European Trip 1998

With Frank, Sabine, & Regina at Kloster Andechs, a fantastic beer garden. We munched on Schwineshoxen (huge ham hocks), Kartoffelsalat (potato salad), & Pretzels.

On Sunday, after three days stay with Silvia and Lutz, we took a train to Munich. It was raining but our friend Frank, accompanied by Regina, his daughter, picked us up at the Munich train station and drove us to his home in Herrsching. Sabine, Frank's wife, welcomed us in. Though we had a bite to eat on the train, we were not only welcomed with food and drink at his house, but at his parents house as well, who happen to live next door. I have a weak stomach which can handle little alcohol and it was starting to give me problems, so I had to try to limit my intake. Germans must have "caste iron" stomachs as none of them seem to have any problem consuming large quantities of alcohol. I was embarrassed at having to turn down so many offers of food and drink not only here, but throughout the trip.

This "facility" is in the men's room at the Kloster and handles beer that comes out the wrong end.

The next morning we got up and hiked for an hour up to the Andechs Kloster. Part of this religious sect's activities is to brew beer which they served in liter mugs. If you only want to use your personal mug, then there is a mug locker, where you can lock your mug in its slot and it will always be there waiting for your next visit. They even have a facility in the men's rest room if you drink too much and your stomach decides to unload its contents in the wrong direction. I had one beer and did not need to use this device. We dined on "Schweineshoxen" (very large ham hocks), "Kartoffelsalat" (potato salad), and pretzels. Another meal that was "schmackaft". Though the "Biergarden" was packed with people and the view beautiful, this was not your international tourist destination. As we walked through, with me trailing Lyn, I noticed all the heads turning as possibly the only Asian in town passed by.

Back in Herrsching, Frank and I rowed as Sabine and Lyn rested in a boat on the Ammersee. This is a medium sized lake you can see from Frank's house. It is a beautiful spot which seems to attract quite a few German tourists to populate the lakeside resorts, restaurants and tour boats. In the evenings we walked along the shore. In the failing light, we saw two guys practicing juggling with rocks. I showed my behind the back toss, which impressed them, then quickly quit while I was ahead. One day we skated through town and along the shore. We also took Regina skating and were joined by a couple of neighborhood kids. We went to Schloss Seinfeld where there was an Egyptian museum. Also, at this "Schloss", was what Frank told us was a approximately 15 foot high stalagmite in the middle of a courtyard. It was being fed by a fountain in the center. We saw a satellite station and then picturesque Diessen, again on the shores of the Ammersee, where we had a "Magnum" ice cream bar, the first of several during the trip. In Diessen (not indecent), there was a beautiful "Kirche" (church), which reminded Lyn and I of the famous Wieskirche.

The church in Diessen

With my interest in recreational vehicles, I'm glad that we were also able to see an RV park near Herrsching. Since the European roads are narrower and gas more expensive, the trailers are much smaller than you would see in America. Countering that are the tents which they attach to the front of the trailer which are sometimes larger than the trailer. These tents look very sturdy and about as permanent as the trailer. Other than the fabric walls they looked pretty much like a small house. The trailers, like the cars, don't often come with air conditioning. Therefore, they usual attach a second roof made out of fabric, similar to a rain fly for a tent.

Frank drove us to Salzburg, Austria, about 1 hr and 45 minutes, and it is quite a memorable spot. We lunched at a restaurant on a cliff overlooking the city lying far below us. The fortress was on another hill. We toured the Mozart museum and walked the narrow streets. We both agreed that this would be a wonderful town for a skate; someplace that we could come back to someday and explore. While places like Rome are fascinating, there is no room for skaters. The streets are to choked and hectic and even in winter, the sidewalks were too crowded. On the way back we stopped at a salt mine, took a tour which included a train ride deep into the mountain, a couple of long slides, and a boat ride across a lake within a cavern. The slide was made out of wood and gave us a ride reminiscent of Splash Mountain at Disneyland. It was steep and long and there was no boat or car to protect you. Lyn was scared when we took the first ride but after the second ride, she wants more.

We rode very nicely in Frank's new Mercedes, although Sabine says that she is sometimes scared at the speed he drives (I have said the same thing about Lyn). I don't think he ever drove much faster than 175 kph. Of course to Europeans, we Americans drive along at a snail's pace of about 105 kph. Frank complains about the 1.9 liter engine, but it seemed to have plenty of pep. It didn't even bother me much when he said that years ago he had wrecked his brother's Porsche. Frank is quite a kidder, but I believed him about that. I was shocked that Frank said his brother told him it was okay. "It wasn't a very good Porsche, anyway! Not enough power," his brother said.

Skating with Regina and Sylvia, a neighborhood kid.

We stayed at Frank's parents house. Our room looked just like a room in the best "Guesthaus", complete with a bowl of apples and kiwi fruit, a bottle of water, and mints on the pillows. Even at 75 years of age, their house rated with the best Bavarian homes. Frank's home, more recently built, was bright and airy, with the dining room looking out a wall of windows to the patio and yard which became the playground for their rabbits. Each morning some of the rabbits would be released from their cages to romp among the grass and flowers. They seemed especially fond of nibbling on the flowers of a certain pot placed at the corner of the patio. Frank's little portable pen was a solution for that. Then, in the evening, each free roaming rabbit was put back in their cages, a difficult task as they could scamper around quite quickly.

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