Vienna

The architecture in Vienna lived up to and exceeded all we anticipated. Battling the crowds of tourists was an issue when around the main attractions such as Schonbrunn Palace and St Stephen's cathedral, but when we went sought out the less well known sites the crowds soon thinned out.

Our enjoyment was enhanced by the efficiency of the Vienna underground and the provision of a well run aire (motorhome park) adjacent to the underground.

A highlight for Gretel was attending a concert in the same theatre where Mozart played. Due in part to cost and part to being musically retarded Tony did not attend, but snuck round the back of the theatre and took a photograph through the window.

The inside of the Vienna Opera house where the set was being prepared for that nights performance of Don Giovanni. Five separate operas are performed in any one week, a logistical nightmare for the set crew.

The exterior of the opera house.

Europe has a lot of sculpture and memorials. The Judenplatz Holcaust memorial, tucked away in a picturesque square mostly devoid of tourists, is one of the most moving we have seen. Known as the 'Nameless Library' the memorial depicts 65,000 books (the number of Austrian Jews killed in World War 2) with the spine turned inside out, the titles hidden, the untold stories of each individual. We sat and had a quiet coffee, thinking.

A close up of the books.
 

Gretel showed patience to photograph a butterfly, within the Vienna butterfly house, displaying its colour.

A block of flats designed by Friendensreich Hundertwasser, who dispensed with straight lines and incorporated plants as an essential feature of the building. The building was constructed in the 1970's. Whether or not it has aged as well as the more conservative architecture of Vienna is clearly subjective. Interestingly Hundertwasser purchased a large area of land in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand where he designed and helped build the famous Kawakawa toilets. He died in 2000 and is buried in New Zealand.

Typical Viennese architecture

Eagle's Nest and Obersalzberg tunnels

Visiting both Eagle's Nest and the Obersalzberg tunnels gave a chilling insight into the thinking of the Nazi Party and an appreciation of the engineering skills involved. The drive up from Obersalzberg to Eagle's Nest was within a bus. Interestingly, the bus driver described Hitler as a dictator, conveniently omitting he was was democratically elected.

The lodge was a gift from the Nazi Party to Hitler for his 50th birthday. 

View looking towards Lake Konigssee.

Gretel (camera shy) sitting on the same window sill as Gretl Braun might have sat when she was married at Eagle's Nest

The brass elevator that ascends the final 124 metres.

Inside Eagle's Nest

The Obersalzberg tunnels where Hitler, Bormann and Goebbels had rooms.

On capture of Obersalzberg the Americans turned it into a golf course for their use until 1960.

Jim Roberts: 5th April, 1933 - 25 June, 2016

It was with great sadness that we got the news that Jim Roberts, my dad, passed away yesterday. He had been sick for a couple of months, but deteriorated quickly over the last two weeks.  We are both feeling a bit useless being stuck on the other side of the world. Our thoughts are with his wife, Helen.

A poem by James K Baxter, written for his own father's funeral, eloquently expresses our thoughts about Jim and is an appropriate tribute.


                                                                     "To my Father"

                                                .... I have loved
                                                You more than my own good, because you stand
                                                 for country, pride and gentleness, engraved
                                                 in forehead lines, veins swollen on the hand;
                                                 Also, behind slow speech and quiet eye
                                                 The rock of passionate integrity.
                                      



          




       

Lake Konigssee, Austria

Austria has 68 lakes, most within very attractive alpine settings. Lake Konigssee is set at the base of Mt Kehlstein where Hitler's Eagle's Nest is located. It is 4 km long, but quite narrow. The only motorised boats permitted are those powered by electricity.

Eagle's nest is situated on the summit of the mountain on the left hand side of the photo.

Strasbourg - Mozart, The Sound of Music, and a city of tourists

Strasbourg had a lot to offer. Two of Mozarts's houses, filming locations for the Sound of Music, the Danube running through the middle of the city, extensive cycleways and attractive architecture. Unfortunately it seemed as if 500,000 tourists were there at the same time as us. Still we battled the crowds, watched the Sound of Music film for the 23rd time (Gretel remembered to take the DVD) and enjoyed the cycle-ways.
Many European cities are quite small geographically, and it was possible to bike from the edge of Salsbourg to the centre in about 15 minutes, which is the time limit of my backside sitting on a bike seat.

Sound of Music - the boating and balcony scenes were set here.

