Reutte

---

8.20.18- Reutte

I just ran to catch a train for Garmisch which I missed by 30 sec, it drove off as I ran up, it left 2 min early. I was having a lovely breakfast at my hotel which I pondered staying at, but wanted to get to Zugspitz before it rained later today. Oh well. The breakfast consisted of a variety of cheeses, yogurt, fruit, bread, lunch meats and spreads. You could boil your own egg in a cute little egg boiler that they had, each handle held an egg in the hot water and there were small 5 minute sand timers for you to take so you remember your egg. I made one, though I should have left it in for longer, it was barely cooked. I was seated in a indoor/outdoor patio, you could see the walnut tree lined street of downtown Reutte. I did make it to Ehrenberg yesterday, I am glad I did but oh, is my body taking a beating. When I woke up this morning I could barely move. I took a hot shower and took two naproxsyn (sp). I am amazed everyday when I get my Osprey Porter bag to close, there is so much stuff in there. I do not feel that I brought stuff I shouldn't have, it just barely fits. Thanks to Erin for loaning me the bag, it is amazing how it zips closed everytime and compresses it all.

So, let me start where I left off from my last entry. The Royal crystal baths...They were lovely, none of them as hot as I would have liked, they all ranged in temp from 35 to 30 degrees C. There were 6 or 7 different pools that ranged in temp and salinity content. The highest was 24% salinity, that was too much for me, I spent some time in the 12% and 5%. We were all wearing bathing suits, the sauna upstairs was clothes free, since I only had a few hours I chose just the baths, or therms. There was also a pool side bar in one of the pools, you ordered and then they placed a charge on the little plastic watch shaped bracelet that they gave me at the entrance. I met a nice man named Wolfgang, we almost ran in to each other floating in the salinity pool, he laughed and figured out I spoke English after he rambled something off in German and I looked quizical, he, as with 75% of the populace, spoke English very well. He was there with his wife, she is an artisan and they were there for her to sell her wares at a artisan fair. He is a grammar school teacher, when I asked what grade he teaches he said it depends, I guess it is different every year. He lives in a suburb outside of Munich, his children live in Munich. He told me that Munich is the number one place to live in Germany, it is the most expensive and they do not have enough housing. Sound familier? We talked a little bit about our kids and such and then it was time to get out. I walked back to my hostel and went right to bed.

I slept in a little on Sunday, 8AM. I went down for breakfast at the hostel, it was again a variety of breads, spreads, yogurt, lunch meats, hardboiled egg (this one was done by V, so it was cooked all the way) and some granola. Coffee and juice of course as well. When I got there a younger lady was there, I asked if she spoke English and she did not. I spoke a little with V, name shortened for protection, about my day prior. Two younger ladies came and after a bit started a conversation with me. They had just finished an 8 day hike along the river, staying at hostels along the way. They live in Munich and were both, Construction Engineers, I guess they make the architect's plans come to life. They were the ones who told me that Munich is booming in building and it is short on housing. They gave me a good tip to go on a Medieval history tour in the Marinplatz of Munich at night. When I mentioned the Bierhaus they kinda made a face, I guess it is very touristy. They said I could go and see the construction for Octoberfest, I guess they work on it for 3 months prior. They asked where else I was going in Germany, they made a comment about Berlin, how it is much different, rockers and much more modern. I haven't mentioned yet how clean Munich was and there were very little homeless people or people begging on the streets. They told me that the police do pick them up and move them, but there are more services for them in Munich. Berlin is not as clean and has more beggers. They asked what I liked about Bavaria, that is really how the people think of this area since Germany has only been a united country for 150 years and before were separate countries or regions. I commented how I love the trains, they really take you everwhere. That was how they got started on their trip, they took a train to their starting point and then hiked to Fussen, they were taking the train back to Munich today for work tomorrow. They commented on how both of their cars broke down that week prior, but it was not a big deal since they had the public transportation system. Also everyone has bikes, there were so many in Munich and here in Fussen, most of them are not locked up and only the hard core mountain bikers were wearing helmets. And of course, it is so outdoors, everyone is hiking, biking and swimming. Oh and I forgot to mention to them, but I just remembered as a dog walked by on the train, many people bring their dogs everywhere! In Fussen, most of them were leash free in the town, on the trails, in the river. There were many on the trails up to the castle and on the bridge. Someone just got on the train with their mountain bike, I think they take the train to starting points and then bike back. Sorry, tangent. After breakfast, I bid them Auf Wiedersehen and packed up my bags.

