Change please (Day 5)

It was in Munich that I finally started to see some wares in the holiday markets that I wanted to purchase. We had already been in the Kaufhof (department store) and I got some chocolate. Now I was ready to try my hand at the markets.

Some of you know that I speak a little German, and I was determined to practice as much as I could that day. I stumbled through the purchase of some lace crocheted ornaments, forgetting the word for Christmas tree of all things, but I got my ornaments, and paid with dreissig euro (30 euro) for the bill of acht-und-zwanzig euro (28 euro). Then I happened upon a booth with intricately painted metal ornaments.

I was able to tell the lady that I wanted the representation of the wooden carousels throughout the markets. She told me that would be 12 euro. I handed her 20 and she handed me the ornament. I put the ornament in my bag and walked away, very smug about being able to communicate in German.

I was two booths down before I realized I forgot my change. I scrambled back to the booth and composed a sentence in my head "Ich habe mein zuruckgeld vergessen" which is literally I've forgotten my back money. There's another word for change, but I haven't the faintest idea what it is.

Those ladies had a good laugh at the American, but they gave me my 8 euros back. It's tough being a stranger in a strange land.

Money and time (Day 6)

Our arrival into Zurich was gray and cold. There is some interesting reformation history here that I was unaware of, but my primary mission was to get a hat. I had lost mine between my room and the bus in Munich. But first, I needed some Swiss Francs.

We had a quick orientation to the town around the Bahnhof (train station). The Christmas market was set up right inside the station, and the main street with the money machines opened up the hill. I have to say, it is something else to witness the mass transit systems in European cities. None of this one hour for a 20-minute trip stuff. But I digress.

I started up the street looking for that ATM. I saw plenty of banks, but it was several blocks before I saw an ATM.

"I wish Kay were here," I thought to myself. It was on the first day in Vienna that Kay had spotted all the things that we were looking for. She was a good luck charm, of she paid attention.

But soon I stumbled upon a Credit Suisse (ironic) ATM and got my 100 Francs. I turned up a side street with painted buildings, cobblestone streets, cafes, and plenty of window displays. I had noticed that everyone in Zurich wore either black or gray, and boots. I was really mis-dressed in the American standby, jeans and tennis shoes. So I stopped at a display of boots.

This next part is in jest. I thought maybe a good pair of boots would help me fit in in Switzerland. I saw a pair I liked and looked at the price - 260 francs, marked down from 390! (Multiply by .85 for American dollars.)

Needless to say, no boots for Robin. (Scott, you can laugh at that.)

I turned back on the main street and headed back to the Bahnhof - I needed to get that hat - and ran right into Kay and Bill. They were going on a walk around the city, would I like to join them?

"Sure, but I need a hat first," I said. Kay said she'd walk around the market with me, and Bill set about finding us a route around the city.

Like I said, Kay is a good luck charm. We found a hat booth within 5 minutes, and there was the perfect hat - a red crocheted cap with a little brim hanging with the black hats. I bought it and told Kay she was my good luck charm.

"I bet you could have found an ATM for me too," I said.

"Well yes, there's one right in the exchange office."

That'll teach me to strike out on my own looking for money. That Kay would have saved me a lot of time.

Welcome to Switzerland (Day 6)

We had driven across the border between Germany and Austria a couple of time in the last two days. It was no different than going from North Carolina to Virginia (well, a little different - the road pavement didn't change). But they are both members of the European Union, and today we were going to Switzerland, which isn't.

We stopped at the border on the Austrian side (we crossed into Austria on the highway), but the Austrians didn't want to stamp us goodbye. The Swiss, however, are usually another story, our guide, Neil, said. We drove up about 100 feet and stopped at the border to Switzerland (I guess the in between is the DMZ, or maybe the de-chocolated zone). Typically the Swiss like to check passports, but that wasn't the case today.

"Maybe it's too cold," Neil said.

"Neil, get them to check, you don't know how hard it is to get a Swiss visa," said a fellow traveler, this one from the Dominican Republic.

"You can go and tell them," Neil said to a bus full of laughs.

