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Published: April 28th 2006
Gail arranges her Frühstuck
Obviously my wife found a thing or two that she might force down at breakfast. I think she's swinging at my hand as I try to grab one of the rolls.
The breakfast buffet table was fantastic: Bacon, sausage, ham and scrambled eggs in chafing dishes. Hard boiled eggs in a bowl filled with hot sand. Plates of cheeses and at least 6 different cold cuts. Croissants, bread and a multitude of delicious, fresh-baked hard rolls that the Germans are so fond of. Bananas, apples, oranges, clementines pineapple Cassie looks satisfied too
Cassie is usually her happiest when she's enjoying a healthy meal. Even though she looks half asleep, she found plenty to fill her up. and watermelon. Oatmeal and four different cereals. Orange juice, vitamin juice, milk, yogurt and your choice of bottled water with or without gas (carbonation). All of us went up at least three times to refill our plates. Fighting an urge I did not wrap up a roll with cheese and meat for later.
By the time we finished eating it was 9:00. Gail and I had to check a few things on the internet. We paid a Euro for 15 minutes and spent half that time trying to decipher the keyboard. After a quick potty stop and getting our suitcases in order it was time for the task I worried the most about in my planning stages: getting the rental vehicle. Gail and I headed back up to the bus stop while the others stayed at the hotel with our bags. They had strict orders to check-out the Mini-Mall food store next to the hotel. If we were late in getting to Alamo’s Downtown rental location, we might not be able to find a car for three days during the Christmas weekend. When we walked up to the bus stop, I suddenly realized that I didn’t have my printed
The buffet
This is just one half of the huge breakfast selection we had. We had fantastic breakfasts throughout the trip, but none surpassed this one. directions for getting to the car agency. I had the address and the nearest S-Bahn stop (Leuchtenbergring), but nothing about where to go after we got off the train. As we waited for the bus heading in the opposite direction of all our previous rides, I started getting nervous about the time. At 10:00 our bus pulled-up and we headed East. It was only three stops before we reached Kolumbusplatz, but it seemed like forever to me. We easily found the entrance to the U-Bahn. It was there that I realized we would have to switch from the U-Bahn to the S-Bahn at the Ostbahnhof. This caused me even more consternation. It was a mere 5 stops until we switched at the Ostbahnhof then one stop to our destination. The whole trip took us less than half an hour but I was in panic mode the whole time.
The S-Bahn stop at Leuchtenbergring looked like a scene in The Great Escape. A desolate above ground train station with lots of rolling stock parked nearby and run down dirty buildings on the far side of the tracks. We were the only people getting off there. We headed down the exit
The Getreidegasse in Salzburg
Note the beautiful wrought iron signs above the shops. Even though most of the stores were closed on Christmas Eve, the place was packed with people. stairs and came to a long tunnel. In each direction it was about a hundred yards long. I had no idea which way to go, but a working class older German man came from our right. Still not comfortable with my German language skills I asked “Einsteinstrasse?” He simply pointed in the direction he was walking. We walked one block then found the “Einsteinstrasse” sign. Again, which direction? But hanging on the building next to us was the “Alamo/National” car rental companies’ sign. We turned left and entered the building. No more info about either company. We asked a passerby who directed us back out and around the back on the building. My tummy was in knots worrying that the place was closed or really busy.
