We left Rothenburg on Thursday, taking 3 trains to get to the main Bahnhof in Munich.  From there it was a short taxi ride to Hotel Torbrau.  The taxi driver gave us an introduction to Munich traffic, the guy would be good in Chicago or New York.   We picked a hotel in Old Town to be close to sights we wanted to see.  And the Torbrau exceded our expectations for convenient.   After arriving we needed to eat and wanted to visit the Hofbrauhaus, although the front desk had other recommendations.   We thought we were at the wrong place when we happened across the Hofbrauhaus a few minutes later.   But there it was.   Started in 1592 it is a must stop.   But we figured out why the desk person pointed us elsewhere, at 6pm the large hall and all tables were jammed.   Loud, noisy and a band about to start, at another time may have been fun, but after a long day of traveling our thoughts were on a comfortable table not pushing in to make 4 places on a long family style.    So we moved on, unfortunately I had my ideas in place when the desk person gave us directions and I took the girls on a longer than necessary tour to find the Spaten Haus!  But we were sight-seeing, right?   The Spaten Haus turned out to be the perfect choice.  The beer selection was one of the best we saw, and the food was excellent.   And even though we arrived ‘without reservations’ we ended up with our own little room to relax.  The next day on Friday was a full day of walking, well maybe not full day, we did make some stops.  We made our way to the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady), originally completed in 1488.   Here is the tomb of Ludwig IV  and the church is quite impressive.   Unfortunately one of the towers that has the elevator to see the city, was closed!  From there we walked to the Marienplatz at the center of the shopping district.   The New Town Hall dominates the square and is breathtaking.  And at the center is the 43 bell 28 foot Glockenspiel, which we arrived just in time to see it perform.   From there a short walk to the Viktualienmarkt.  One hell of a farmers market.  Lots of vendors along with everyday food stands.   And a central bier garden.   The highlight was getting a large pretzel and beers and sitting down next to 4 gentlemen who brought sandwiches from the Norse stand.  Hard rolls with probably pickled fish and onions, Chris was in heaven.  And then more walking.  We hit Schneider Weisse  by accident but I could not walk by.  The girls placated me by stopping for a beer, and although I love their Weisse I could not pass by ordering a half liter of Aventinus. Yum.   More walking, lot’s of people walking and lots of bicycles.  And we had a beautiful day.   A number of stops along the way.   And being real tourists we even stopped at Hard Rock Munich.    And we did get to eat at the Hofbrauhaus, on a second floor balcony and it was well worth going back for.   And of course we got to know the restaurant and bar staff very well!   Munich would be the one stop we all agree we would have taken out to spend more time at the other stops.  Yet I can’t think of what I would have wanted to miss.

Hofbrauhaus patio

Glockenspiel

New Town hall

Viktualienmarkt

Viktualienmarkt

We ate at Spaten Haus

Hotel Torbrau bartender

King Ludwig’s crypt

Marienplatz

OK had to throw that in

National Theater

Spaten Haus

Hofbrauhaus

wedding car

Getting organized and back to normal.  We are still recounting our trip in our minds, it seems it went so quickly.   We are organizing photos and I will post some here from the 1^st leg of the trip.   We landed in Frankfort after leaving Detroit at 6pm, and arrived 8:30 am the next morning.   Then we had a number of hours at the Frankfort airport to get through passport checks, get our luggage, and find the train station.  Then 3 trains to get to Rothenburg ob der Tauber.   The trains were wonderful and we made our transfers without issue.   We had rain our days in Rothenburg, but light enough for us to still walk and sight see.   We stayed inside the walled city and walked the cobblestones.  And among the cars that they unbelievably let drive through the narrow streets!  We stayed at Hotel Eisenhut which has lot’s of history.   And the start of the wonderful breakfasts of breads, sausage and cheese.  We did some shopping and stops for drinks and eats.  There was certainly a lot more to see than we got to.   And we had a great meal at an Italian restaurant with MJ’s cousin John and kids.  John is now retired Army and his wife is stationed in Germany.  This was a great kick off to our trip! We arrived there Tuesday afternoon and left Thursday afternoon.

A few notes on Rothenburg!

Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a small town with a big reputation. Nowhere else will you find such a wealth of original buildings dating from the Middle Ages. You can’t help but ask yourself whether time has stood still, as you amble past the beautiful old houses, secluded squares and tucked-away corners of the old quarter, where towers, taverns and town gates alternate with fountains, fortifications and former storehouses.

But it could all have been so different … in 1631, during the Thirty Years’ War, Rothenburg was captured by General Tilly of the Catholic forces. In desperation, the councillors offered him wine in a tankard that could hold more than three litres. Tilly, who had intended to burn down the town, showed clemency and decreed that he would spare Rothenburg if anyone could empty the vessel in one steady chug. The former mayor came forward and to everyone’s astonishment, met the challenge. Tilly was suitably impressed and let the town stand. Whether all of this is true nobody really knows, but it’s undoubtedly a great story – and it also gives rise to the annual Meistertrunk festival, a historical spectacle with a focus on entertainment.

