Adventures in Deutschland: Bavaria, Austria & Friends

This is Ben & Janet. They were are first house guests and we were so happy to have them. I think Janet handled the jet lag a little better than Ben. He had a tendency to spontaneously lose consciousness anytime we got in the car. But I can certainly sympathize - it is brutal making the 7 hour switch. Their visit to Germany was Ben's 30th birthday gift from Janet and she pulled it off like a champ. We were so, SO happy to see friends. We didn't realize quite how much we missed all of you guys until these two showed up on our doorstep.

Steve and I have been talking about getting down to Bavaria. This is the part of the country Steve really fell in love with when he visited and he was anxious to introduce it to me. So we took advantage of the opportunity and made quite the little road trip stopping in Salzburg, Berchtesgaden, Garmisch & Fussen....truly some of the most amazingly beautiful country I think I've ever seen.

This is Hohensalzburg. We toured this castle and it was pretty cool. The castle was big and there was lots of cool stuff to see inside but the best part was our first glimpse of the Alps from the courtyard balcony. I think we all caught our breath somewhat at such a striking view.

The Rhine River...

That striking view mentioned above...

The view of the city from Hohensalzburg...

Steve did not think we needed this picture. You can see who won that one. :) I mean it's Mozart's birthplace. How can you not take a picture in front of the Mozart statue in the middle of Mozart Square. This photo was taken just after I finished my afternoon Mozart-flavored ice cream...

That afternoon we drove to Berchtesgaden where we hopped the bus up to the Eagle's Nest. This was Hitler's mountain/holiday residence but you wouldn't necessarily know it from making the trek up. It's just a really amazing drive with a really amazing view when you reach the top.

Some castle on the drive to Garmisch.....

Early signs of fall...

Another castle along the drive...

Is this not the most precious hotel you've ever seen? I'm usually not one to get excited about hotels but this place was like a little dollhouse. It had really big rooms (a rarity here in Deutschland) with what appeared to be antique furniture...very quaint. I loved it.