We went to visit Muriel and Tony, our friends from Great Britain. When we got to know them, Muriel taught in central England and her school had a work exchange program with Werner's school and she stayed with us. Tony happened to be working here in Germany at the time and he came for a weekend. It's pretty impossible, I think, to not like Muriel and Tony, so we did and do and we have stayed in touch over these last 10+ years.
When they aren't in Tyne, they're in Mittenwald in very south Germany, right on the Austrian border, south of Munich and Garmish Partenkirchen. It's not easy for us to get there - a bit like going from Pensacola to Key West. You can't get much further away from Bremen and still be in the country. Innsbruck Austria is a 30-minute drive; Munich is about an hour north.
But we finally managed it. We left Tuesday and returned Sunday. I have to say we are awfully lucky when it comes to little holidays - the weather was just great. Lots and lots of sunshine, moderate temperatures, one day that was a bit rainy, but the break from hiking MOUNTAINS was OK.
This is the view from their living area; I'm not kidding. It's easy to imagine why you'd want to be there: "wow" comes to mind. And this is a real picture. I took it myself !
The rocky peak in the background is called the Wetterstein; from the other side of their apartment there's a view of the Karwendel Mountain Range. It's also impressive.
Wednesday
We took a walk around the town after breakfast and looked at many of the paintings on the walls of the homes, shops and churches. It's called Luftmalerei (paintings in the air) and you can see it all over south Germany.
In the afternoon we wallked up to the Lautersee and the Fernchensee in the foothills of the Wetterstein. Behind us here is the waterfall between the two lakes.
We walked about 3 1/2 hours, but I think if you count the vertical, we get credit for at least 7 hours!!!
Thursday
We're none of us early risers, so we rushed to get to the Tourist Office for a 10 AM guided tour of the Luftmalerei but - wouldn't you know - it had been cancelled. So a bit of shopping and then we got our picnic ready for the days' walk.
A more challenging hike today, steeper and higher but with compensating views!
First, a look at the golf course: not bad! Muriel (a golfer herself) said a guest round costs about 60€ - a real bargain considering the view.
The golf course was only the beginning of a high climb: here was our reward.
Friday
Today was the Leutaschklamm: the gorge of the Leutasch River. It is a STEEP walk up and up. This walk has lots of signs - the local authorities have given it a little character to make it more appealing, so there's ghosts and goblins to guide you through this magical area. In my opinion, you don't need more than nature to make it magical.
This is an area of glaciers, so they've marked the glaciers' comings and goings for the last many thousand years. One result is this gorge. Tony and I are standing on the far end of this bridge; I was glad to get off of it since heights are not really my thing. I thought I deserved a badge just for walking over!!
When we got down again, Werner and I did the short walk to the water fall below. It was wet and cold and beautiful.
Saturday
It had become cloudier each day and Saturday the fog (or clouds) were low and the rain came a bit off and on. Too risky for walking so Werner and I drove to Innsbruck. It sounds so EXOTIC - lets's go to Innsbruck! But it's such a short drive - as the crow flies !! By car it's up and down and D-O-W-N. The folks here think a 16% grade is no big deal, but looking at the escape lanes for the trucks made me think otherwise.
The pictures don't do it justice - it was sunnier in Innsbruck but still not so very clear. But the mountains! They were sheer, they were so high and so dominating and I can not imagine skiing down the slopes we saw carved over the city. For a Florida Flatlander, it is quite indescribable.
We walked the city and took in the sites, had coffee and cake at the famous Hotel Sacher. Werner had the Sacher Torte, I had Käsestrudel (cheese strudel) but of course we shared; we always do.
Sunday
Sunday started with a bang, literally, at 6 AM -- cannon shots from the mountain to mark Erntedankfest - Thanksgiving. I was not so very thankful to wake up wondering what war I was in the middle of!! We knew there would be a formal procession, but we didn't know about the fire works. NOT a pleasant awakening. Remember St. Anne's Fest in Staufen, G+B??
There were lots of shots to follow, many long bell ringings, and though getting up and staying up from 6 AM on is not my thing, it was a bit fun. At nine we went to the church to watch the procession, but we weren't really in the right place to see it all in order. No matter, we saw a lot at it was impressive!! All the women and girls were in their finery, the men were wearing their best work clothes - farmers, firemen, violin makers, foresters, hunters - led by someone carrying the standard on a pole that was a good 12 feet high. And please don't forget the brass band!
We had to get on the road, so we left to pack up. A good hour later, they were still proceeding around the town. A great send off!!
Here's Tony and Muriel and one last mountain shot. Can't wait to go back!
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