Strazburg, The Eagles Nest & Munich

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” – Tim Cahill

It was what seemed like another early start to the day as we had a bunch of ground to cover to get to our final destination.  It was 6:30 AM when bags had to be out in the hallway and we could go down for breakfast and 7:15 AM that we were to be on the coach ready to go.  Our first destination was the city of Salzburg, Austria which is best known for the movie, “The Sound of Music” with Julie Andrews and Christopher Plumber.  We made sure we watched the movie before we came so there was some frame of reference.  The other item that Salzburg is known for is that it was the birthplace of Mozart.  We saw a number of the places where the movie scenes were filmed as well as the house where Mozart was born.

Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg.  It’s "Old Town" (Altstadt), is internationally renowned for its baroque architecture and is one of the best-preserved city centers north of the Alps. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The city has three universities and a large population of students. Tourists also frequent the city to tour the city's historic center and the scenic Alpine surroundings.  It is a very “clean” city and the area is also very green with streams, trees and green grass everywhere.  It looks very much like the area in southern B.C. (as I mentioned in a previous blog post).

After the short walking tour of the old part of the city, we were given about an hour of free time to have lunch and wander around a bit before the optional excursion to the “Eagles Nest”.  Laureen and I stopped at a place that the guide had mentioned had an incredible potato and mushroom soup.  Of course, we had that with wieners and sauerkraut so that we could share both dishes.  It was pretty darn good food!  I guess the little bit of German/Austrian heritage that is buried somewhere deep inside my DNA was kicking in a little.  Thanks for the note and reminder Mom!

Love Bridge - where you take a lock and  lock it on the bridge and throw the key into the river

Pedestrian street in Salzburg

The birthplace of Mozart

Fountain and Church arches in the Sound of Music

Potato Soup and Wieners & Sauerkraut 

After Lunch we met those going on the optional excursion back at Mozart Square where we were set free.  We walked to the coach and Piero (our driver for nearly all of our trip) took us as far as he could up to the place where we had to catch a special bus to go up to the Eagles Nest.  The Kehlsteinhaus (known as the Eagle's Nest in English-speaking countries) is a Third Reich-era edifice erected atop the summit of the Kehlstein, a rocky outcrop that rises above the Obersalzberg near the town of Berchtesgaden. It was presented to Adolf Hitler on his 50th birthday as a retreat and place to entertain friends and visiting dignitaries. Today it is open seasonally as a restaurant, beer garden, and tourist site.

The Kehlsteinhaus is situated on a ridge atop the Kehlstein, a 1,834 m (6,017 ft.) sub-peak of the Hoher Göll rising above the town of Berchtesgaden. It was commissioned by Martin Bormann in the summer of 1937 as a 50th birthday gift for Adolf Hitler. Paid for by the Nazi Party, it was completed in 13 months but held until a formal presentation on April 20, 1939. A 4 m (13 ft.) wide approach road climbs 800 m (2,600 ft.) over 6.5 km (4.0 mi). Costing RM 30 million to build (about 150 million inflation-adjusted euros in 2007), it includes five tunnels but only one hairpin turn.

From a large car park, a 124 m (407 ft.) entry tunnel leads to an ornate elevator which ascends the final 124 m (407 ft.) to the building. Its car is surfaced with polished brass, Venetian mirrors and green leather. Construction of the entire project cost the lives of 12 workers. The building's main reception room is dominated by a fireplace of red Italian marble presented by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, which was damaged by Allied soldiers chipping off pieces to take home as souvenirs.  The building is all original, just as it was when Hitler had been there, minus the furniture, which all had disappeared after the war ended on May 8th, 1945.

The Eagles Nest high up on the mountain

Tunnel leading into the mountain and to the brass elevator to take guests up to the building.  Hitler would have use this elevator

Check out the hang-gliders

Eva Braun’s sitting area

Above the Eagles Nest with the mist rolling in and the scenic town below

Captain Curt, Laureen the Queen, Lady Diana & King Alf.  Friends.

The Brass Elevator

I have to admit, it was a little eerie walking around in there, knowing that Hitler himself had been in the building.  When Hitler was in power, he removed all signs of religion, so the crosses that stood at the highest points of the mountains were all removed.  A few years after the war had ended, the crosses were replaced, and there is one up on the hill where the Eagles Nest is situation.  I made the trek up the hill to the cross and picked up a rock for a friend of mine.  I have a few rocks for him on this trip!

Couple of rocks for a close friend from up here

The views from up here were simply stunning!  While looking out the window of Eva Braun’s sitting area (Hitler’s Girlfriend), we saw a couple of hang-gliders floating in the misty sky.  We were very lucky to get a bit of clearing, so that we could see (at least down one side of the mountain).  Our guide had indicated that the weather report had predicted rain.  We may have seen only a drop or two.

After the Eagles Nest, we met up with the rest of the tour group and headed off to Munich, Germany.  When we crossed the German border, our coach was pulled to the side and we all scrambled to put on our seat belts.  Kassie had mentioned that the German borders were checking more often, so we were all to have our passports on the coach with us - just in case.  A German police officer stepped up into the middle isle of the bus and shouted out a hearty "Hello".  We all replied back "Hello".  He looked around the bus, then he said "Ok!", and walked off the coach.  We all busted into laughter.

We arrived quite late (7:00 PM-ish), so Kassie changed the group dinner to 8:00 PM at the hotel.  What Kassie did not know is that the entire group had each bought a Viennese mask and that we were going to all wear it and surprise them.  On top of that, A song was written (mostly by Alf, but produced and directed by Laureen and I), to the tune of “Hello Dolly”, and we were going to sing it for Kassie and Piero before dinner.  It was quite the performance, I must say.  Nobody in the group should quit their day job!  Kassie and Pierro were killing themselves laughing at us – and it appeared as though they appreciated the effort.

Words to the song delivered tonight

The Gang in our masks (Kassie and Piero in the middle)

Off to bed for a 7:00 AM bags out/breakfast and 8:00 Departure for our three country day; breakfast in Germany, lunch in Lichtenstein and dinner in Switzerland.  Now who reading this can say they have done that!

Curt & Laureen in Munich, Germany.