I was just another Canadian “Army Brat”. Weekends with my grandparents and other relatives transformed me back into a German girl.
During that time, we travelled extensively throughout Europe. In September, I left home for a different kind of adventure!
Popular that January was “Massachusetts” by The Bee Gees, a group I was fanatic about, and “Love Is All Around” by The Troggs, the first song recorded (from British Forces Radio) on my new tape machine.
I was “13 going on 30”, headstrong and rebellious. My mother and I could not get along.
Par for the course, when you have an independent-minded teenager sharing quarters with a neurotic, perfectionist control freak.
My father’s participation was limited, and he generally went along with whatever my mother wanted. It was easier for him that way.
She kept threatening to send me away to school (the one in Switzerland her friend’s kids were attending), and I started thinking: “Wouldn’t it be nice to get away from here and be able to do what I want?” More about that, later!
There was no spring break trip that year, so we got on each others’ nerves all the more. Mostly, I escaped into music, including these hits:
My mother and I eventually decided that boarding school would be good for both of us. I dreamt of an easy life with lots of freedom, while she, no doubt, was happy for a break from her troublesome daughter.
Off we went to Switzerland that July, with dog in tow, for a preliminary tour. Finally, we agreed on something! This was the ideal solution. (Or, so I thought!)
Her parents had offered to foot the bill (grandfather was a dentist) because my father’s military salary wouldn’t allow for such luxuries. What a beautiful place it was, and I couldn’t wait to move in.
These tunes were getting lots of airplay at the time:
Afterwards, we took an exciting bus tour through the Swiss Alps to the Italian Riviera for a two-week stay.
As you can see on the map, it wasn’t that far, but it certainly took more than the 5 hours shown, as we stopped several times. Picture this: A giant tour bus winding its way through narrow mountain roads. No guardrails and it was a long way down. Better not to look!
Before negotiating a turn, the bus driver would lean on the horn to warn oncoming traffic that he was coming through. Just a little bit hair-raising!
This video (not mine; taken years later) will give you some idea of the beautiful vistas en-route:
The bus tour ended in Milan, and we took a train from there to Finale Ligure, a charming beach resort with a lively nightlife.
Gigi, our little black poodle, was welcomed with open arms at the hotel, and for every meal, we brought her to the dining room. The wait staff asked what she would like to eat, and the food was prepared accordingly. In those days, dog food was not known in Europe and my mother always cooked for Gigi.
The hotel staff also volunteered to dog-sit whenever we wanted to go somewhere without her. We were used to this type of dog-friendly atmosphere in Germany and delighted to find it extended south as well.
We returned to Switzerland in September, the weekend before school started. My mother helped me settle in but left shortly afterwards. As usual, we were not on the best of terms. I sat on the bed for a while, relishing my anticipated freedom.
As it turned out, there was no such thing as freedom on this campus. We were not allowed to go anywhere, except classes and meals, without a chaperone. Not only that, the junior girls’ residence where I lived had bars on the ground floor windows!
The irony was painful, to say the least!
(We did find an escape route, eventually **)
My fellow “inmates” and I bonded over music, sharing our extensive record collections. These were some of the songs popular that fall in Switzerland:
In October, my mother whisked me away from school for a weekend visit with a friend who lived just over the German border in Konstanz, a beautiful city right on the Bodensee (aka Lake Constance in English).
While the two of them caught up, I amused myself by playing records and reading. The views from the 14th-floor condo were spectacular, especially at night.
The other extraordinary things to happen that fall ** were a purported UFO sighting and one of my housemates slashing her wrists. No worries, she survived, but by then, we were all glad to go home for the holidays!
**
About 10 years ago, I wrote a boarding school memoir , with every intention of publishing it. I even went so far as to design a cover!
Unfortunately, the content was too sparse for a book and I didn’t want to fictionalize it. As a result, it’s been confined to “pending rewrite purgatory” ever since.
Now might be a good time to revisit it!
Some excerpts were included in my “Musical Memories” theme for the 2017 A To Z April Blogging Challenge. Click on the titles to view. Shown in chronological order of events:
Where were you in 1968? Join me for some #MusicalMemories! #dogladysden Share on X
This is a continuing series inspired by
“THE SOUNDTRACK OF MY LIFE”
at
It Rains…You Get Wet and Your Daily Dose
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The year was 1969:
A shocking end to the school year and moving continents.
Where were you in 1968?
Any memories you’d like to share?
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Dog Mom and (retired) Canine Innkeeper in suburban Toronto, Canada, known as The Doglady. Former corporate workaholic. Writer, photographer, digital creator. Animal lover, music fanatic, inveterate traveller. Eternal hippie/rockchick. History, literature and cinema buff. Hockey and soccer fan. Dedicated night owl. German/Canadian binational, multilingual. Let me entertain you!
16 thoughts on “THE YEAR WAS 1968 | #MusicalMemories”
DEBBIE ~
Wow! Although I’ve heard it a godzillion times, I never knew that ‘Love Is All Around’ was by The Troggs. It sure was more tame than ‘Wild Thing’! I would have guessed ‘Love Is All Around’ was by Herman’s Hermits or one of those kind of bands.
