Settled in Freiburg....for two days

Arrived yesterday in Freiburg and picked up the rental car........a black BMW 118i, not too bad for one person to cruise around Germany!  When I picked up the car, I was surprised that it had a GPS system built in, since I had not ordered this with the vehicle.  I brought my own trusty Garmin that has the European maps, as well as the U.S.  When I turned on the car, the GPS began speaking to me in German, which was of no value, so one of the attendants at Sixt Rental Car, changed the system over to English, the temperature readings to Fahrenheit, etc., etc. and I was on my way.  I set both GPS systems to my destination, Rebstock-Landgasthof, which is about 7 miles outside of Freiburg.  I will be spending two nights here and exploring the surrounding area, which includes the Alsace wine area of France.  After checking in at the gasthof, I drove around the area, exploring the small towns, etc.  Eventually I headed over for dinner to a small winery that Gail and I had visited in 2007.  It was a very quaint place and I remembered that they also had a small restaurant that served dinner.  I arrived about 5:30 PM and the place was rather crowded.  I found a single seat and had a lovely smoked pork and fresh potato salad dinner with a .25 liter carafe of their special red wine..........an excellent Pinot Noir. There was only person here that spoke English, and it was a young woman who was one of the owners.  I remember her from our stop here in 2007, but she did not recall our visit, obviously.  It was quite interesting for me, as I sat here in this small "tavern" by myself and everyone around me was chatting away in German.  I was in no way intimidated by all of this.....actually I enjoyed it and found the whole scene quite refreshing.  This is one aspect of international travel that I always find enjoyable......being totally immersed into the culture of the country I am visiting.

After dinner, I walked around the small town of Gottenheim, where the winery is located.  For about an hour I just walked around looking at all the half-timbered homes, small shops and visited the rail station.  These small towns are what I always enjoy when traveling in Europe. When Gail and I were traveling in Europe four years ago, we always set the GPS for "local roads" and made sure we stayed off the highways.  After driving around the area again and even heading into downtown Freiburg for a bit, I retired back to the "gasthof" by about 9 PM, quite tired from a long day of travel.

Today, I just finished a typical European breakfast, which was included in the price of the room.......an assortment of cereals, cheeses, meats, eggs, breads, and coffee.

Now I am off to France to explore the Alsace Wine Route.  I will cross the Rhine River as I head over to France and go north toward the city of Colmar, France.  Should be an exciting day.

I hope to post more photos soon, but uploading and posting pictures is rather time consuming.  I would rather spend my precious time in Europe exploring rather than sitting at the computer.

Just arrived in Freiburg, Germany

Posting this from Starbucks (free wifi) in Freiburg.......just got off of the train.

Well, here I am sitting on the train from Zurich to Freiburg, Germany.  The first week of my journey, to say the least, has been outrageous.  From the moment I arrived in Zurich last Wednesday and meeting Seraina, till I left the Giger’s home this morning has been more than I could have expected.  The Giger family took loving care of me from day one on arrival, until leaving their very welcoming home this morning.  They had the entire weeks itinerary planned out, including all the reservations for the train ride to Munich for the Oktoberfest, the reservations in our hotel, etc. etc.  Additionally, Eliane’s cooking and preparing all the meals while I was at their home in Gossau, was just great.  They made my dream to attend the Oktoberfest a reality……Thank you!

As I had posted earlier, the Oktoberfest was an absolute blast.  Seraina and Eliane stayed for one night, and Ivo and I stayed over for an additional day.  Ivo  has a great sense of humor and the two of us drank beer, laughed and enjoyed everything that was going on around us…… and there was a lot going on!  I needn’t say more!! It did rain, but that did not stop us from sitting in the various tents and partying with everyone else.  The entire stay in Munich and the Oktoberfest is something that everyone must experience in their lifetime.

Yesterday, Eliane, Seraina and I took a very long hike up one of the local mountains.  The scenery in Switzerland is breathtaking.  Going up the mountain was quite strenuous and tiring, at least for me, but once we arrived at our destination we stopped at a small restaurant for some hot chocolate and some ice cream and sweets.  The walk down the mountain was a lot easier than going up, but also made me “schvitz”.  We returned to their home, where Eliane & Seraina prepared another great meal and then we all relaxed and chatted for the remainder of the evening.  We even had a chance to video chat with Gail for a bit, when she arrived home from work.  As the evening drew to a close, it was rather sad for me, because I knew I was leaving their hospitable home tomorrow. But, I also was excited as I was continuing on to the next phase of my exciting journey.