Fortunately we were the only customers. They had everything in order. Once again I didn’t need to present my confirmation. They told me they had a van ready for us. Did we want snow tires? “How much?”, I asked. When she said 15€ a day, I said we would stay out of snow (Right, 75% of the trip was in the area around the Alps) and “no thanks”. Did we want GPS? “How
The Pferdeschwemme (Horse Bathtub)
The Bishops that governed Salzburg lived a very opulent lifestyle. This fountain was built for the Bishop's horses to swim and drink from. In the glass case to the left visitors can now see the prancing horses even in the Winter. On past visits these statues were covered by wooden boxes. much?”, I asked. “15€ per day” was her reply. “No thanks” said I. She took a diagram of the van and pointed out where the vehicle had had some scratches from previous rentals. It looked like a hockey player’s face. At least 5 dings on each side of the van. Before handing me the keys she reminded me to use diesel gas only. I couldn’t believe it! For the first time ever I got what I requested. There were only 2 vans in the lot. The fancy Citroen had to be the one with the snow tires. Gail and I checked the damage with the drawing and agreed it looked right. I looked at the tires and thought they looked pretty new and snow-worthy. Inside this Volkswagen had plenty of room. The seats were comfortable captain chairs and there was plenty of leg room. Climate controls were set-up in front and in back. The radio looked like a TV with its huge display. It said something on the screen in German about GPS. It looked like you inserted a DVD into the CD player to access GPS mode. I figured if I had accepted the 15€ per day GPS option,
Pretzels
I tried to convince Cassie to garb one, but she was still full from her breakfast. they would have handed me the appropriate disc. I haven’t owned a car with a clutch for 20 years. The only time I drive one is when I’m on vacation. I fumbled around and stalled a couple times before leaving the lot. Not having any maps I used my once perfect sense of direction to navigate us back to the hotel. I followed the S-Bahn tracks back toward the center of the Altstadt. After a few wrong turns and getting lost near the Viktualienmarkt, I stumbled upon a road paralleling the Isar River. I followed it upstream until we came to familiar territory. We were back at the hotel by 11:00. All that worrying and aggravation for nothing. After squeezing everyone’s bags into the area behind the last row of seats (good thing I told everyone to pack light), Gail and I ran into the Mini-Mall. We got some soda, candy and chips for the ride to Berchtesgaden.
I had no trouble getting out of town and finding the A8 Autobahn toward Salzburg. Without too much trouble we arrived at the Austrian border in about an hour and a half. There is no real border crossing any longer but
Mozartkugeln
Fortunately the stores were closed so we couldn't indulge in a box of Salzburg's most popular souvenir. there is a booth where we had to stop to buy a sticker that entitles us to drive on Austria’s highways. Even though we would only be in Austria 2 or 3 days, we bought the 7 day “vignette” for 7.60€. I only had to make two U-turns on my way into Downtown Salzburg. The place was rather quiet on this Christmas Eve. We parked the bus inside the Altstadt garage burrowed deep within Mönschberg Mountain.
This garage with its heavy steel doors doubles as a bomb shelter for the people of Salzburg. It is a short walk to the touristy Getreidegasse. There were more than a few people walking up and down this alley but nothing like the Summer crowds that make it nearly impossible to move. The charm of this area in the Old Town are the wrought iron signs hanging from every business on the street. Even McDonald’s has a beautiful black and gold sign hanging out over the street. All the stores were closed or about to close when we arrived at 2:00 pm. Thank God the attraction I was most interested in was still open - the tiny Bosna sausage was doing a great
business. We decided to wait until a bit later to feed our faces. That big breakfast was still with us.
We passed by Mozart’s birthplace and a number of shops that grabbed Cassie’s attention, but with everything closed it was painless for me. I led the group up toward the famous Dom (cathedral). In the area beneath its towering dome was a thriving Christmas market. Once again the cloying scent of Glühwein was in the air. This market had more arts and crafts than the Munich market. Strangely enough, icy snow was everywhere. Some cinders were thrown on top, but no effort had been made to melt or remove it. It looked like a lawsuit waiting to happen if this had been back in the States. We toured the Dom which was huge, but not as awe-inspiring as I had remembered it. It was almost as cold inside as it was out in the elements. Then I led the group across an ice field to the cemetery of St. Peter’s Church. This was the cemetery that the Von Trapp’s hid in when they were fleeing from the Nazis in the Sound of Music. Many of the graves were decorated
with Christmas greenery and candles. Apparently the bigwigs of Salzburg are buried here since most of the inscriptions list the dead as “Doktor”, “Advokat” or a military rank. Once again I looked up at the Festung Hohensalzburg wishing we had the time to go up the cable car to the fortress. But it starts getting dark at 4:00 and I still had to get us to our place for the next two nights. Trying to negotiate some of the twisty alpine roads at night can be hairy.
