For our last big vacation of the year, we got to go to a lot of places Alex and I have been dying to see. Throughout the week we visted four different countries (and I got to add one more to my list – now 19!). My sister Ali and brother-in-law Derek joined us on the adventure.
Garmisch-Partenkirchen – (apparently very difficult to say 😉) – We started our adventure at none other than Oktoberfest. After a slight flight delay and a wrong terminal we picked Ali and Derek up from the airport. We headed straight to Oktoberfest. Because it was a Friday afternoon, I was very worried about finding seats (you have to be seated in one of the tents to get food & drinks). After searching through many tents and almost giving up we finally found seats outside at the Paulaner tent. We quickly got a beer, ordered some food and had a great evening. After we had our fill, we left and headed for our Airbnb in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
The next morning we woke up to the most beautiful view of the mountains. On this trip, we had two things on the agenda that required a nice day. Since it was suppose to rain the following day we fit both into our schedule that day. We started out by going to the Zugspitze – the highest mountain in Germany. We took the very steep cable car all the way to the top. At the top we had amazing views of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Once we finished taking pictures, we enjoyed some Glühwein and a pretzel (brezeln) then made our way back down the mountain. Then we drove to Austria for an awesome Alpine coaster experience. We bought 3 rides down plus a ski lift ride up. This alpine coaster is the longest coaster in the world. The sign says it takes 9 minutes to get down (it took us about 6 minutes but we were going fast!). It was a blast! I would definitely do it again! We ended this great day with a delicious German meal.
The next day was raining and so cloudy we couldn’t even see the mountains. We decided to go to Linderhof Castle; one of King Ludwig’s three castles. We toured the beautiful castle, explored the neighboring area, then walked around downtown Garmisch. We had reservations at a very cozy German restaurant. Online reviews recommended ordering the pork knuckle. It was a BIG (delicious) mistake – keyword big. It was as big as my head. I needed everyones help eating it. It was very tasty though.
Meersburg – We toured another one of King Ludwing’s masterpieces, Neuschwanstein Castle (or as Derek referred to as “castle castle” – Neuschwanstein is too hard to say I guess) plus his family “summer home” Hohenschwangau. We had a gorgeous fall day with beautiful colors surrounding the castles which made the mile walk up to the steep castle bearable. And the view from the bridge was amazing! After we finished the tour and walked back down the hill, we drove to Meersburg. We walked around the cute little town and came across a restaurant selling federweißer (wine undergoing the process of fermentation). We enjoyed two glasses of this delicious wine only sold for about a month every year. We then found a place for dinner to end the night.
Freiburg – We headed to the Black Forest the next morning. Our first stop was in Triburg. We went straight for the cockoo clocks. We stopped in a small shop where the owner makes them all by hand which is very impressive. Although we didn’t buy one this time, we still might someday. Then we bought our tickets to the highest waterfall in Germany. We even bought peanuts to feed to squirrels along the way. We left Triburg after picking up two slices of schwarzwälder kirchtorte (Black Forest cherry cake) to enjoy once we got to Freiburg. We checked into our hotel foregoing two separate rooms for a spacious two room family suite. Then checked out the town. We found a place to sit outside for a drink and tried their local flammkuchen. We finished off with a few beers at the local brewery.
I had seen pictures of Lauterbrunnen and wanted to go ever since. I finally got a chance to fullfil my dream. We drove to Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland (after paying a 40€ toll to get in, yikes!) and immediately started taking pictures of the town. It was beautiful! With 72 waterfalls cascading off the mountains, you can’t go wrong. We had to get a closer look at one of the falls so we walked up a steep hill, through a tunnel then up some stairs and made it behind the waterfall. We had a great view of the valley below with the waterfall right in front of us. Then we sat outside for lunch with the most beautiful view. Ali and I ordered the fondue. Two different kinds of bread, potatoes and some garlic, onions and mushrooms were all used for dipping into the delicious melty cheese. After our bellies were full we went to Trummelbach falls a series of 10 glacier waterfalls inside a mountain. Then we drove back to Freiburg and enjoyed the rest of the evening there.
Baden-Baden – On our way to Baden-Baden we stopped in a charming town called Colmar, France. Once we figured out how to get into the town center it was great. We took a very peaceful boat ride, had a glass of wine, sampled a chocolate croissant and ended with a crepe. It was a nice relaxing French afternoon. We got into Baden-Baden later that afternoon and stopped at a bar for a drink before dinner. After our German meal we dressed up (men have to wear a button down shirt and a jacket) and headed to the casino. None of us did too well at the slot machines downstairs but the guys did better upstairs. They have table games upstairs in the most beautifully decorated rooms (I think it used to be a palace). Alex and Derek sat down at a blackjack table and played for a while eventually coming out ahead. Alex then played roulette for a little before being overshadowed by men playing $300 and up a spin.
Cologne – The next morning we got to relax in the hot thermal waters of Caracalla spa. We spent 2 hours rotating between outside hot tubs with waterfalls that massage your back, whirlpools and inside hot tubs and a freezing cold tub, to the most perfect (in my opinion) temperature pool. We all left feeling very relaxed. We then took off for our last stop of the trip, Cologne. I was excited for A&D to see Cologne. We had plans that night to meet up with some of Alex and my friends. On the first Friday of every month a local cafe puts together a wine and chocolate tasting so luckily we were in Cologne for it. Around 15 of us from all over the world (Scotland, Sweden, England, Romania, Latvia etc.) enjoyed three glasses of wine with the perfect chocolate pairing. After we went to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants where they serve the most amazing peanut tofu (& chicken & duck).
For A&D’s last day in Cologne we headed straight for the cathedral. Unfortunately, a lot of the inside was closed to the public but they were still able to see some of its beauty. We got to then show them the local brewery and the special way the Colognians drink beer. We did a little shopping, got some currywurst then picked up some German candy from the local grocery store. Then it was time for dinner we headed to our favorite German restaurant. Luckily we got there early and were able to snag seats because it gets busy fast. We had some kolsch, ordered food and reminisced about our trip. It was a great way to end an amazing trip.
This trip was really fun for Alex and me. We got to do a lot of new things that we’ve been wanting to do from the beginning. The scenery was some of the most beautiful I’ve seen. Thanks for joining us Ali and Derek. We had such a great time you both really made this trip a memorable one. Thanks for all the laughs. I hope we can do another tour(y) someday.
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Wow, Sunny, you sure know how to plan an exciting vacation! Absolutely wonderful!
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Holy cow what an adventure! You really packed a lot into one vacation! Love the pictures too!!
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