Garmisch-Partenkirchen and the Zugspitze

July 26 and 27: Arrived in Garmisch-Partenkirchen via Munich around 11:00 a.m.  Found our hotel (Konigshof Hotel on St. Martin's Strasse), dropped our bags, and headed to the sommerrodelbahn or the summer luge at the Olympic park, site of the 1936 winter games.  Check out Turner's video on the sommerrodelbahn.  Exhilarating! Anna and I rode the luge with the boys, each individually, and then sat for a snack before exploring the park/village.  We happened across the summer ski jump competition (on astro-turf) for international jumpers who seemed to range between 10 and 14 years of age.  Wow!  Brave little Europeans here. Makes swim team looks like, well, play time in the pool.  Took the bus back into town and made sure to end up on the other side of Garmisch so we could walk through town.  Shopped, had dinner, and returned to the hotel exhausted.

 

The next morning, we headed for the Zugspitze or the "Top of Germany," after a great night's sleep and breakfast on the terrace.  The Z is Germany's highest peak, accessible by climbing with serious equipment or by taking the cable car.  We opted for the latter.  From the top, which is the Swiss/German border, we could see Switzerland and Germany, of course, as well as Italy and Austria.  Anna had the good idea to take the glacier gondola/bahn down to a restaurant and hikers' area, which we did.  It paid off!  We got out of the crowd of people, but better still we had a chance to ride sleds on the unmelted snow - in July!  We played in this area for an hour or so, then headed back up to the peak.  Played with the yellow-billed ravens, and descended on the 3:05 gondola.  Caught our train and arrived back at our apartment by 9:00 p.m. Great last weekend in Germany!
 

View of the mountains from Garmisch-Partenkirchen

The Eibsee (from the Gondola ride)

Fishermen's Joust in Ulm

July 21 - Went to the Fishermen's Joust (video link) in Ulm with the students.  One of UTC's former exchange students, Sonja B., showed us her hometown and introduced us to the parade and its related festivities.  

The jousting takes place on the Danube with 16 jousting pairs in historic costumes.  Each represents an historical figure/character from the town or from the town's folklore.  These include the sparrow, the tailor, the farmer, the farmer’s wife, the White Fishermen, a pair of jesters, the King of Baden-Württemberg, the King of Bavaria, and more. 


The protagonists are carried from each of the opposing banks of the Danube by boatmen in barges called Zilles. On this second weekend of the FJ, the King of Baden-Württemberg and the King of Bavaria were the final contestants.  (They'd won the most jousts.)  This was fitting since the Danube separates Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.  The crowds on both banks were thrilled to cheer for their respective, albeit former, leaders. In the end, the King from Baden-Württemberg won.  This was especially important to Sonja since Ulm is in that state.  


Karen and Ivo came down from Augsburg and stayed with us all afternoon.  Great to see her again!

Esslingen with Anna and Jude

July 20 - Esslingen with Anna and Jude.  Esslingen is a wonderful, little town on the outskirts of Stuttgart.  It's only 20 minutes from our apartment.  Turner went to the skatepark today to hang with friends.  Anna, Jude and I took in Esslingen, which was unscathed during WWI and WWII.  Half-timbered homes and cobblestone streets.  The skywalker (pic 4) represents the link between the town's rich history and the modern age.  Home of the Kessler winery and a terrific lunch on the old town square.

Rhudesheim, Rhine Valley and the Loreley

July 17 - Took a trip with the students through the beautiful Rhine River valley.  We traveled from Stuttgart (8:00 a.m.) to Rhudesheim (had lunch with Rick) and then caught the boat.  Amazing views of castles, vineyards, and more.  Many of the castles are privately owned now, but they still permit public tours and usually offer snacks or drinks. Ended at the infamous Loreley (without incident) and spent some time in St. Goarshausen.  Walked to the top of the Loreley and admired the view.

Return to Freiburg after 21 years

Saturday (7/13):  Two-hour drive, mostly on the autobahn (A8 and A5), to Freiburg.  What a rush!  

We arrived around 12:30 at Birgit's house.  She'd prepared a huge spread for us.  We met her wonderful family--Leonard and Leonie--and sat down to breads, meats, cheeses, banana milk, tofu (made by Wolfgang, her partner), yogurt, berries, coffee and more.  So much food!  This is very customary as we were her guests for the day/night, so she did it up in true form.  It was good to see my friend again.  She's very happy, has remodeled her home (second floor of her mother's home), and has two beautiful children.  Leonie is simply beautiful.  Both boys agreed!  And Leonard is a character--19 years old, good English, works hard and plays harder, I think.

We headed into town--from Um Kirch, Birgit's little town just outside of F'burg--where we parked in the tiniest parking garage I've ever seen.  Glad I purchased the additional insurance on the car.  Walked the streets of Freiburg, shopped a bit (Leonie's choice), took pics of Cafe Atlantik (where I spent too much time and money as a student), ascended the Munster's tower (huge Gothic cathedral), visited Bertoldsbrunnen (statue in the town center), and walked the route I used to take on my way to class, including the Martins-Tur which still has a McDonald's located right next to it.

  

Returned to Birgit's to look at Facebook pages--mine, hers, Anna's, the kids'--and talked about what we've been up to the last 20 years.  Dinner that night (10:00 p.m.) at a little cafe in Um Kirch.  Great day and great night!  It was good to be back in Freiburg, especially with Anna and the boys.  It was a thrill to show them where I'd studied and traveled so long ago.