As we passed back through the Christkindlmarkt I spotted a cute candle lantern that I thought would be a great gift for a friend at work. Gail let me buy it then decided later that she wanted it for herself. I showed the group some of the places used in the production of the Sound of Music: the municipal building used as Nazi headquarters in the movie, the pony carts Maria and the kids ride on, the Mozart statue with another ice skating rink nearby, and the big square (Residenzplatz). We gazed affectionately at the Mozart candies and liquors artfully displayed in the closed shops’ windows before heading back up the Getreidegasse.
Gravesite decorated for Christmas
Some of Salzburg's most important people are buried in St. Peter's. This is a father and daughter that were both doctors. Walking through the cemetary was rather tricky because none of the paths had been cleared of ice and snow. Cassie surprised me by not getting a giant chocolate or pizza pretzel at one of the few open stands. Instead we all order Bosna at the Balkan Grill. I’m not sure what makes this sausage sandwich so great, the skinny, crispy dark sausage; the toasted flat bread; the super piquant raw onions; the tangy mustard; or the curry powder liberally shaken on top of the drippy mess, but it is the only sandwich that challenges a real Philly cheesesteak. Before we left Gail learned from the English-speaking vendor that they are open on Christmas.
When we returned to the parking lot and prepared to deal with the automated parking machines, we found a sign taped over the machine wishing us a Merry Christmas and free parking. I guess the attendants wanted to go home early. Using my recollections of almost twenty years before I thought I remembered the quickest way from Salzburg to the Berchtesgaden area. But as I get older the brain fails me time and time again. I got out of Salzburg headed in the right direction but on the Autobahn North of town instead of on the Southerly two-lane road I was hoping to use. The
Salzburg family plot
In the Sound of Music the Von Trapps hid in one of these family-owned gravesites located in the cloistered end of the cemetary. route I take brought us through Bad Reichenhall (just a few days before the tragic ice skating rink collapse which took at least 11 lives) then South toward Berchtesgaden. Every place we passed was closed for Christmas Eve. It looked bad as far as dinner was concerned.
Our reservations were at the
Gaestehaus Stöckl in Schönau am Königsee just South of Berchtesgaden. Somehow we misread the directions and had to retrace and retrace our route at least three times. A steady snowfall was starting to lay on the road. I worried about my lack of snow tires. It was pitch black outside. Finally instead of taking a left when you reach Engeday and crossing one bridge the looking for a second one, we re-interpreted the website’s directions as “take the second left when you reach Engeday, then cross the bridge”… Thus we finally found am Duftwald. Klaus and Sissy were expecting us and immediately made us feel at home. They showed us all around their spacious place and pointed out some of the cool Bavarian bric-a-brac and antlers that decorated their home. We had 3 nice comfortable double rooms with big fluffy duvets. Sissy put out little chocolates on our
Salzburg Christmas Market
Located right in front of the Dom, Salzburg's Christkindlmarkt was easily the most colorful of the markets we visited. bed and a little tray with Champagne, cookies and peanuts on the nightstand. She told us to help ourselves to anything in the refrigerator downstairs by the breakfast room. Beer, wine and soda were on the honor system. She offered to make us “Hi Drinks”, which we interpreted as Welcome Cocktails. We explained that we were going to go into Berchtesgaden for dinner.