Day 5 - in Munich

I was a tad sick when we arrived in Munich, but some medicine and a good breakfast got me awake and going. We boarded the bus for a quick tour around the city and found out the tour to the Augsberg Christmas markets had been canceled. So it was a full day in Munich, starting with a dropoff in a museum square a couple blocks from the main square.

We walked into town and stopped at the Marienplatz where the city hall and the famous glockenspiel is. The plaza was busy with shoppers, but we got a quick overview and then took a walk to the Hofbrauhaus. The famous beer hall had a few patrons at 10 a.m., a couple of them drinking huge beers. The paintings on the ceiling were pretty cool, and it felt like a fun place to drink beer with friends.

Back to the Marienplatz to set off for the Peterskirche. We quietly stepped inside sanctuary. I have to tell you, the churches in Europe, at least the ones that I saw, were amazing. We were looking for the stairs to the tower, which turned out to be around the corner. It cost 1,50 Euro to climb the stairs - can you imagine paying to climb 256 or so stairs?

We did, and Tanya and I let all the guys go ahead of us. It was grueling and cold, but periodically we could see the city through a small, barred window. The views were amazing, so we kept going.

At the top, it was windy and cold. The views were breathtaking - all the orange roofs, a great view of the Frauenkirche, and the Marienplatz with the markets and tourists and the glockenspiel. Many of my Munich pictures are from this vantage point.

We'd decided to stick around to see the 11:00 performance of the glockenspiel. That's a pretty cool thing to see, and there's a short clip posted with my pictures. After about 10 minutes of chimes and spinning figurines, we started the climb down, which was much easier than up.

Once back on the ground, we did some shopping, at the shops and the markets. I finally was able to get a few things to share with others. We grabbed a quick bite at one of the food stands - a brat with bread. I even ordered in German, though the person at the booth asked me all the questions in English! And a mug of Gluwein to wash it down. It was a great afternoon - a little windy and cold, but Munich was very comfortable for me. By the way, these are my partners in crime from the Maria's Bridge trip.

That night everyone went back to the Hofbrauhaus and out to a Bavarian dinner. I still wasn't feeling great, so I stayed in. It helped me get ready for our early departure to Switzerland the next day.

The most beautiful day, part 3 (Day 4)

Once on the other side of the gate, the path through the snow was apparent, so we started walking. I have to give credit for this hike to my travelmates Gary and Tanya, without whom I would not have summoned the nerve to disobey a Danger Sign. We had seen people on the bridge earlier, but still...

As we trudged up the slippery path, I was struck by the quietness and the beauty of the way. This was why I had come to Germany at Christmas. And it was from this point forward that I started enjoying the season, not just the sights and sounds.

We stopped at a few points along the way; there were some different views of the castle, the valley and Hohenschwangau castle. The path continued up to a road, where we climbed around another gate, encountered a group walking on the road, and continued on the more cleared path.

It was after about five minutes that Gary realized we were going the wrong way. Good thing, because I would have walked all the way to the valley on that road. At the top of the hill, we saw the path we should have continued on - it also had a big Danger sign and gate in front of it. I don't know how we missed it.

This path was cleared save a coating of snow and free of the ice slicks on the other trail. We came around the corner to the bridge, walked onto it and were greeted by the family from Singapore.

"What took you so long, did you get lost?" they said. Haha. Very funny. I guess they had seen us climb the wall and decided to go after us.

This view was literally perfect. It seemed very unreal to be standing in a place where photographs are often taken of what was a finalist for the new seven wonders of the world.




The sound of rushing water came from below, so I had to take this shot looking down.



The journey back was less eventful but still beautiful. We started down the mountain, pausing at the stand selling snowballs (fried bread coated in powdered sugar) and gluwein. At the bottom of the hill, we looked around the town a little before boarding the bus to Oberamergau.

I'm tempted to do a part 4 on this, but I think this day has been long enough :) The trip to the town with the painted buildings took about 45 minutes, and you all must see it. It is famous for its performance every 10 years of the passion play, thanks for being spared from the plague hundreds of years ago. Its shops have beautiful hand-made items that I should have purchased more of. I was getting tired, and we were soon back on the road to Munich.

What a beautiful day.