As I sit on the train now I am enjoying all of the scenery as we leave Switzerland and shortly cross into Germany. A short time ago we passed a trainload of new Audis, all wrapped in their white “covers” with the Audi symbol on the outside. The train is actually slowing down a bit now as we are making our last stop in Switzerland, in Basel. 

Back in Switzerland

  
All I can saw is "Wow".  The Oktoberfest was just incredible.  I have been thinking of attending this "party" for years and years, and it was more than I could have imagined.  I cannot even put into words what it was going on.  Everywhere people were just partying, singing, eating, smiling and having a great time.  We arrived in Munich about noon on Saturday after a 3 1/2 hour train rides from Gossau.  As soon as we got on the train, people were already drinking beer and getting ready for the party.  There was even a "food" cart on the train, going up and down the aisle selling draft Heinekin. The scenery along the way through Switzerland and Germany was great and the weather was fantastic.  Once we arrived in Munich, we headed over to our "hotel", put away the bags and walked around Munich a bit before going to the Wiesn, which is the location of the Oktoberfest. For awhile, we just walked around to see everything, before settling down for some food and drink.  I was like a "one eyed cat in a fish store" as I walked around taking in all of what was going on, and taking many photos.  There were people of all ages and all ethnicities enjoying the entire atmosphere.  Most people were dressed in the traditional German clothing, men in their Lederhosen and women wearing various styles and colors of Dirndls.We visited many of the "tents" that were sponsored by the breweries, to see what was going on.  On the first day it was difficult to get into some of the tents, since reservations are a must on opening day and many times thereafter.  In all the tents the music was playing and people were just drinking, laughing and having a great time.  The entire atmosphere was just phenomenal, going from place to place.  There were many types of food stands for meals & snacks, and even small kiosks for a quick bier.  We finally settled down in one of the Paulener Bier Gartens for a few Maß (mugs) of beer.  Great stuff!!  I will post a few photos now, but when I have time, I will put a link to some more photos.  Click on any of these or the above photos to see a larger size.
 

Check these out!!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2038481/Oktoberfest-2011-Beer-flows-freely-ultimate-drinking-festival-gets-underway.html?ITO=1490


http://www.bild.de/video/clip/oktoberfest/oktoberfest-start-agvideo-20016984.bild.html

Oktoberfest

I cannot even describe the entire scene here in Munich. It is more than I could have imagined. So glad to have finally made it here. Party, party, party!! All I can say is Wow! Hate to leave. Photos will be posted soon. Totally outrageous. I have never seen anything like this.....ever.

In Munich at Oktoberfest

Arrived by train a few hours ago.....superb weather. Having a great Hacker-Pschorr Weissbier with lunch. Headed over to Wiesen where Oktoberfest is held. So many people dressed in traditional German outfits for the occasion. So glad to be here.....been a long time in planning. I'm taking many photos to be posted in a few days when I have my computer and better access & bandwidth.

Good Morning from Gossau.....

Up early this AM, as Seraina and I are on our way to various parts of Switzerland for the day, by rail.  Seraina was able to procure an all day rail pass for me, which enables you go travel on the Swiss Rail System all day for a very reasonable price.  Seraina has her student pass, which enables her to do the same.  So, today we are off to  Bern and then on to the city of Lausanne.  Bern, the capital, is in north central  Switzerland and Lausanne is in the far western section of Switzerland, on Lake Geneva.   Lausanne, on Lake Geneva, is near the French border and is in the French speaking part of Switzerland.  It should be a long, but lovely day as we travel through the beautiful and charming country of Switzerland.  I am sure to take many, many photos which I will post in the next several days, time permitting.

Yesterday was a slow day as I tried to recover from the jet lag.  We spent the day walking around the town of Gossau.  I had been to Gossau in 2007, but did not have the chance the see the town, so yesterday it was a pleasant day seeing the town and then taking it easy in the afternoon.

Well, tomorrow, Saturday is the 17th of September and a day have looked forward to for 40 years.........the opening day of the Oktoberfest in Munich.  We we get up at 7 AM and get an 8 AM train to Munich!!  I will not be posting anything over the next several days, as I will not be bringing my computer to the Oktoberfest, nor will I want to take a break from all the festivities.  I will have my iPod Touch and will perhaps find some wireless and therefore be able to give a quick update through Twitter.  Well, until next week.......Auf Wiedersehen!

