The tribe will get some of my money

Well, it was inevitable.  Could I get all the way across the country without a speeding ticket?  Apparently not.  I couldn't even get out of the first state.  I was following the bicyclists map and decided to take one of the back roads.  Well, that road ran through the Kootenai Indian Reservation and I guess they wanted some of my money because I was pulled over by the tribal police for going 47 in a 35.  I guess I missed the change of speed limit in the "town" that had "one church".  Oh well, I guess I better call and find out the damage!

Day of Animals

A report from Lowell:  We stopped for quick change into rain gear along a country stretch of the highway, yes it rained all day again. A local house's dog came over to check us out, ran across the highway and decided to try Mike's calf out for a snack. Nice 3" slash, lucky Mike wasn't his type or the damage could easily have been worse. Further along the route we saw a huge bull elk with his harem, lucky dude. Then we saw a huge Osprey along a lake that took off right by us, looked larger than an eagle and very impressive. First day out of the Cascades and although still constant rain it was fun to have some rolling hills and flat so the 96mi's today was enjoyable.

Encounters with the animals and the rain were not the only factors that kept the bikers attention.  The scenery was beautiful along the banks of the Pend Oreille River.

We're in Idaho! Well, almost.

Start:  Comfort Inn, Colville, Washington
End:  Walden House Bed and Breakfast, Newport, Washington

Mileage:  96 miles
Weather:  RAIN!  AGAIN!

States Conquered:  None
States Being Conquered:  Washington
States to be Conquered:   Idaho; Montana; Alberta, Canada; North Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Illinois; Indiana; Ohio; Pennsylvania; New York; Vermont; New Hampshire; Maine

Particulars:

Interesting People Along the Way:  Finally!  Someone Hannah's age!  The Walden House in Newport, Washington is owned by a family with fifteen children!  Yes, fifteen!  There two youngest were around Hannah's age and were very happy to join Hannah in some board games!

UPDATE! Hannah's Subway Challenge

Colville, Washington!

Hannah made a suggestion about her school lunch next year. She asked if each morning, on the way to school, we could pick up a Subway sandwich. Well, I guess that's better than chicken nuggets!

But that gave us an idea! As we travel across the country, will we be able to eat at a Subway every day? Let's try!

Subway's located:

Monday, May 31: Ordered our favorites at the Subway in Colville, Washington.  Subway also located in Newport, Washington, but the men felt like Chinese food instead. Bikers rule!
Sunday, May 30: Day off for the bikers and dinner with friends in Spokane, Washington. Lots of Subway's their, but we had to forgo for yummy lasagne at our friends house.
Saturday, May 29: Passed by the Subway in Kettle Falls, Washington on our way to Colville, Washington. The Subway is right next to our hotel, so we'll make our timing work for this one!
Friday, May 28: Definitely no Subway in Wauconda, Washington nor is there one in Republic, Washington. Republic might be a good option for someone considering a franchise.
Thursday, May 27: Goal reached! Enjoyed very first Subway breakfast in Tonasket, Washington!
Wednesday, May 26: There was a Subway in Omak, Washington, but we had stopped for lunch in Okanogan, Washington not knowing what was ahead.
Tuesday, May 25: Nothing in Marblemount, Washington, Mazama, Washington or Winthrop, Washington. Winthrop might be a good option for someone considering a franchise.
Monday, May 24: Subway's located in Anacortes, Washington and Sedro-Woolley, Washington but didn't stop when travelling through these towns because our stomachs said it's not time to eat! Plus, there was surely some more options along our route! WRONG! Nothing in Concrete, Washington or Rockport, Washington!

Has it really been 16 years?

I never cease to be amazed. It's been 16 years since we were neighbors in Yorba Linda, California and a lot has changed.  But, as we sat next to each other in Sacrament Meeting and then again Sunday School and Relief Society, it seemed like just yesterday we were together in the Yorba Linda 4th Ward and the Anaheim Mormon Chorale.  John and Allyson Halpin live in Spokane Washington and have seven children, three adopted from Haiti.