Where Maria and the Captain were married

"I am 60 feeling like 70" The scene of Leisl (and Pip's) dance.

This photo has nothing to do with the Sound of Music, it was Mozart's residence.

The Sound of Music returns - Mirabell Palace.

The music hall inside Mirabell Palace.

Neuschwanstein - King Ludwig's folly

Neuschwanstein was different to any other castle we have visited. Rather than being used to defy invaders and as a position for knights to slaughter one another, it was the fantasy of a deranged Bavarian King. Furthermore, it cost him his realm and his life.

Notwithstanding this, the castle was very beautiful with views to die for (no pun intended) and a pleasant forest walk.

View from the castle.

You can see where Walt Disney got his inspiration from.

Erika and Rein am Stein, Switzerland

Erika's rhubarb pie was more than enough to entice us to revisit Switzerland. It was good to have the opportunity to eat in someone's house rather than our campervan. The space was huge, almost intimidating after four and a half months of living with a kitchen bench less than half a metre long.

Her house borders Lake Konstanz, which is the demarcation between Switzerland and Germany. The Germans call it Lake Bodensee. It is a huge lake, particularly in length, with the Rhine river originating from it. We also took the opportunity to visit a small Swiss village, Rhein am Stein, situated alongside the Rhine river where it abuts Lake Konstanz.

We have bemoaned the prices of everyday goods in Switzerland in a previous post, but as it turns out Switzerland has been one of the most economic countries we have visited - due entirely to the prices being so high Gretel has refrained from buying any presents. Just another reason why it is my favourite country to date.

Gret, Erika and her mum.

Looking back towards Lake Konstanz

In Switzerland and southern Germany buildings are often decorated with intricate 'three dimensional' art.

The Rhine

Roses!

The Black Forest

The Black Forest is undoubtedly the most interesting area we have visited in Germany. Its sheer size means you can readily avoid the tourists and begin to feel German. The area is criss-crossed with walking and biking trails, some even flat enough to tempt us.

The more we witness German efficiency the more surprising it is that they managed to lose two world wars. Infrastructure is of the highest standard. This was vividly illustrated by the sporting amenities in Zell am Harmersbach, a small town we stayed in. The town has a population of 8,000, yet the amenities provided included a synthetic athletic track with grandstand, extensive pool area including multiple diving boards, covered and open tennis courts and obligatory football pitches - both grass and synthetic.

The investment in recreation amenities in this town is not unique within southern Germany. A corollary of such investment is a marked reduction of teenagers that we see being unoccupied
in comparison with other countries we have visited.

Gretel pretending to be a tree, but looking more kahikatea than douglas fir.

Just to prove that the forest is black.

Pasture areas are interspersed throughout the forest. We have seen more cows in the last week than the previous four months put together.

Gengenbach

Gengenbach, located within the Black Forest, is as gorgeous village as you could hope to see. Full of half timbered houses and ornate commercial architecture. Unlike some other villages, the centre has been pedestrianised which adds to its appeal.

We include a selection of photographs to illustrate the architecture.

The town hall, with 24 windows (including the two dormers) representing the 24 days of the advent calendar.

A very temporary Black Forest gateau

Eltz castle, Germany

Eltz castle is unique that it has been held in the same family ownership since the 12th century - a total of 33 generations. It is hidden away in a narrow valley which has contributed to the castle avoiding destruction.

The castle is surrounded on three sides by a river, a natural moat.

Ladenburg, Germany

Ladenburg is the village where Carl Benz produced the first of his cars in 1908; it is also a village of immense beauty with a high ratio of bakeries to clothing shops, exactly the sort of village tony is at home in.

The original factory, now a museum.

This one didn't last as well as some others.

The buildings within the village date back to 1500.

Luxembourg

We strayed into Luxembourg and regretted it almost as soon as we arrived. Big Bertha got stuck in the mud, or to be more specific half stuck in the mud. The drivers side wheels were so deep that cups refused to remain on the bench.

Tony is unsure why the gravity should exhort a stronger force on the drivers side of the van. Gretel thinks it may be in direct proportion to the amount of German food that is being consumed on his side of the van. After an uncomfortable night, where Gretel continually rolled on to Tony's side of the bed, we were towed out and made our escape from Luxembourg.

For those that are interested people from Luxembourg are called Luxemburgers and speak their own language which is a mixture of German, French and Dutch.