The most beautiful day, part 2 (Day 4)

Part 2
The Castle

(picking up at the castle door)

The courtyard of the castle is where the tours line up to await departure. The buildings of the castle rose all around us, stairs and rooftops covered in snow. To the left was an opening in the wall, and you could see up close the snow-covered trees dotting the mountainside. In the distance, a line and some curves of white snow gave form to a bridge over a deep gorge and mountain waterfall. Many pictures of Neuschwanstein are taken from this bridge, Mary's Bridge.

On the opposite side of Mary's Bridge, we actually saw some people either camping or mountain climbing or both. It was strange to see the black dots moving up the hillside, and we all had some good laughs at their imagined purpose.

Soon, 11:00 came and it was our turn to tour the castle. We filed through the entry line space and immediately began a climb up some stairs. We came out on the second floor of the castle and walked past the servants quarters. Through the gaps in the thick wooden boards, we could see rough-cut but highly lacquered tables and chairs. Against the walls on the other side were beds. The room was all brown, white and shades of tan.

We came into the hallway and our guide told us a few things. I was looking around at the numerous decorated archways, views through thick glass windows, and detail on the hallway walls. The castle was never finished, as King Ludwig was declared incompetent by his countrymen. But the legacy of his Cinderella-inspiring castle brings many dollars and euro to the region of Bavaria.

Next was the throne room, with mosaic floor, bronzed and jeweled chandelier, columns, and artwork all the way to the ceiling. The raised platform at one end of the room lacked a throne. Still, the room inspired awe.

King Ludwig's bedroom was at least as big as my upstairs, complete with a reading area window seat, a private chapel and even a bathroom. The walls in this bedroom were carved wood paneling decorated with wooden columns and icons. This room opened into a cavelike hallway, which was designed to resemble something that I can't remember.

Up some more stairs to the fourth floor, which was frighteningly chilly. We came into the concert hall. This was a rectangular room that must have been 20 or more feet tall, at least it seemed that way. But instead of the gilded trim, glass chandeliers and lots of light, white features, this room felt more comfortable. Patterns in rose pinks, blues, greens and golds traipsed up the walls, around windows and columns, and along the wood paneled ceiling. The paintings around the stage featured likenesses from Wagner's Lohengrin. Around the right and back sides of the room stretches a balcony, which appears to be as richly decorated.

Here ends our tour of the castle, which words really aren't enough to describe. I'll see if I can find some pictures to link you to, as it really is worth seeing yourself. It had a sense of royalty, but also the hearty welcoming feeling endemic to the Bavarian state of Germany.

This trip was well worth the wait, and the exit through the gift shop was highly tempting. But there was that walk to the bridge that a few of us wanted to take, so we exited the building and turned toward the path, which was blocked with a gate proclaiming "Danger, no entry."

Well, the guy in the courtyard told us we'd have to ignore these signs to get to the bridge. I guess the only thing to do was climb over the wall and around the gate.

Pictures

Uncut, unedited, unlabeled pictures from this trip:

http://picasaweb.google.com/robindeacle

All mixed up

Hey you all, I have been having a great time in Europe and appreciate your comments. I hope you'll all understand when I need to eat PB and J instead of going out.

I have lots more to post, but not a lot of time to post it. I'll try to get back in here tomorrow afternoon (morning your time) and type some more up.

Right now I am in Lucerne. I am headed to the Mount Pilatus sky cab tomorrow at noon and on a river cruise for the closing dinner tomorrow night. Lucerne is especially beautiful as promised, but SEHR expensive. The Swiss love their money, and apparently everyone else's too.

I have no idea what day it is, but i know you all are working hard to get ready for christmas. Don't stress too much and I will see you all soon.

RD

On the Road Again - Exactly (Day 6)

Obviously I have arrived in Switzerland, where we're told all about the exacting nature of the Swiss. So exacting it is that, on the way out of Zurich, we were in a line of traffic. A left-turn lane opened up, and a car had moved over to turn. Its left wheel was as close to the white-striped median as it could get without touching. And there it sat, until the light to go straight turned green and the traffic moved, enable him to 'legally' get in the turn lane.

As the Swiss say, rules are rules.