At check out, I had a nice conversation with V, name shortened for protection, the owner of the hostel. She is from Romania, her and her husband moved in 2010 I think, when there were very little jobs, her grandmother lives in Fussen so they came here. She and her husband worked very hard to have this business for themselves. She recently took the German residency test to get dual citizenship, she said it was very hard and that most Germans would not be able to pass it, many of them do not write German well, the grammar is very hard? They also asked a lot of tax and political questions. I commented on how that is similar to our citizenship test, many Americans could not pass the history and political test, including me. I asked her how many languages she speaks, Romanian, English, German (which was very hard), some French, and Italian ( which is very easy for Romanians to learn, she said). I then asked her about wedding rings, I noticed that she was not wearing one and she had mentioned her husband. She was very open with me and shared how her husband left her about 9 months ago for a younger woman, 20, they had been married for 13 years and as I had mentioned worked very hard to build their business. They have a 5 year old daughter that is starting Montessori in the fall. She said that she did not eat for 3 months, then told herself she had to pull out of it to take care of the business and her daughther, this is why she was so proud of taking and passing the German test. She is an amazing women. She then answered the question as to why Germans do not wear wedding rings, she said they do not get married, it is too expensive, when I made a face she said to expensive to divorce. The mother has most of the rights and gets everything, so many men do not want to marry. I am not sure the truth to this, but this is what she told me.

I then was off to hike around the three lakes the woman at the hut the previous day recommended to me. It was about a 45 min walk from downtown Fussen, there are trails everywhere and also the streets are available to walk on, all the trails are well signed with the name and the amount of time it takes to walk there, it is very generous with the time, it generally takes me about 2/3 of the written time. The woman was right, it was beautiful, I took a quick dip in the last lake, it felt great as it was already warm out at 11:00. Many people were walking, using their walking poles. More people were biking, some cruising, others serious mountain bikers headed of to explore the many miles of trails. There are dedicated walking and biking trails all over this area, as I am sitting on the train now, on my way to Garmisch, we are following a bike trail.

I headed back to my hostel to get my packed bag and figure out how to get to Reutte. I could not figure out how to buy a ticket for the bus online, I rushed to the Tourist Information, which was still open for 30 min to ask. I was a little panicked, here I am, a 20# pack on my back and a hotel room in Reutte, what if I cant' figure out how to get there! They agreed that I would take the 74 bus, I get the ticket at the bus, I relaxed a little. Great, I stayed there for a little to write in my blog, then I quickly found something to eat and walked to the bus station. For lunch I had a bottle of fruity soda, I think Rhubarb, the person told me I got 2 euro back for my bottle if returned, wow, that is quite the CRV!

I got to the bus station for my 1:13 bus to Reutte. The time came around, no 74, there was a totally different numbered bus that said Reutte via something, everyone was getting on, I knew that it was going to Reutte, but was it by some round about way? I asked the driver if he spoke English, no, we struggled to commiunicate, then he asked if anyone on the bus spoke English, yes, someone came up to help. No this is not the 74, but it is going the same direction, okay, so I thanked them and got on. Still no 74 showed up....It was a short bus ride winding around the massive mountains to Reutte, glad I took my car sick pill, trains and planes okay, buses and cars, not okay. It was a short trip, 30 mins. I was too early to check in to my hotel so I found a cafe close that had WiFi and did some more blogging. I had a lovely lemon cake and some dry white wine that tasted like good Chardonnay. I practiced my ordering in German, it was very bad, but the people are always so patient when I try. I sat there for about an hour figuring out my next leg of the trip and typing. This part of the trip was a late change in my itinerary. I figured out that I could not take an early bus to Reutte on Monday morning so I could catch the 9:00 train to Garmisch (the one that I missed😞)) So I changed my reservations at Fussen to two nights and made the plan to stay in Reutte. I did not realize that this was a hotel in Reutte, not a hostel, it was 67 Euro for the night, as opposed to 30 Euro, though it came with that lovely breakfast, which was not served until 7:30, hence why I missed my train. I could, however, wash my delicates in the shower and dry them on the heated towel rack. The room was simple but comfortable, I slept for 9 hours, I had originally planned on catching the 0700 train, but I would have missed breakfast, since it was paid for, I decided to wait, there is no way that I would have made the 0700 train.

It was interesting, I was feeling very sad for leaving Fussen, I really liked the town and the hostel, it was full of life and music, Ruette was very quite and empty compared. Pondering this feeling as I was walking to Eherenberg, it was also that I had become comfortable with Fussen, I knew the layout a bit, I had connected with V and now I was off again to a place I had little information about, though I had a place to stay. It made me ponder those who have to leave their homes quickly for reasons of war, or fires or whatever and flee with whatever they could quickly grab to then places of unfamiliarty, maybe they do not speak the language. How terrifying it must be. I know about my self that I am addicted to control, this is a lesson in the fact that no matter how much planning you do, you are still out of control and your trust must lie in the hands of others, it is a vulnerable position, which is not a place that I like to be. It is a lesson in trust in God and those around me. I think back to my conversation with Casey, in Munich, I have not spoken about her yet, she is from Israel and had just come back from a trip around Southeast Asia. She said there, she would have to yell the name of where she was going when she was at the bus stop until someone helped her figure out how to get there. They did not speak English, but they were patient in trying to help. I could not even imagine that, it is hard enough for me here where most speak English and the trains and buses are fairly clear on where they are going.