Rothenburg may be small, but it has a remarkable wealth of historical sights, museums, churches, abbeys and monuments. In Rothenburg, another nostalgic spot is the Käthe Wohlfahrt Christmas Village. The largest Christmas shop in Europe open all year round, it stocks everything that makes the festive season special, from candles, nutcrackers and decorative tablecloths to Germany’s famous Christmas pyramids and incense burner figures.

It is well worth strolling through Rothenburg’s ‘spital quarter’, passing through the medieval town gates or visiting the wonderful churches. St. James’ Church, for example, has a beautiful stone carving depicting Christ and the sleeping apostles

on the town square

on the square

looking towards one of the town entrances

looking at part of city wall

MJ and Marie’s room

Hotel, we actually stayed across the street

Schnee balls!!

it’s all good!

Rothenburg streets

St Jakobs

Cousin John

We are on our way home, currently in Paris at Charles DeGaule Airport.    Done nicely but the French don’t know how to organize like the Germans and Swiss.   If you ever transfer in Paris leave plenty of time!  We hated to Leave Switzerland,   every where was beautiful scenery and the cousins treated us royally.   And they tell us we left too little time to see much at all and have to come back with more time.     Charles please thank everyone again, we thoroughly enjoyed our time.    Our biggest regret was not having more time to spend with cousin Emil, our short time was very enjoyable.   We met Emil at one end of Lake Lucerne as we took a 1906 steamer (since converted) to Lucerne.  A wonderful boat ride on a warm sunny day.   We had a late lunch in Lucerne and a little sight seeing.   That was Thursday, Friday we relaxed the morning and then Charles let us up the mountain roads to Amden, a town where Marie’s friend from New Glarus hails.   We had ice cream and took in the sights.

More pictures to come, now getting ready for a long plane ride.   And Monday time in the car returning to Oshkosh.

none of the pictures really do justice to being there.

There is Emil! He reminded us all of Chris’s Dad Frank

On the boat ride to Lucerne, Charles Kathy and Marie

We drove on that road, where there are mountains you need to cut into them and through them

The boat we were on looked similar to this

in Lucerne, covered bridge from the 1400’s behind us

The train to Zurich was very nice, and on arriving in Zurich we were surprised to be met by Marie’s friend Kathy.    Kathy greeted us to Switzerland and helped us to the next train to the Zurich airport and to find the car rental offices there.  The car rental went well and we left with our Skoda wagon.  The GPS is such a wonderful addition!    The ride was less than an hour to Einsiedeln.   And since arriving we have been treated royally by Chris and Marie’s cousins.   Charles is always there for us!  We had a great meal that evening at the hotel, which is right across the street from Einsiedeln Abbey Church /Monastery.  The girls had told me it would be more beautiful than the churches we saw in Germany and it lives up to expectations.   Amazingly beautiful.

http://www.einsiedeln-tourismus.ch/en/abbey-pilgrimage/abbey

We have done a little walking around town, today took a hike on the mountain, actually Chuck and Walter would say Holzegg really doesn’t qualify as a mountain!   But it had beautiful scenery and we spent a good part of the day.   The girls took the tram and I got some hiking in.   So life is grand!   Tomorrow a lake cruise on Lake Lucerne and a little time in Lucerne.   So it keeps getting better.

Abby Church

Charles has a robotic lawn mower that was a highlight

Leaving Charles house

Looking back to Einsiedeln from Holzegg hike

Swiss cows graze the slopes

break time up top

looking down the other side and Lake Lucerne down the valley

something new for lunch

Familia at lunch

Do you know what a Chamois is?

On our hike!

On the railjet train from Salzburg to Zurich.  About 5 1/2 hours, and seeing lots of beautiful countryside.  Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful day for walking Salzburg and today looks the same, warming into the 70’s.   Yesterday morning we found a nice coffeeshop near the hotel for a light breakfast then grabbed a taxi to the other end of old city to the high fortress.  The fortress can be seen from around the city and was one of the few never over taken from the 1200’s on.   Luckily a tram took us up, although you can walk.  Beautiful sights overlooking the city and countryside, amazing how it could have been built.  Salzburg is home to Steigl Bier, and near the base of the fortress is the Steigl bier hall with a garden overlooking the city.   It was now afternoon and a good place to stop for a light kase and sausage plate, of course with a few beers.  After that we continued down into the old city and sightseeing.   Even though most stores are closed on Sunday many restaurants and cafes are open and enough vendors to suit us!   Past Mozart’s birthplace, multiple churches.  The Mirabel Palace and Gardens are beautiful and I think we visited the perfect time of year.   And now we need to rewatch The Sound of Music to try and match the views!  By the time we walked across city back to our hotel it was time for an ice cream and a break!  I caught up on details for today’s trip and then we planned a dinner in the hotel restaurant, supposedly the Pitter has the oldest bier kellar in Salzburg.  And our reservations were necessary since the World Cup Football game started while we were there!  So travel day today, and looking forward to settling down in Switzerland for the rest of the week!

overlooking Salzburg from the fortress

tram up to the fortress

Looking out from the fortress

Stiegl seasonal specialty

platz at Mozart’s birthplace

Mirabel gardens

the girls were models for the statue!