The Most Beautiful Day - Part 1 (Day 4)

The wakeup call came too early after the loud, smoke-filled night in Innsbruck (this is immediately following that wedding reception). Kellie and I had barely 30 minutes to shower and pack our bags for pickup. We stumbled downstairs to work our way through breakfast by 7:15 to be on the bus for takeoff by 7:30. The coffee was bad, and it was not a good morning.

(Kellie is my roommate from Australia, and bags have to be to the coach 1 hour before leaving)

Soon we were navigating twisting, winding narrow, snow-framed roads over the mountains. Fortunately, I was two seats back from the front, as I understand it often appeared that the bus was driving where there was no road.


We were destined for Höhenschwangau and the castle Neuschwanstein. The nearly two-hour journey was accompanied throughout by snow, and we were informed that the temperature was -8 degrees celsius. It was a winter wonderland to be enjoyed from the comfort of a bus. We saw beautiful guesthouses along the way built in the typical Bavarian style.

We came down onto a plain or into a valley past some timbered houses and had our first look at the castle, its white exterior acting as camouflage against the snow covered mountains. Only its gold-colored trim belied its presence.

You all have to understand, I am fairly obsessed with this castle. We used to watch films in German class, I read about it, and I have a framed 1500 piece puzzle hanging in my bedroom. As I stood in line for the carriage ride to the top of the hill, even the frigid temperatures didn't dull my nervousness. What if this wasn't all that I expected?

Fortunately, the people on my carriage were a funny lot, cracking jokes about the racehorses pulling us up the hill. (It was about the same speed as walking, but much less tiring. Much less.) We disembarked, and set off for a 10 minute uphill both ways walk to the castle door.

The first view I had of the castle was the view in my pictures. The red brick front wall with the white main building behind. I walked to the wooden gate and stepped inside.


(Part 2 - The Castle; Part 3 - Taking a Chance)

Das Autobahn - Day 6

Today we started the day in Munich on the road to Zurich. We got to drive on the famous no-speed-limit highway, the Autobahn. (You all know how much I loved that). On the way into the city, I was tired and a little less able to appreciate the Audis, BMWs and Mercedes zooming by our bus.

As I said, there are no speed limits, but our bus is limited to 100 Kilometers per hour, about 55 mph. There are recommended limits, but it was not unusual to see a highpowered car zip by at 200 kph. It's fun to see those big cars stretch their legs, and fun to see new names like Peugot and Opel. But disconcerting to see one zipping by labeled 'KIA'

The Blue Danube

While in Vienna (Wien to the locals), you learn that the city still adores its imperial roots. And it loves its musicians.

How to explain that every concert in Vienna ends with the Blue Danube Waltz (followed by the Radetsky March, when everyone gets up and leaves). That in the middle of one of the many parks is a gold statue of Strauss surrounded by marble. That nearly every night at multiple places in the city, you can hear the music of Strauss and Mozart. It's even played by musicians on the street.

The palaces are no longer the center of government, their gilded trimmings too expensive to keep up. Some are let as apartments or rented as office space. The churches are constantly undergoing renovation. And the city no longer has the tax revenue of an empire to fund elaborate facades and their upkeep.

But the music and the river continue. How appropriate that the city honors its history and the river that created it as often as possible.

Well, my browser window says 'fertig' at the bottom, and that I am, done. Maybe I can clean that up later.

Your newspaper's ringing

I had just arrived in a strange airport in, to me, a strange land. I cleared customs with little problem and no speaking. I had my bag from baggage claim. Everyone around me was speaking a different language, but the signs were pretty easy to follow.

I'd about made it to the terminal to meet my tour group when I saw a brilliant orange sign: Ihre Zeitung Klingen (OK, maybe not perfect grammar, but close.)

This translates literallz to Your newspaper is ringing. Given the situation, I thought I had underestimated my situation. Maybe it was a little much to think I could travel by myself in a foreign country, as the members of my group I met in baggage claim reminded me.

Fortunately, I saw the word mobil on the bottom of this brilliant orange sign. This was an upstart newspaper offering to deliver a newspaper subscription to your cell phone. Order was restored to my world.

Excuse me, but, your newspaper is ringing.

A long day

Not only that, but I am typing on some kind of German keyboard. Watch out for random ZZZs.

