11 December 2024

We started this morning with an 8:00 alarm as the apartment we were staying in had a fire alarm inspection scheduled for 9:30. We quickly got our showers and our Nespresso coffee before we packed our suitcases and sat down for breakfast.  I was putting the last of the plates in the dishwasher when the workman arrived at 9:25.

We got the car loaded and were on the road to Salzburg at 10:00.  It was basically a travel day, even though the drive took us less than 3 hours.  We first stopped at the Lidl to get dinner and then went to scope out the apartment.  We were about an hour and a quarter early, so we parked the car out front and went to investigate the overnight parking options – 3 spots in front of the building (1 of which was occupied) and 4 spots about a quarter mile away. 

We also checked out the local Spar Market (we shopped at these in Ireland), which was better than we remembered!  We were able to waste about 30 minutes and I sent a text to the management company to see if we could park in front of the apartment even if we couldn’t check in.  They responded that the unit was ready for check-in, so we literally moved the car 50 feet, parked, and unloaded. 

Unfortunately, 2 of the 3 parking spaces were occupied by this time, and we were left with the least desirable of the 3 in front of the property (the ones on Rainbergstrasse are larger, but much further away). Of course, Markus did an absolutely amazing job at parallel parking between a huge (extra long) passenger van and the garage of the complex – more like wedging the vehicle in than parking it. 

After hauling everything to the second floor – Europeans do not believe in elevators – we were worn out.  We are both fighting a cold – Markus more so than me – and it is playing havoc with our energy and sleep.  Neither of us slept more than a few hours last night.  Anyway, we got settled in for the evening, did one additional load of laundry (which entailed four trips to the basement – up and down the stairs!), had dinner, cleaned up the dishes, and ran the dishwasher. Thank goodness for modern conveniences!

Miles Walked: 0.6

Accommodation: Villa Salzburg

Footnote: We have been surprised by how many free EV charging stations are available – even one right here at Villa Salzburg!

12 December 2024

We got an Uber from our apartment this morning, and had a very interesting conversation with our driver, Nabil. He is Austrian and told us that he drives many Americans and a lot of them are from Florida. Of course, he asked us about our viewpoint on Trump as our new president and as the discussion progressed, he had very strong views on the American presidency (that he seemed to share with his fellow Austrians). They think that Biden didn’t do enough to prevent the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and as a nation, they are very hopeful about Trump’s leadership.

We had a full day of sightseeing in Salzburg today – and what a beautiful day it was!  The sun was shining, and the temperature was around 40*.  We started by meeting Sarah and Will at Mirabell Palace.  After a quick trip through the Christmas Market stalls outside of Mirabell, we entered the palace gardens.  Even in the wintertime, they were really pretty.  Our next stop was Mozart’s Residence, but it didn’t open until 12:15 so we went into the attached café for a warm refreshment.  We toured the museum, which was a complete disappointment and a waste of €15 each.  There was so little in the museum about Mozart and his family; the museum was focused more on photography (see below middle photo).

We crossed the bridge to the Altstadt and continued to Mozart’s birthplace to take pictures from the outside, but we did not tour the inside.  Next was a visit to the Dom zu Salzburg (Salzburg Cathedral) – it was beautiful!  There were no stained-glass windows but the frescoes rival any that we have seen in Europe.  Sarah and I lit a candle in Christopher’s memory.

There were two Christkindlmarkt in the plazas near the Dom, and we strolled through the stalls.  Will got a Hot White Russian, which we had never seen before.  I took a sip of it and can say that it was absolutely delicious!

We ended our day of sightseeing with a visit to Festung Hohensalzburg (fortress above the city).  The museum was very well done and we all enjoyed learning about the history of the castle and the city. And, the views were incredible!! (Stay tuned for additional pictures!)

After a brief stop to buy Mozart chocolates, Will and Sarah went to check in to their hotel and Markus and I caught an Uber back to our apartment.

Miles Walked: 6.0

Footnote: Funnily enough, we had Nabil as our Uber driver again this afternoon. He told us that he was just about done for the day when he saw “Bonnie” pop up and decided to accept the fare (since my name is unique for Austria, he assumed that it was the same Bonnie he had driven earlier). He was a really good Uber driver – safe and a good conversationalist (his English was excellent!). He told all about his grandchildren that come to his and his wife’s house every day between 4:30 and 6:00. At this time of the year, they are helping their grandmother to make Christmas cakes and cookies. He says that he doesn’t like it because he eats too much and gains 2-3 kilograms over the season! But, you can tell that he loves seeing his grandchildren every day! The Christmas baking reminds me of the tradition of making cookies, etc. that I grew up with – such sweet memories of my childhood. Needless to say, we were so grateful that he accepted our pick up!

