Leaving Budapest we bypass the trail a little to visit Slovakia in Bratislava. Another country to tick off the bucket list. Even if we were only there to wander through the town and have lunch! I did get a photo or two and and I am happy to have had the experience of ‘going to Bratislava’ hehe
Our aim was to get to Vienna and have enough time to look around the place. Vienna has the most amazing palaces and palace gardens. We didn’t have long there but we did meander through one of the gardens and take lots of photos. Another palace we just did a quick visit to and took some photos but didn’t walk around it.
We only had one night before we needed to move on to Salzburg. And we did it. Salzburg is great, especially the old part of the town. Little streets squashed up together filled with shops and restaurants and memorabillia of Mozart. The old town was built right against the surrounding cliffs, even with houses connected to the cliffs as their back wall. Fabulous! The whole place was buzzing with people and full of life. Wandering back to the car along the river and crossing the bridge was just lovely, very picturesque. Sigh…my soul is once again satisfied with the wonder of our beautiful world, and our God who created it all 🙂
And there is more to come…
Our Accomodation is fabulous. A hotel built in Berchtesgaden right beside a beautiful clear flowing stream and the hotel itself looks just like a Swiss chalet. We are in Austria, but very close to the swiss alps. Towering above us is the huge hill/nearly mountain (a subpeak of the Hoher-Goll known as the Kehlstein) where Eagles nest sits! Eagles Nest is a is a chalet-style building. It was built as an extension of the Obersalzberg complex erected in the mountains above Berchtesgaden. The Kehlsteinhaus was completed in the summer of 1938 after 13 months of construction, prior to its formal presentation to Hitler on his 50th birthday on April 20, 1939. It is situated on a ridge at the top of the Kehlstein mountain 1,834 m (6,017 ft), reached by a 6.5 km (4.0 mi) long and 4 m (13 ft) wide road that cost RM 30 million to build. It includes five tunnels but only one hairpin turn and climbs 800 m (2,600 ft). We did the first part of the trip up by normal bus, but had to change over to a special bus for the second part. The road is so steep and has many very tight corners. Buses transport tourists up in relay. About six buses follow each other up and then down again…all filled with tourists…both directions!
The last 124 m (407 ft) up to the Kehlsteinhaus are reached by an elevator bored straight down through the mountain and linked via a tunnel through the granite below that is 124 m (407 ft) long. The inside of the large elevator car is surfaced with polished brass, Venetian mirrors and green leather (the elevator is still used daily). Construction of the mountain elevator system cost the lives of 12 construction workers. We used this elevator to go up along with about 38 other people. It was hot and stuffy! But fortunately it didn’t take very long to get up. When we lined up to go back down we found out that it had broken down! Imagine being in the lift when that happened! Stuck inside a mountain and the only way out is either up or down the lift shaft. Can’t just make another opening in a hurry! Not through granite! We ended up walking down the 124 m via a windy track…actually it was a lot of fun and had amazing views. Most of the people waiting for the lift to be fixed were elderly people and there is no way they would manage the track. It was also very steep!
For all the trouble it took to build the place, Hitler rarely visited it. It has been suggested he only visited the Kehlsteinhaus around 10 times, and most times for no more than 30 minutes! Why built it for him anyway…that’s what I think!
Back on the road and we travel on to Munich. So happy to visit Munich again. Our main aim was to get to the centre of the town and show Teresa the amazing architecture, and clock towers, and to have our evening meal at a Bierhaus. A fabulous experience to be among hundreds of people all eating huge meals and drinking out of enormous handles of beer and singing along with the omm pah band. Believe me…it’s lots of fun 🙂