And that bus ride through the Alps was flat-out gorgeous! My traveling days are pretty much over and done with now, but that’s a trip I would really enjoy. It will never happen because of the time, trouble and expense of getting there. But it was still lovely even just taking the trip through my computer screen.
~ D-FensDogG
Hi Stephen, thanks for coming by! 🙂 The Troggs had an eclectic sound, for sure. One of my favourite British Invasion bands.
“It will never happen because of the time, trouble and expense of getting there.”
Sadly, that pretty much describes the current travel situation for many of us, these days. 🙁
In 1968, I was 15 and spent some of the summer visiting relatives in Iowa and Albany, New York. We had an overnight in Chicago, a month or so before our Democratic (Party) National Convention (which ended up in all kinds of violent clashes with police). Music? I knew all but four of the songs; guessing those songs weren’t popular in the New York City area (where I grew up). The Alps video was interesting but I had to skip here and there – it triggered a little vertigo (something I’m prone to) in me for some reason. Your life is fascinating to me. I’ve never been off the North American continent partially due to a fear of flying.
Chicago is lovely in the summer! Hubby and I went there for a soccer tournament many years ago. Yes, four of the songs are Eurocentric and never made it across the pond. 🙂 If you have vertigo, you don’t want to take a bus tour through The Alps, that’s for sure! Looking back, I guess you could say my life has been interesting. Travel experiences are certainly easier when you’re living in Europe. And, the trains are excellent, so flying can be avoided if you have the time. Thanks for coming by, Alana!
Most of the songs I knew, mainly with a little help from Time Machine (especially Dave Dee and crew). I doubt I would have been fit company on that bus in the mountains! Heck, I’m scared of the heights in my imagination! Listened to the PC too, you have a lovely poetry voice.
I’m impressed you’re familiar with Dave Dee & Co., given they never made it across the pond. But then, you’re more of a musical expert than most! I’m happy to know my voice doesn’t suck. People have been telling me for years I should be on the radio. 😀 Thanks for coming by!
I am so envious that you were travelling all around an area that I just adore. Love the Brenner Pass. The music is excellent and have not heard of some of these in quite a while. Love it and how I wish I could be there right now. It feels like a wonderful dream. I hope you were able to mend the issues you and your mom were having. I would have found an escape route for sure from that school.
Looking back, it does seem rather like a dream, Birgit. I was spoiled and probably didn’t fully appreciate the circumstances at the time. 🙂 Sadly, my mother and I never did get along, but she came to appreciate me a bit more towards the end of her life.
Sounds like you had a fun-filled and action-packed year! Love the songs you picked…
Well, the bars on the windows weren’t much fun. 😉 Otherwise yes, it was an interesting year, with great music. Glad you enjoyed the tunes!
What an interesting life you had, Debbie! I got along with my mom extremely well but not the case with my dad. However, I attended local schools until I went to college, which was my choice. I love how you interject your music selections with your experiences.
Eugenia, I was fortunate to live in Europe. It made travel so much easier! It has been an interesting life, and some amazing memories sustain me in my “old” age. 😉 How wonderful that you and your mother got along! That is something I coveted for years, but it never happened. Thanks for coming by!
Debbie,
I got a chuckle reading how you thought you would have more freedom away from your mom. We always think the grass is greener on the other side but when we get to the said other side we find out that’s not true. The experience although not what you expected must have been an interesting one. Did you keep a journal? Our memories tend to fade a bit but perhaps getting out your memoir to re-read and re-wrote, you might remember some stories to include. Did you keep in contact with any of the girls from those period? It would be awesome to reconnect with them. That surely would help you to recall things that have slipped your mind. Another possibility is to use what you have as part of your teen years memoir. I betcha can fill your book quickly if you include a broader time period. This piece from that time was nice to read and the music just fabulous! In 1968, I turned 7 December of that year. I was too young to have music memories. Doing the math, I figured I must have entered first grade that fall. I was a bit older than the others because my birthday is so late in the year and the schools had cut off when a child could begin. I think schools still do that. I think all of your tunes featured I recall when I was a little older not when they came out. It wasn’t until the mid to late 70s I first heard of the Bee Gees. Feel free to join the 4M crew on the dance floor, my friend. Your story line works well with this week’s theme of end of summer/back to school. ; ) Have a boogietastic week, my dear!
Hi Cathy, you are so right. Expectations are rarely as they seem. 🙂 Unfortunately, I was never a journal-keeper and lost touch with my schoolmates. Good idea to maybe make these chapters part of a longer time period. Thanks for the suggestion! I’m glad you enjoyed the musical memories. Thanks for coming by!
Hi Debbie – interesting to read up about your experiences … especially as my mother with us 3 had driven from England to Como, and then around parts of northern Italy – my father joined us before flying back – he had to work – that was 1963 or so. So I can visualise the scenery … and 1968 I turned 20 … life at home wasn’t easy – so we were up and down – my mother moved to Cornwall and my father had settled in London for a few years before moving further north to the Midlands. Interesting memories … loved your tour and the music you were so enamoured of – thanks for jogging the brain! cheers Hilary
Hi, HIlary. 🙂 Driving from England to Northern Italy must have been an exciting trip! Sounds like you had your own family troubles. Well, I guess most people do. I’m glad you enjoyed this little bit of musical history. Cheers!