13 December 2024

We had a wonderful Friday the 13th! We left Salzburg at 8:30 this morning and made it to the Zugspitze in Garmisch about 3 hours later.  We met Sarah and Will and took the cable car up to the “Top of Germany.”  We took pictures at the summit in Germany and then walked across the border to Austria for more pictures.  It’s so cool to be in two countries within a few steps!  The day was gloriously sunny with just a little breeze.  We couldn’t have asked for better views.  We had a really nice lunch in the café (complete with gluhwein!), stopped briefly in the gift shop, and then caught the cable car / cog wheel train for the descent down the mountain.  What a lovely way to spend the day!!

We got checked in to the hotel, had a brief rest, and met Will and Sarah to walk down to the central pedestrian area and the Christmas Market.  The market was completely disappointing!  It was only a few stalls, not at all what Mark and I remembered.  But the Italian Restaurant (La Toscana) that we chose for dinner made up for it!  Markus and I have eaten at the restaurant at least three times before – it was just as good tonight.  We got a pizza and a pasta dish to share.  The pizza was HUGE!  We ended up bringing 2/3 of it back with us and will have it for dinner tomorrow night! 

Miles Walked: 3.2

Accommodation: Rheinischer Hof

14 December 2024

After a great breakfast in the hotel, we were on the road to Neuschwanstein at 9:00. Thankfully, the roads were dry with no ice and the drive was beautiful. We arrived at the car park a few minutes after 10:00 (the ticket office opened at 10) and walked up the road to the ticket center. The next English tour was scheduled for 11:25 (it was 10:15) and since the shuttle buses were not operating (we never learned why), the line for the horse drawn carriages was extra long. Markus and I were concerned that we wouldn’t start out to Heidelberg until 1:00 – or even later – and that we would end up trying to go through Stuttgart and Karlsruhe in the evening rush hour. Also, since it was at least a 4 hour drive from the castle – assuming no slow downs, we would arrive in Heidelberg after dark, which is far from ideal. So, after a bit of discussion, we decided to skip the tour and head in our respective directions; Sarah and Will to Munich, and Markus and me to Heidelberg. We did snap a few pictures of “Cinderella’s” castle before we left. My favorite is below; I think it looks like a painting!

There was a 6-car crash on the A8 before Karlsruhe and we lost at least 35 minutes. We also made a brief stop for gas and a bathroom break. Then, once in Heidelberg, Apple Maps had a few issues with one-way streets and other avenues that were blocked to vehicle traffic. We were literally on one side of the boarding house and parking was on the other side and we had no idea how to get there. We got out of the vehicle, scoped out the surrounding streets and by asking Maps to direct us to a hotel that was 1/2 block away from the house, we finally pulled in to our spot at 3:00. Our original ETA was 1:55. But, we got here safely – and that is all that matters!!

Miles Walked: 1.0

Accommodation: Boardinghouse Luise

15 December 2024

We got off to a slow start this morning – we took an hour for coffee alone! So, it was after 1:30 when we left the apartment. At least, we didn’t have far to go, as we were only 2 blocks from the Hauptstrasse (main pedestrian area). We walked all the way from one end to the other. The Christmas Market was spread out with a few stalls in the Bismarckplatz, more in the Kornmarkt, and the majority in the Universitätsplatz. We stopped in the Kornmarkt for a corn dog (no pun intended!) . It was really different than the American version. Although the corn batter tasted similar, the “hot dog” was more like a kielbasa – in size and flavor – than the typical hot dog sold in the U.S. It was good, especially with German mustard!

Even though it was close to 3:00 and the sun seemed to be setting already, we decided to go up to the castle. It was €9 for the funicular and entrance to the castle (mostly the courtyard), which seemed reasonable. The funicular was renovated in 2004/2005 and the cars were much more modern than when we last rode in 1997. We saw the Große Fass, with a capacity of 220,000 litres, and then went through the Apotheken (Pharmacy) Museum. It was surprisingly interesting.

We strolled back to the apartment, picking up the pace slightly as we got closer since it had started raining lightly. Tonight we are starting to organize our bags to return home. It’s a bigger chore than usual as we seem to have accumulated additional items to take home!

Miles Walked: 5.0

16 December 2024

We had a nice leisurely morning – lingered over breakfast and coffee, got the vehicle packed, and pulled out a few minutes before 11:00. Then, we almost immediately hit our first traffic snag – we were supposed to make a left to get out to route 37 and traffic was so backed up that we decided to go right instead. Then, we hit our second traffic problem – the road was closed when we made the right turn as per Apple Maps. We drove around the exact same circle once again – only this time we went straight instead of right. Then we hit our third traffic issue – there was a car accident and the Polizei closed the road so we were forced to make a right hand turn. We thought we were finally clear then hit our fourth traffic delay – a forklift in the road. Fortunately, the driver needed only a few minutes to complete whatever he was doing and then got out of the road. With all of the delays, it took us over 30 minutes to get a mile away from the apartment!