When I checked into my hotel, I asked about going to Eherenberg, Hans told me that it was a lovely walk, about 45 min and I should go. I got into my room, packed up my backpack, lastly remembered my longsleeve shirt and filled up my water bottle. It was a lovely walk, flat until I got to the long hill to get to the ticket area for the ruins. On my way up, many mountain bikers passed me going down, some looked like they were in their 70s or 80s! I thought, they rode up this hill! (as I huffed and puffed my way up) Then I thought, maybe they took a bus and then rode down, I have no idea.... I got to the main area for the ruins, there was a museum, nature center and such, all closing in a few min, which I knew, but the Highline was open till 10pm. It was another 45 min hike up to the ruins and then you could take the Highline over to the ruins on the other side. Great, I get my ticket and off I hike, again, uphill. Prior to the ticket station, hiking up the hill, I thought, wouldn't it be lovely if it rained, the weather here is very nice, upper 70s to low 80s, but when you are hiking, it is hot for me. As soon as I stepped out of the ticketing center it started to sprinkle, then pour. Perfect, I was happy. On my way up the wooded hill, many people were headed down, not so happy. I was grateful for my hat to keep my glasses drip clean and I headed up. Once I got to the castle ruins, the rain had stopped and it was clear again. The views were amazing, almost 360 degree view of the towns below and the Alps all around. I could see the Highline, and the 2 other ruins. I walked around the ruined castle reading the plaques. It was built from the 1400s to 1800s, the majority of the building being done in 1600s. I thought, whew! were these people in shape, everything was on a slant up the hill. It was then time to walk on the Highline, which I was excited about and even thought I would stay late and watch it turn to dusk. I quickly realized I was mistaken once I stepped on the bridge. The bridge moved, it swayed with every footstep, it was long, it was very high and you could see through the little metal boxes that I was standing on. It was terrifying, it was all I could do to walk looking straight ahead to get to the other side. No one else seemed nervous, there were families with their children, carrying their toddler, one woman was standing there on facebook! Some were leaning over to take pictures and stopped to admire the view. There was no stopping for me, I had images of the second Indiana Jones movie running though my mind, the scene where the bridge breaks and they are hanging by the wooden slats, I thought about how I would hold on so to climb up if the bridge broke. I made it too the other side and again admired the view, the second ruin was about a 15 min hike up again, I decided that one ruin was enough. I steeled myself to cross the Highline again, there were paths down from that side that I pondered taking instead, but I was not sure where they would come out and there was a busy road in between. I crossed again, I managed to take a picture of my feet, I did not look and one picture from the bridge, that was all I could handle, it was a little better the second time, but not much, when the bridge crossed over the road, the fencing was higher, so one could not jump, otherwise, you easily could the rest of the time, since the fencing was there I wondered if that ever happened. I was surprised by my terror, I did not think that I was afraid of heights more than any normal person, but clearly, I was the only one affected. I got down the hill to the center area and there was a restaurant there, I was hungry for dinner so I decided to stop. I had Spaztle with kraut, it was okay, not sure if it was the restaurant or if that was how it was supposed to taste, I thought I liked Spatzle, like I said, not bad but not amazing. I asked the server if there was a bus back to Reutte, she was not sure and said it was just a 25 min walk as if it was not problem. I dreaded a little of the walk as I was tired, but I retraced my foot steps. It was at least down hill and then flat, but the last 30 min had a bit of a 'death march' feeling. I do not want to down-grade a real death march, as I heard about in Dachau, but I was really struggling and wanted to collapse. Which I did, once I got to my room, I managed to get up, shower, wash my clothes and then collapse again and sleep for 9 hours. The sliding doors and windows here are interesting, not only do they open as one would expect, but they also have a position where they lean back, opening up the top for fresh air, very ingenious. Now I am up to date, except for my first day, which will come later. I am currently waiting for the train to Zugspitz. The train from Reutte to Garmisch was through some beautiful countryside. I feel like I am running out of adjectives to describe the wonders that I see here. I am much later than I wanted, catching the 10:45 train to the cable car, I was planning on the 9:00 train. I had to buy a cappuccino from Burger King at the station to get change to lock up my bag in a locker here, not bad for Burger King.

---

Photos

IMG_20180819_103047069_HDR
A knipe, it is where people walk around this shallow pool. I guess it is good exercise. I did not get to find much out about it.

IMG_20180820_155625708_HDR
The lake I swam in on Saturday.

IMG_20180819_164136352_HDR
The high line

IMG_20180819_171323655
The ruins.

IMG_20180819_181030650_HDR
High line

IMG_20180819_172357920
The view from the ruins.

IMG_20180819_181019614
More high line, I didn't look when I took this one.

Comments

[Claire Woodburn]

Sounds like an once in a lifetime adventure. Be safe my dear niece!

[Joanne]

Flying
It sounds like your are learning to "fly-by-the-seat of your pants". It's okay to be uncomfortable while you figure things out, as it seems you are doing. That bridge, Claire would never have crossed, and I'm not sure I would have either. I had trouble with the original swing bridge to Tom Sawyer's Island at Disneyland.

[marguerite clair]

Loving this!
Jess, this blog is fascinating! So wonderfully detailed and with great photos. I even know what you're eating! Sounds like a workout at times but you are in great shape and I bet people along the way are impressed by you and happy to meet and talk with you in your brief encounters. :)Love to you.