We had a wonderful time visiting with each other at their home near Mt. Spokane/Green Bluff and Hannah visited with the cat, dog, horse . . . . and we celebrated Rosemitha's 12th birthday.  Thanks John and Allyson for a wonderful dinner!

Day of rest in Colville, Washington.

Start:  Comfort Inn, Colville, Washington

End:  Comfort Inn, Colville, Washington

Mileage:   0 miles

Weather:  Overcast but little rain

States Conquered:  None

States Being Conquered:  Washington

States to be Conqered:  Idaho; Alberta, Canada; Montana; North Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Illinois; Indiana; Ohio; Pennsylvania; New York; Vermont; New Hampshire; Maine

Particulars:  Lowell, Hannah and I drove to Spokane to visit with our old friends and neighbors, John and Allyson Halpin.  It was good to see them.  Mike, Kelly and Joe stayed behind in Colville, Washington and cleaned the bikes, relaxed and ate at the yummy Italian restaurant across the street from the Comfort Inn.

Interesting People Along the Way:  Visited the Halpin Family!

Day 4 of character building

Start:  Ponderosa Inn, Republic, Washington
End:  Comfort Inn, Colville, Washington

Mileage:  66 miles
Weather:  RAIN! (but less than yesterday)

Particulars:  Last major Cascade climb over Sherman Pass.  Conditioning complete for the Montana Rockies next week!

While riding through Kettle Falls, Washington, the men took pictures of a major part of the economy in this part of the world.  Hope they have an active replanting/replacement program in place!

Extrapolate a few days of observation into a conclusion--it rains A LOT in Washington!

Start: The Junction Motel in Tonasket, Washington

End: Ponderosa Motel in Republic, Washington

Mileage: 40 miles

Weather: RAIN!

Particulars:  Another climb in the Cascade's up and over Wauconda Pass.

A third day of character building for Lowell Klassen, Mike Thompson, Kelly Thompson and Joe Thompson.  Thought I should finally include the names of those who are travelling with Hannah and I.  Mike has been Lowell's biking buddy for years and on the seat of a two-wheeler powered by their shear will they have traversed the Mormon Trail (2003) and around the Finger Lakes of New York (2006).  Kelly is Mike's brother and Joe is a good friend of Mike and Kelly's who just happen's to share the last name of Thompson.

It was finally time to do some laundry, and while sitting in the laundromat, Kelly and I were invited to support the Constitution Party.  What do you think of that!  A Conservative Republican with Liberatrian leanings from Southern Utah and a more progressive thinking, not so conservative resident of Olympia, Washington could perhaps find common ground!  Thank you Kelly for letting me think out loud and providing some enlightenment on life's hard to answer questions.

This picture was taken by Joe Thompson.  The church building caught his eye as he rode his bike into Republic, Washington.  The cloudy skies int he picture are proof of a rainy riding day!

Lowell's greatest challenge!

Yes, bicyling up and over Rainy Pass, Washington Pass and Loup Loup Pass is a challenge (especially in a constant rain), but there is a greater challenge that Lowell had to face this week--handing the keys of his beloved truck to his wife! GASP! Yes, he does know that Hannah and I have been eating chips in his truck! DOUBLE GASP (no hyperventilating please)!

A second "build character" opportunity

Start: Cascade Inn, Winthrop, Washington
End:  The Junction Motel, Tonasket, Washington

Mileage:
Weather:  Chilly morning, but no rain until Okanogan.  Last 28 miniles into Tonasket--constant rain.  In fact, we heard on the news today that Spokane has had record rainfall!

Particulars:  Many, many orchards as we approached Okanogan.  I'm not a fruit tree expert, but I did catch one sign that said "Peaches".  I'm sure we viewed some apple orchards too!

The weather forecast said "PM Showers" and it was correct.  Around 1 p.m., the rain started and didn't stop.  Fortunately the bicyclists had already travelled up and over Loup Loup Pass and the rain started as they entered Okanogan.  A local sandwich shop game them a reprieve from the rain until Hannah and I arrived.  Not all of them were prepared for rain and the necessary riding gear was in the back of the truck.