Today we started bright and early. It was too dark to get a picture of the Danube before leaving Vienna. We went through the Vachau (sp?) valley, saw a couple of abbeys, and ended in Salzburg for a quick walking tour. As it was Saturday, the market was packed. And there was a wedding in the Mirabell gardens when we were there. You all will remember this from the Sound of Music where the von Trapp children sang Do Re Mi. We saw from afar a couple other significant places in the movie.

We toured the Christmas markets, and I got a couple of things. I don't think that we are spending enough time in them to do anything but impulse buy, and I got past that a long time ago.

So then on to Innsbruck. We crossed into Germany unimpeded, and unimpeded back into Austria. This wasn't always possible. We learned lots of history, skiing stars, and other things. We also had the privilege of traveling through snow covered valley with huge snow-covered peaks on either side. I can't even begin to tell you how amazing this was. Many of us just stared out the window open-mouthed.

In Innsbruck we looked at the landmark and ran through the Christmas market there. It was the best of the ones so far, except the part in Salzburg that was not part of the main church market.

OK, so then we went to the hotel, had dinner, and went out for a Tyrolean entertainment evening. So we started at 7 30 and ended at 10 30, and we start again tomorrow at 7 30.

I have some other things to write, but it's late, the keyboard is screwy, and there is a wedding reception here where they just finished singing Achey Brakey heart in German. I am not kidding. The smoke that has thoroughly permeated the lobby and every cell in my body has not addled my brain. That much.

Schonbrun Palace

Not sure if this is the way to spell it. I'll correct later.

So imagine you rule an empire that takes up a good part of Europe and Asia, and you have the central government with all these gorgeous buildings in Vienna. It gets so hot in the summer, and space is so tight that you need a summer home for gardens and entertaining - 144 guests.

Well 144 is at least the number of rooms at Schonbrun Palace. We saw the ballroom, some dens, drawing rooms, VIP rooms, dining and tea rooms and the state bedroom. The royal children are all born in the state bedroom, so the servants can't switch kids with the royal princes and princesses.

The trim in the castle is all gold overlaid on wood. While 4.5 kg for the whole castle is less than it sounds, it is still worth more than I can handle. And pictures of these castles look ornate to the point of gaudiness, in person they are just rich and beautiful. In a room with a 16-foot ceiling, you almost need that much deoration on the walls.

Anyway, I have postcards and a book from here. You all are welcome to see when I come home, or if I have a chance to upload some pictures later.

Es Schneit im Wien!

That's German for it's snowing in Germany. I think.

Today it is snowing. What a great way to get in the mood for Christmas. We saw two markets today, and with only an hour and a half total at the two, I wonder whether the tour actually gets money to take us there or not :)

Anyway, the markets are much like the craft fairs in the states - Bizarre Bazaar or the Neptune Festival or Craftsman's Classic. Neat carved things, glass things, spinny things, sparkly things, etc. Lots of food and alcohol, which is essential to staying warm. Today I had punch, which tasted like hot whiskey. I think I am still feeling the effects, as I can't type.

Later it's on to the Strauss and Mozart concert, and after walking all around the Burg Theatre looking for Cafe Zentrum, I will not stray far for dinner. That experience is worth a whole post, so I will save for later.

This truly has been a great trip so far. I will feel very equipped to come back and plan my own time here in the future.

Blogging in German

I logged into make this post, and the instructions are all in German. What fun.

I have just gotten back from dinner at the Auguststeinerkeller, and traditional Vienese restaurant. We had winter soup, schnitzel and streudel with plenty of beer.

After arrival and check in today, a couple of tourmates and I went to the Center city and walked around. We saw the Stephensdom platz and Kirche, had coffee and dessert at Cafe Sacher and poked our heads in a few shops. We got a driving tour of the city tonight.

I will be attending the tour of the Schonbrun palace tomorrow morning, doing some mroe sightseeing, shopping at the markets, and then going to a hayden/mozart concert. Tomorrow I should be too tired to think at this time.

It is hard to believe that I am really here. This architecture is absolutely amazing. I have a couple good vignettes to tell when this doesn't cost .35 euro a minute.

Let me hear from you

Commenting is now enabled for this blog. Tell me hello if you get a minute, or you can e-mail me too.