As silly as it sounds, our plan was to go to the Ikea in Wallau (on the way to Wiesbaden). The very first Ikea we shopped at was here in Germany and we hadn’t been in one of their stores in over 10 years, so since we had plenty of time, we decided on a slight detour. Their storage ideas never cease to amaze! Obviously, not the finest quality of furnishings, but certainly loads of ideas. And, there is no doubt that the majority of the places we stayed on this trip were Ikea designs – especially in the kitchen (it was the same in Iceland).

We spent almost 1.5 hours going through the “showroom” and the market on the ground floor. We made only a single purchase – a set of toy trucks for Shaw for his birthday – they are similar to Lego in that the tops and the bases are all interchangeable. We think they are pretty cool and hope that he will like them.

There were a few other stores in the same shopping plaza as Ikea, so went to check those out. We needed to buy an additional bag for the way home as Sarah and Will gave us some beautiful Christmas presents (see pictures below) and our bags were stuffed to capacity coming to Germany. We found a great duffel for only €15.

Check-in at the apartment was 3:00 and it was just a few minutes before when we cruised past the block. There is no parking with the unit so we pulled into the first parking garage that we saw and walked back to the apartment. Street parking is nearly non-existent, so if the property doesn’t have parking, you just go with the first parking that you find. We got the first of our bags up to the room, had a quick rest, and then scoped out closer parking options. We walked back to the original parking garage and drove to a car park that is quite a bit closer.

Having schlepped everything – and we do mean everything! – from the car to the apartment, we began the task of packing. Normally, this is reasonably easy, but with 2 bottles of wine that needed to be padded, etc. it was a little more challenging. Also, we didn’t have room for our coats in our luggage on the flight to Frankfurt. Now, with the extra capacity of the duffel, we had room for clean clothes, dirty clothes, coats, and wine! Brilliant!! We took two bags back to the vehicle, so we only have to deal with one bag and our carry-ons in the morning.

With all of that accomplished, it was time for dinner! A bit of a funny story – when shopping in Heidelberg on Saturday, I found a ready-to-cook dish (raw) in the meat counter with orange sauce – think Publix Apron meals. For some reason, I thought it was chicken, although, upon further inspection, there was no mention of chicken (Hänchen in German, which I know!). Anyway, I baked it last night because the apartment in Heidelberg had an oven. Even when I was putting it in the foil, I thought it looked dark like chicken thighs. I cooked it according to the instructions, and decided to slice it when it came out of the oven. That was the “a ha” moment when I realized it was a different fowl – duck! Markus and I were both excited about the prospect of duck à l’orange for dinner tonight. We reheated it with basmati rice and it was incredible!

Miles Walked: 1.3

Accommodation: Apartment Wiesbaden Mitte (booking.com)

17 December 2024

We had an early morning – up at 7:15 and out of the apartment an hour later, after coffee of course!  We got out of the parking garage with no problem and out of Wiesbaden without any delays. We arrived at the airport car rental return just before 9:00 and got the car turned in. It was surprisingly easy; the agent was super nice and noted the slow leak in the tire for the service team. 

After walking what seemed like a mile, we got to the Condor check-in counter and got rid of our luggage. It was a little slow through security and passport control, but we had loads of time. 

There wasn’t a Priority Pass lounge in our terminal, so we found a nice restaurant and had a panini and coffee. It was quite good and fairly reasonable for an airport cafe. 

We got to the gate in plenty of time for boarding, but there was no aircraft – we were pretty sure that meant that we wouldn’t be boarding on time.  And we were correct!  Despite the aircraft being on the ground for 5 hours before our scheduled boarding time, it took at least 90 minutes to get the aircraft to the gate, get the crew on board, and prep the plane.  We were two hours late boarding, two hours late departing, and an hour and 45 minutes late landing in Miami.  At least this time, there was communication at the gate regarding the delay, but we have no idea why the aircraft was late in getting to the gate in the first place.  Isn’t this a common occurrence in Frankfurt?

Anyway, the flight was uneventful, and we landed in Miami, cleared customs and immigration, and checked into our hotel (in Concourse E at the airport) just before 8:00 pm.  We went to the Margaritaville Bar for a glass of wine and were in bed by 9:30 (3:30 am per our body clock).

Incidentally, all of our gifts arrived safely – no leaks in the suitcase! And the €15 duffel came through without a scratch! 😊

Miles Walked: 1.5

18-19 December 2024

We checked out of the hotel on Wednesday morning and took the Air Train to the transportation center since we decided to take Tri-Rail to the West Palm Beach Airport, thereby avoiding the horrible traffic in Miami.  The train took nearly two hours, arriving just after 12:00 noon.  We took a Lyft to the car rental center and were on I-95 northbound by 12:30. After brief stops at Panera for a sandwich, and then at Publix in Port Orange for dinner supplies, we were home at 4:30.  It felt so good to be back in our own house!

We returned the rental car on Thursday morning and another amazing adventure came to an end!