Sunday (7/14):  Big breakfast after sleeping in a bit, followed by a trip into the Black Forest and up to Schauinsland.  We hiked down to an old farm house/museum where we had lunch, including sausages, bread, cheese, and wine, and took a tour (in German) through the old house and its many tiny rooms.  Reminded me/us of the farm, though it was about 100 years older.  The kitchen area was really the site of all family activity.  It's a stube or parlor area where they would eat, talk, sleep, etc.  In the winter, it was the warmest area in the house because of the oven/fire, so it made sense that they would all congregate there.

  

Hiked up to the top again and took in the view out across the Schwartzwald/Black Forest, the Rhine Valley, Freiburg (off in the distance), France to our west, etc.  Impressive! 

Headed down, stopped off for either cake or spaghetti (Birgit's options for us), and packed things up at her house.  The boys swam in the basement pool briefly before we headed out for the autobahn once again.  Returned to S'gart around 9:00 p.m. 

Rhine Falls, Lake Constance/Bodensee and the Meersburg Castle

Rhine Falls: Rick (left), our 8 students, me

Thursday, 7/12:  Terrific field trip with the students and family yesterday.  Started early by meeting at the Hauptbahnhof (transportation station) for a 7:58 a.m. train to Schaffhausen.  Anna, the boys, and I met Rick and the students there as they came down from Ludwigsburg/Favorite Park.  The students, it seems, run on about 3 hours of sleep per night.  Incredible!  To be young(er) again.

Upon our arrival in Schaffhausen, we swapped a few euros for Swiss francs and caught the bus.  Destination Rhine Falls. From our bus stop, we walked a few minutes to the amazing falls.  Stunning, powerful, romantic, sublime... all that and more.  This ain't no "Rock City"!

Anna and the boys found the falls equally impressive.  In fact, we took the boat ride out to the rock overlook in the middle of the falls.  You can see people (tiny) atop the rock (left) as well as the view from the rock itself (right).  What a roar!  Both visually and audibly spectacular.

  

  

From the Rhine Falls, we took the train to the Bodensee/Lake Constance, a.k.a. Germany's Riviera.  Wow!  Beautiful weather, sunny day, sailboats, stunning views!  We caught the ferry (and a beer) across to Meersburg to see the castle (below, left).

Rick Steve's moment alert (you know, the travel guy on t.v.) - The Meersburg Castle was founded by the Merovingian king, Dagobert the First, in the 7th Century.  From that century on, it's been added to, updated, attacked, and more, so its architecture and decor move from the middle ages (including the "hole of fear" torture chamber and dungeon) through the more guest-friendly Renaissance. Within the castle is Annette von Droste-Hulshoff's living/bed room, which was also where she died at 52.  She is one of Germany's great poets of the 19th Century and was on the 20 Deutsche Mark bill/bank note until Germany adopted the euro.  By the size of her bed, she was a rather petite thing.  Poets, I suppose, can't afford grand living.  The views, however, from the castle out across Lake Constance are quite rich.  She had much to inspire her in Meersburg.  

Turner and Jude looking out across the Bodensee from Meersburg.

Arrived back in Stuttgart (exhausted) at 11:00 p.m.  A full day of history, fun and food.  

Great weekend here in Stuttgart!

Friday:  We took in the Marienplatz Music Fest!  Dutch rock 'n' roll band played and sounded a lot like Of Monsters and Men.  Their encore was, of all things, Rocky Top.  Surreal!

Anna tried a vegan wurst.  I stuck with the more traditional (and tasty) bratwurst.  Rick and the students showed up around 1:00 and we all took the incline train (rack rail) up from Marienplatz to a little community and an overlook of Stuttgart.  Beautiful views!

Bought Jude a scooter so he can get around as quickly and easily as Turner on the skateboard.

Did laundry in the neighboring apartment (with Eva's permission) since it was available for the weekend and has a washing machine.

Saturday:  Walked to the Staatgalerie for the Edward Munch exhibit.  It seems that the gallery's curators and partners enjoyed Munch's work even while he was alive and had therefore assembled a stunning collection over the decades.  The boys enjoyed it and were very patient.

Headed back toward the city center (Stadt Mitte) and came across the Saturday flea market.  I bought a German-made stein.  (Original price was 15 euros; I paid 8.  It seems the Germans like to haggle as much as Americans, but I think I got the better deal.)  Ate at an Italian-themed restaurant and continued to shop.  The indoor market was right next to the restaurant, so we went through.  Bought some chocolates and gummies.

The boys went to the basketball park and the skatepark in the evening.  Anna and I ate at Mezzogiorno, a nice Italian place 5 minutes from our apartment.

Finished the night with a game of Uno.  We renamed it Eins (or "One" in German).  The boys made Anna say the numbers and colors in German each time she played a card.  She's learning more all the time.  Went to bed exhausted!

Sunday:  We took the train to Bad Connstatt (short ride) to watch Turner participate in the amateur skateboard competition. While others were in church, we were watching Turner compete with his international skate brethren--a.k.a. hooligans.  After two hours of warm ups, the organizers started the competition.  Imagine 50 sweaty, teenage boys, a warehouse building, an emcee, and an announcer on a terrible p.a. system.  Chaos!  He liked it though.  We all had a unique and wonderful experience.
 

Made it back to our 'hood and took in Hotzenplotz, our new favorite restaurant for dinner.  Again... exhausted at the end of the day.