T minus 7 hours

Today's the day!

I was a little nervous last night because it was getting later and later and I had so much to do. But once the laundry was done and I got the socks in my suitcase and carry-on, everything looked much brighter. (I also put all the dishes in the top rack of the dishwasher and ran it instead of hand washing.)

Everything fit in my suitcase, and I even stuffed some extras in - lotion, a couple books and extra socks. The second pair of shoes was not as difficult as I thought it would be. My carry-on bag, however, proved to require a couple of re-packs to get it right. Now I have my clothes in the bottom, my in-flight entertainment in the middle, my travel documents on top, and my one, one-quart clear plastic bag of bottles of liquid on top of that. I may even re-pack before I finally take off.

I also had to do an inordinate amount of Web surfing last night to find out if I could crochet on the plane - well whether I could bring a needle and scissors. Turns out the answer is yes, for all of you who want to know.

Charlie is safe at a friend's house, hopefully not making too much noise, and my house is cleaner than it has been in probably a couple years. So I'm ready to go, and I'll talk to you all from Vienna.

Snow in Vienna

Vienna, Munich and Zurich are all forecast to have snow on Wednesday. (I arrive on Thursday.)

Now if Rebecca will keep her head down, I should get there fine. North Carolina can have its 70 degrees this week!

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Every day, it's a getting closer

... Going faster than a roller coaster ...

THREE DAYS FROM NOW I'LL BE IN EUROPE!

OK, I'll be on a plane headed that way, but forward progress counts for something. I can't think of another thing that I need to do, besides pack it all up, get to the airport, and go.

Oh yeah, I need to copy all of my travel documentation. And learn how to use my digital camera (the additional features; I know how to use it).

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Aunt Robin

Well, my perspective isn't the most important in all of this, but I am officially an aunt!

My nephew David was born at 7:47 this morning. He was 7 lbs. 1 oz. and 20.5 inches long, I think. I got my first picture via cell phone, and he's a cute little fellow. Tiny.

And fortunately, I got the news before I left for my trip, and have time to see all the pictures before I go. Can't wait to go visit in January.

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Oh Deer

It was early Friday morning when I was coming home from a friend's house. Driving through the dark, twisty, windy roads, I was on alert for deer. I made it all the way to Leesville Road and well-lit territory and breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, I was crossing 540 when a car came up from the right. Then BAM!

No not Emeril. As far as I know, it was a deer. Knocked my left headlight well back into the engine. Crumpled or cracked the left side of the front fascia and left front quarter panel. Much blood and guts all over the front of the car.

After a day of hounding the insurance company, I got an appointment for 2:30 today. Upon arrival at the claims center, the adjuster says the car really isn't drivable. A few thousand for the cosmetic damage and who knows how much underneath.

But it looks like it's at a good body shop, and now my parking problem while I'm gone is solved. So long as I can get to work on Monday...

Money Matters

I've taken care of so many things, but I hadn't quite figured out what to do about money. Cash. Euro. Swiss Francs.

Turns out, after researching exchange rates, transfer fees, changing percentages, that the ATM card is the way to go. I juggled a few bills and transferred some money from savings, and even found more money in one account than I expected. The credit card is cleared and ready to use where possible. And I have some leftover cash from my neighbor to get me started.

And make sure that you call your bank to let you know you're going.

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10 days and counting

I think the countdown is right. In 10 days, I'll be on a plane for Europe. Actually, at this time I'll be headed to Atlanta, but we won't be picky.

I got my travel documents yesterday. I read about optional trips to the countryside in Lucerne, a Tyrolean night of fun, or an excursion to hear Mozart and Hayden. I can't believe this is my vacation trip. How cool is this?

Call me a geek buy I have actually practice packed. I got three sweaters, five turtlenecks, a pair of jeans, pajamas and lot of underwear and socks in my suitcase, plus a foldable one to take gifts in. I couldn't believe I got it right on the first try. I'll be wearing one of the sweaters, and I'll need to put in some personal items, but the carry-on will take some things too.

Finally, I got my digital camera. Now I have visions of taking "the picture" to hang in my stairwell. We'll see. I have 2 Gb of room to try in.