Hello from Gossau, Switzerland

Just waking up this AM, about 10:30 after a well needed sleep.  Yesterday was a fun day walking around Zurich, in the morning by myself and then in the afternoon with Seraina.  I had not been to Zurich since 1977, so it was exciting to see some of the places I recall from being here in 1970 and 1977.  Many jewelry & watch shops among
 boutique clothing stores ......... very pretty, clean and modern city.
 As I walked around I was drawn in by the smell of a bratwurst shop..... so that became my lunch today.  Nice bratwurst, hot mustard (senf), and a piece of fresh bread, hit the spot and was one of the things I was so looking forward to on my visit to Switzerland & Germany.   Shortly after, I washed it all down with an Eichoff Bier, again, something I was  looking forward to on my visit to Switzerland.  After meeting up with Seraina and then her dad later in the day, we took the train from Zurich to their home town of Gossau, where we had a wonderful dinner and great conversation.  It was great seeing the Giger family again, since Gail and I last visited here in the summer of 2007.  Shortly thereafter, I went to sleep.  Overall, it was a great first day of my excursion.  {You can see any of the above photos in full size by clicking on the photo}

To see more photos from my day in Zurich on September 13, click here.

Up, Up and away.......and now in Zurich!

Well, here I am approximately 35,000 feet in the air on a United Airlines nonstop flight to Zurich, Switzerland, drinking a cold Heinekin, and typing on my new MacBook Air.  After months and months of planning, it is hard to believe this day has finally arrived and I am on my way to Europe.  Everything today went very smooth, from returning the rental car at EWR, getting through security (without even being groped) and finally boarding the plane with no issues.  Believe it or not, we actually took off almost on time, which is a rarity from EWR.  Before takeoff the flight attendant even brought me a complementary copy of the Wall Street Journal to read onboard.  Now, this is what retirement is all about!  To my amazement, the flight is not totally full, and that actually works out to my advantage; the seat next to me is vacant!  That is really a score, since on this Boeing 767-300, the seat arrangements are 2-3-2, and I happen to be in a window seat, which affords me the pleasure of my own little “cubby”.  To make the situation even better, I have a United Economy Plus seat, that is normally a $100 upgrade (but no cost to me, since I utilized the suggestions at the website www.seatguru.com in choosing my seat).  I therefore have more space & legroom than a normal economy seat.  Everything so far is going great and I can only hope that this is how the next five weeks will be.  The flight attendants will bring “dinner” shortly, and then I hope to get somewhat of a nap.  I am hoping to get some sleep so I am not totally exhausted when I arrive in Zurich tomorrow.  I will spend most of my day in Zurich, meeting Seraina at the Hauptbahnhof midday, and then we hook up with her dad a bit later when he gets out of work.  Perhaps we will stop for a refreshing Swiss bier before we take a train to their home in Gossau where I will spend the next few days with the Giger family.  Then on Saturday we are off to Munich for the opening day of the Oktoberfest.  

I am currently in the Apple Store in downtown Zurich, where they have free wifi, so I was able to post this message that I wrote on the plane last night.  BTW, I did not get much sleep!  Europe is great..... I love just walking around and seeing all the signs that I cannot read, and listen to all the people that I have no idea what they are saying.......it's great and quite refreshing.


I am now editing this post again..... I am now sitting in a Starbucks overlooking Lake Zurich, and I have no idea what anyone around me is saying!  People are speaking mostly German and I hear a bit of French once and awhile.  It is rather cloudy today and a bit chilly, but that does not damper my enthusiasm and excitement of being in Europe again.  I am headed out for a walk around the city ...... and then on to meet Seraina in a few hours.  Life is good!

Wow.... Five days to go!

It is hard to believe that in five days I am leaving for this long planned journey.  I have been reading, thinking,  emailing back & forth with friends in Europe, and trying to get everything organized for this trip ...........and now the departure day is less than a week away.  I believe I have everything necessary and ready to go, but as long as I have my new MacBook Air and trusty Nikon D200 camera, I am all set for the five week trip.  My mind is spinning in many directions as I think about all the places I will visit and experiences I will have as I travel from Switzerland to the Oktoberfest,  the Black Forest, Rhine Valley & Teutoburger Wald in Germany, and then on to Amsterdam, Belgium and Paris.  Be sure to check back regularly to see updates and photos after I depart on Tuesday.