Day 7: Travel Day: Austria to Germany Where the Hills Came Alive!!!

 

We have arrived in Munich by way of every steep, hilly, and curving road between here and Tyrol.  It is really strange, for me, to be back in this city.  I have so many memories here and I am excited at the prospect of having Dunkin Donuts for the first time in over a week!!! That's right, Dunks is here...wish me luck!!!!

Before I get too excited about a large iced coffee, lets chat about the weather we had today and on this trip.  You all know that is rained a bit in Rome.  It didn't ruin our day, haha. Get it, "ruin" in Rome.  Every night, however, I've stared at weather forecasts and seen more predictions of rain. Those predictions have not come true.  The weather has been increasingly better each day and today it was in the 70s and sunny. For those wondering, I absolutely converted my pants into shorts. I was the talk of Austria!

It is either a blessing or a curse, but I don't sleep much...not on Eurotrips, but in life. This allows me to stay up late writing award winning blogs and to wake up early to take stunning photographs. This morning, when I woke, I looked up sunrise and realized it was about forty minutes away. I decided to go for a bit of a walk to Obsteig's small school to capture the moment the sun crested over the mountains.  This moment of solitude was one of my top three sunrises. I will never forget it. I only wish I knew that a couple of kids planned on waking for it as well, I would have loved to have them join me. [Editor's note: I usually don't post the picture where the sun has actually risen...just the one previous...that moment is for me, sorry]

After the sunrise, it was time for breakfast.  I wasn't feeling it today, so I took some photos of the kids and went to my room to pack for our journey. 

This friend was waiting outside of my window to wish us a wonderful trip!

I filled up my water bottle with Mountain fresh spring water...yes it was that good.

Some of us entertained ourselves in other ways...do you think he hit the shot?

 We packed up our bus after breakfast and began our way to Lindenhof Castle.  Along the way, most people slept, but Mrs. Agola and I continued our hatred of all things steep!  Roughly half way through our journey, Kent and Joseph surprised us with two stops along Plansee.  (See means lake in German).  The water here was crystal blue from mountain run-off.  We skipped rocks. We hiked a little.  Some of us even ordered amazing coffee, pastries, and ice creams. It was a picture perfect day as many of you already know...but for those who haven't seen yet, here is the proof:

To be frank, none of us, not myself, the chaperons, the kids, Kent, or Joseph the bus driver wanted to leave.  Some kids even asked if we could buy tents!!! Alas, this trip must keep moving and so, we hopped on again and carried ourselves to Lindonhof.  This castle was build by King Ludwig II of Bavaria. He was one of the last kings of an independent Bavarian state and he was quite eccentric.  I would regal you of all of his tales, but they are many and some are scandalous.  Instead, I will just explain the castle a bit and show you some photos I smuggled.

He began building this castle in the 1840s, I believe. He wanted it to rival that of Versailles in France.  It is clear that he was obsessed with King Louis XIV, XVI, and Marie Antoinette.  The much smaller castle is opulent, that is for sure, but you could also see he was trying too hard.  The grounds were cool and given where we had just left...the visit seemed a little out of place.  Still, it reminded those who visited Versailles of what their experience was like and those who hadn't got a sense of that grand palace.  The visit has to be chalked up as a hit.

On our way to the castle, but c'mon, these mountain landscapes!

I love the symmetry of these places

A gilded piano/organ combination

The Mad King, that is one of his nicknames, bed.

The chandelier

I referenced Ludwig as a Mad King and it is kind of unfair.  Ultimately, he built three palaces during his reign.  Each one more expensive than the rest. He used his own money, not the states, but advisors had him declared incapable of ruling and deposed him from the throne.  He died, with his Dr., on a lake near his grandest of castles, Neuschwanstein. 

An interior visit to this castle is no longer included on our tours. I'm okay with that. It is quite busy and kind of a tourist trap. I told Kent that Lindenhof was actually a more pleasant experience.  However, Neuschwanstein is the basis of Walt Disney's Cinderella's castle and it is a must see. We were supposed to do a driveby photoshoot, but our kids have been so good that Kent took them to the castle for a quick visit.  I didn't snap a ground level photo because I was distracted...my b.

This is currywurst and fries...I couldn't help myself. I live in regret.

After our quick visit, we took to the country roads once again.  It was about an hour before dinner and the kids mostly slept. I tried too, but it was difficult because I was chatting with Kent about our past experiences and how, by working together, we can optimize the last few days. I must say that I am really enjoying working with him on this trip. He is very knowledgeable, but also knows that I am fairly experienced. For instance, he had not yet been to Neuschwanstein so he asked me a ton of questions for his own edification. Our rides together are just two guys who like to travel picking each others brains on how to make travel work even more.

We eventually pulled up for dinner and entered the restaurant. It was really good again. Pulled Pork, potatoes, and Pesto Pasta...what an alliteration!!!  There was enough for seconds and they gave us little ice cream pops too.

After dinner, we took a short ride to our new hotel, H2. It is near the Olympic Park in Munich and only 17 minutes, walking, to the nearest Dunks...which oddly doesn't open until 9:30am.  It is a very modern hotel and our kids are enjoying it...differently than last night, but still liking it very much.

Before I sign off tonight, I was thinking about a conversation I had with some kids by the lake.  I don't remember all of the details, but two of the girls said something like, "that's why we like traveling...because we get to learn things."  They realized that they summed up our motto and recited it for me several times in a goofy kind of way, "One Must Travel To Learn."  We never really know the lessons we will learn over an ice cream cone or by skipping rocks.  We don't overcome our fear of heights without ever coming into contact with roadside cliffs and mountain tops.  We don't understand how travel changes us, but we can feel that change occurring. For me, it started when I was a junior in high school about to enter into my final year at Saugus High School...so I thought.  It doesn't end on Wednesday, when we return...it just gets put on pause until the next trip or the next lesson.

Thanks again for the time it takes to read this blog...and your comments. I think the readers of this years blog have commented more than any other Eurotrip and I enjoy the notifications I am getting throughout each day...special thanks to my Mom who told me she was proud of me, haha! 

Mr. Lavoie, currently about to fall asleep with the dreams of a fresh, Dunkin, Iced Coffee appearing in the near future.