Celeste (Podie1956)

Who We Are

My name is Celeste and I live in Ocoee, Florida, a suburb of Orlando, with my husband and two (pretty much grown) children. Since my daughter Jean and I had always talked the two of us going to Europe (where I'd been stationed with both the Army and Navy) after she graduated high school, we planned a trip to start when she graduated from Valencia Community College in April 2001 with an Associate of Arts degree. Even though she was only 18, she was already due to start her junior year at the University of Florida in August 2001!

I did all the research and reservations for the trip and bought our plane tickets from Delta for $1065 each, using a $200 voucher we'd received earlier from Delta. Then a month later I saw the price had gone down to $565, so I went right to Delta and traded in the tickets! It cost $150 per ticket to change them, but the $200 voucher paid for two-thirds of that charge!

First Stop: Frankfurt, Germany

We flew out of Orlando International Airport at 2:15 PM on April 26, 2001. We had a brief layover in Atlanta and then the long haul,5:35 PM Atlanta time to 7:35 AM Frankfurt time, eight hours. Although Jean had flown between Hawaii and New York when she was younger, she didn't do well with the long flight, time change, and jet lag. Unlike the US Airways flight I'd taken to Europe a few months before, with personal movies, the Delta flight was cramped and nothing was personal!

It was raining when we arrived in Frankfurt, but Jean perked up as I showed her some Frankfurt sites from the air. We landed an hour earlier than planned thanks to a tailwind and had our rental car from Hertz in no time. I always ask for the basic economy car and always get upgraded for free - here we were given a triple upgrade to a leather interior, sporty Ford Escort type car.

IMPORTANT Packing Note Here: I'm married to a man who packs three suitcases for a weekend trip, but I've always been a light packer. My rule for this trip was one rolling backpack each (their versatility is wonderful) plus one regular backpack for things we'd need on the plane. But of course, we did not check any luggage, and each packed enough easily-washed, quick-dry clothes for three days. So, we were off the plane and in our rental car in less than 30 minutes!

The drive from Frankfurt to Heidelberg was quick as I rediscovered how much I enjoyed driving fast on German autobahns! Jean did the smart thing - sleep - but we were in Heidelberg within 30 minutes and I quickly found the US Army base to take a look around since it was too early to check in. NOTE: I later found out a Reservist was not supposed to use the facilities if not on active duty, but kept using them.

We were to spend only one night in Heidelberg because I knew I didn't want to drive all the way to Garmisch after the long flight, and I thought Jean would like the student hangouts in Heidelberg. I had a terrible time finding any available rooms and had finally booked the most inexpensive room at the Goldener Hecht, a charming little hotel right next to the Alte Brücke (Old Bridge). We arrived there at noon. I expected a tiny room for the price (about $88), and there wasn't much room for walking in there, but I hadn't expected the spectacular view of the bridge! (Click on any thumbnail picture for a larger version)

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Heidelberg in the Rain

Jean's first priority, after sleep (I couldn't let her even sit down!), was to find an internet cafe and send her boyfriend an e-mail. The desk clerk (who, along with the rest of the hotel staff, was charming) gave us directions and we headed deep into the old town in a light drizzle.

We found the internet cafe (in the basement of a clothes store!) with no trouble, paid for an hour and composed our e-mails, but then could not get them to send. Another customer had the same problem, and no one could help. We finally gave up and returned to the street.

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Jean's lack of sleep was making her cranky, but I told her there was absolutely no way we'd be going back to the room before 4 PM. We wandered around a little, finding possibilities for dinner, but knowing she was upset about not sending the e-mail, I asked the desk clerk if we could use their computer for a couple of quick e-mails, and she let us.

So then we walked around a little more and finally ate chicken schnitzels at the first place that was open at 4 PM! I ordered them jäger-style since Jean loves mushrooms and gravy, but she was falling asleep at the table, and finally, I brought us back to the room at 5 PM. Jean was asleep in seconds.

I, of course, was wide awake by midnight while Jean slept on blissfully. It being a Friday night in a college town, I was treated to several different noises as I dozed. At 3 AM or so, a man yelled, "Taxi!" perhaps 50 times before someone put him (and me) out of our misery by picking him up. I then fell into a deep sleep until 5:30 AM.

The good thing about a really small room is that it's easy to wake up the other person and act like you didn't mean to! It was already getting light outside and I rummaged in my backpack, used the bathroom, etc., before Jean decided 13 hours of sleep was enough and got up. Unfortunately, it was the same rainy day weather, with a little sunshine peaking through at times.