Gail and I’ve been in Berchtesgaden probably more times than we’ve visited New York City less than two hours from our house. We knew exactly where to look for a nice cozy meal on Christmas Eve. We bundled ourselves up and hopped back in the van for the 10 minute trip into town. We parked across the street from my first choice for accommodations in the area, the Hotel Watzmann. They hadn’t been able to give me three rooms for both nights because they were closed 24 December. As we walked down the deserted streets of Berchtesgaden it looked like everyone, including all the eateries, had closed for the night. We spent some time window shopping, checking out women’s shoes and toys mostly. The storefronts and streets were beautifully illuminated for the Holidays. The Germans do
Mongolian Throat Singers
These guys get around. We saw them in Munich this past summer. Unfortunately they finished off their set just as we arrived so I couldn't groove to the Mongolian Top 40. not go for the glitzy, multi-colored lighting that we Americans seem to embrace. Their decorations are mostly hand-made wreaths and other greenery with bows, bells or ornaments attached accented by white lights. No inflatable yard junk or bobbing-head animated reindeer to be seen. The white lights on the 18th and 17th Century buildings reflect dreamily off the omnipresent snow casting a golden ambience on the entire Old World scene. You can’t help but feel Christmassy. We wondered up and down the streets just enjoying the feeling. The snow that night was clean and very moist with temperatures hovering around 30 degrees. Perfect for snowballs. While tempted to whip a couple at my fellow tourists I resisted the temptation and instead practiced by aiming for trash cans and signs. I may be older and although I can’t throw as far or hard as I used to, my accuracy is still there. It made me feel like a kid again.
On our walk we had discovered only three open businesses. One was a pizza parlor, another a fast food shop and the third was an old tavern with menu boards out front. Most of what I could translate looked like specials
Bosna
Next to Mongolian Barbecue Bosna is my favorite food in the World. And the only place I've been able to find it is at the tiny shop on the Getreidegasse. involving game - venison, goose and duck. But another menu board listed some desserts including apple strudel. We decided to give the place a try. A waiter asked us in German if we had reservations. When I said we didn’t he acted all disgusted, but led us to a table for 6 anyway. We were given a sheet listing meals rather than the usual book menu. None of us liked the choices on this sheet, all involving game dishes. We ordered our drinks, Weisseinbier for me, wine for Gail and her Mom, regular beer for Gen and Cokes for Cassie and Tyler. When the waiter returned with our drinks and asked for our order, Gail asked for Apfelstrudel. The waiter looked all pinched and muttered in a language that didn’t sound much like German. I told him we saw it listed on the sign outside. He said he’d check with the kitchen. Apparently they said it was do-able so all 6 of us ordered one. Whether they spit in our strudel or not, it was delicious. Warm and covered with powdered sugar and a dollop of cream. I would have preferred a nice Schnitzel or something with Spätzle but on
Outdoor Nativity Scene in Berchtesgaden
By the time we finally found Gaestehaus Stöckl, checked into our rooms and driven back to downtown Berchtesgaden, the Christmas market had closed but this beautifully illuminated ice sculpture still stood just before the church. a night like this we were lucky to get anything. The longer we sat there the emptier the place got. We even saw a true first: in all my trips to Germany I was always amazed at how well behaved German kids and dogs were. This night we actually saw a two year old acting like a two year old. We were able to get our bill relatively easily. Our total bill came out to 32.80€. We quickly paid and got out of
Gasthaus Bier-Adam rather promptly.
We continued walking around town heading in the opposite direction this time. Even the old, Grand Hotels like the Vier Jahreszeiten and Hotel Wittelsbach looked dead. At the very end of the Downtown we found an open café. Returning to our van I saw a men’s clothing store with an inexpensive Tyrolean type hat in the window. It suddenly became my passion to get one just like it, somewhere. When we returned to the Stöckl Sissy was in the breakfast area watching TV with another guest. She was extremely friendly and accommodating again asking if there was anything we needed. We asked if we could all come down to the breakfast area and
Gasthaus Bier-Adam
The place looked quite charming from the outside. The blackboard in front said they served Apfelstrudel, but when we went in and ordered it they acted like a bunch of lepers had just wandered in. watch the Sound of Music on Tyler’s little DVD player. She helped us rearrange her Christmas tree so that we could plug our adapter into the power strip, but she showed no interest in watching what we consider a Christmas classic. Before the Von Trapp’s even decided they didn’t want to be Nazis, we were all falling asleep. We were in bed by 11:00 with wake-up at 7:30.
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