At 8 AM, our previously chosen breakfast time, we reported to the cheery Frühstück room and were served many cups of wonderful coffee, juice, bread, rolls, meat, cheese, and assorted butter and jelly. We sadly checked out at 10 AM to drive to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, with a visit to Crazy Ludwig's castle along the way.

The Drive To Bavaria

As I mentioned, I don't exactly dawdle when driving the German Autobahns. As a result, I was through Stuttgart within an hour and soon the magnificent Alps were looming in front of us. We were parking in a lot below Neuschwanstein at about 1 PM and the weather was finally gorgeous!

We settled for a snack of knockwurst before making the climb up to Marienbrücke as we agreed we would skip a castle tour. Funny how I had forgotten how steep that walk is! The bridge was jammed with tourists so we stayed just long enough to get a good look at the many hang gliders in view.

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After some good looks at the castle from various angles, we left at 4:30 PM and stopped at the Wieskirche, which I had always wanted to see. There are no words in any language to describe the gorgeous interior of this church.

From there we zipped right down to Garmisch, where we located our bauernhof with no trouble at all at 6:30!

Garmisch-Partenkirchen

If it wasn't for Ben's Bauernhof website, I never would have known about the Bichlerhof, the wonderful place we stayed for the next three nights.

I took a few photos, but they don't show you the cozy feel of the room or how wonderful the view was from our balcony. Jean called it "Heidi Land." This wonderful room, with daily breakfast, was DM80 per night, or about $38!

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Of course, our first search was for internet access, which we discovered at the library on the Army's Artillery Kaserne. After that, we walked around Garmisch and ate dinner. Then the cold moved in and we decided to call it a night, heading back to our lovely little room in the foothills.

We awoke at 6:30 AM to bright sunshine and were brought our breakfast by Herr Sailer, the owner of Bichlerhof. What a meal! Several types of meat and cheese, coffee, butter and jelly, and the absolutely best rolls and brotchen I've ever had! We ate in our room, which had a small table and two chairs as well as a sofa and king size bed.

Not knowing if the weather would hold, we decided to rush right to the Zugspitze. I drove to Eibsee and parked among the skiiers and snowboarders piling out of their cars. We decided to take the train up and the cable car down for a total of DM126. The train started out as a great viewing platform, but then we sat in the dark tunnel for 20 minutes so we made mental notes to never take the train again!

But once we reached the very top, all was forgotten. It was incredibly clear and only about 35 degrees - a true HIGH point for both of us!

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The cable car ride down also afforded wonderful views of Lake Eibsee and the surrounding area.

On a hunch, I went to the gas station at Artillery Kaserne and asked if Reservists were allowed to buy gas. They were, and what a bargain - 45 cents per liter versus 80 cents on the outside! We then went to Hexenweg Restaurant in Oberammergau for pizza and apple strudel with vanilla ice cream, visiting Ettal Monastery/Kloster and its Baroque Cathedral on the way back to Garmisch. "Wieskirche gone wild" was my daughter's description.

We went to the Army PX in Partenkirchen, where for the first time, one of the cashiers told me that a Reservist really wasn't supposed to shop without active duty orders, but she still allowed us to buy our items, and we were never stopped again, either there or in Italy. We shopped a little in Partenkirchen then, and discovered that unfortunately the Fraundorfer Restaurant was closed for a week - so much for visiting that highly recommended place.

After going back to the room and doing a little handwashing, we visited the U.S. Army's Patton Hotel in Garmisch, where we had been offered a $71 rate, and were now doubly glad we hadn't stayed. We made a dinner of gelato while strolling through Garmisch and headed back to the room when the temperature made its nightly drop.

Right after breakfast we headed to Garmisch for shopping, and luckily all the stores were already open on this gorgeous, warm day. It was a great day. I turned DM5 into DM25 in one play at the Spielbank (casino) and was smart enough to leave immediately and buy lunch. Then we went to Mittenwald and walked around for about 30 minutes.

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It was very pretty but much more commercialized than I expected and we soon returned to Garmisch, where we did laundry and surfed the Net at the Army base.

That evening we walked about half a mile from Bichlerhof into Garmisch and went into a little Gasthaus where my 18 year old daughter ordered her very first beer (she didn't like it that much) and then we pigged out on roast pork, salad, and dumplings before the owner treated us to a round of schnapps, which Jean DID polish off like a pro! The evening cost all of DM35. We strolled through town a little and then called it a night.

The next morning was our last at Bichlerhof and we left at 9:30, both regretting we had to leave this wonderful house and country. But the temperature was already in the mid-70's, the snow was melting like crazy, and I was ready for our next stop, even warmer Italy!