Hannah and I continued on to Tonasket to find a motel.  On the way, we came upon a highway patrolman who was observing a driver "walk the line".  Was the "drunk driver" having a hard time because of the rain and had he truly imbibed in too many spirits?  Keep in mind, this stop took place in the middle of the afternoon!

Hannah's Subway Challenge

Hannah made a suggestion about her school lunch next year. She asked if each morning, on the way to school, we could pick up a Subway sandwich. Well, I guess that's better than chicken nuggets!

But that gave us an idea!  As we travel across the country, will we be able to eat at a Subway every day?  Let's try!
 
Subway's located:
Thursday, May 27:  Goal reached!  Enjoyed very first Subway breakfast in Tonasket, Washington!
Wednesday, May 26: There was a Subway in Omak, Washington, but we had stopped for lunch in Okanogan, Washington not knowing what was ahead.
Tuesday, May 25: Nothing in Marblemount, Washington, Mazama, Washington or Winthrop, Washington.  Winthrop might be a good option for someone considering a franchise.
Monday, May 24:  Subway's located in Anacortes, Washington and Sedro-Woolley, Washington but didn't stop when travelling through these towns because our stomachs said it's not time to eat!  Plus, there was surely some more options along our route!  WRONG!  Nothing in Concrete, Washington or Rockport, Washington!

RAIN! COLD! FOG! Plus, 68 miles and two major Cascade climbs

Start: Colonial Creek Campground near Diablo, Washington

End: Cascade Inn, Winthrop, Washington

Mileage: 68 Miles

Weather: Cold, Rain, Fog

Particulars: Two major climbs in the Northern Cascades over Rainy Pass and Washington Pass

A whole new appreciation for a hot shower after today's ride!

The campground is closed!

Start: Howard Miller Steelhead Park in Rockport, Washington
End: Colonial Creek Campground near Diablo, Washington

Mileage:
Weather: Rain off and on

States Conquered:  None

States Being Conquered:  Washington

States to be Conquered:  Idaho; Alberta, Canada; Montana; North Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Illinois; Indiana; Ohio; Pennsylvania; New York; Vermont; New Hampshire; Maine

Particulars:  Not much between Rockport and Diablo (and nothing much in Diablo), but did visit a true company town that existed soley for the sake of Seattle Light, the power company for Seattle.  There are several dams that have been built along the river that provide a significant amount of electricity to the city of Seattle.

When we arrived at the Colonial Creek Campground, it was closed and would not open until the end of the week.  A bit disconcerting since there were no other options for miles and it was late in the afternoon.  We were able to track down a caretaker and he said that we could set up in the tent area/parking lot.  Apparently we started something because another bicyclist came out way and then a German couple travelling the U.S. by RV.  The bathrooms were locked, but there was an outhouse.  Lucky us!

We made spaghetti and Ceasar salad for dinner and invited the lone bicyclist who was travelling to see his sister in Montana.  Hope he made it because, according to the men, he was having some equipment problems.

If a Chinook salmon is spawned in a fish hatchery, does it return to the hatchery to spawn? YEP!

As Hannah and I approached Marblemount, we noticed a sign for the fish hatchery.  We went exploring and had the most interesting conversation with a fish biologist.  She gave us a tour of the tagging and sorting trailer where they were working on Chinook salmon.  It was amazing to watch.

Eatch little fish was "vacuumed" up into the trailer where they were sorted by size, tagged with a wire tag in their bottom lip and their fin clipped.  Keep in mind, the fish were only two to three inches long!  They will eventually be released into the Skagit River.  Sportsmen have cetain requirements when fishing for salmon and the tagging process helps with this process and more improtantly, studying the migration patterns of the fish and how they are faring in today's world.

There were several large Chinook salmon who were approaching spawning season and we went to view them in one of the hatchery raceways.  I guess they're a little shy because they swan away the moment we approached the edge of their doman and they are FAST!

Root rot and Old Growth Forests

As we headed to Rockport, we planned to camp at Rockport State Park which is an old growth forest.  When I arrived to scope out a camp site, it was closed.  Apparently there has been no overnight camping for the last four years.  Apparently the old trees are experiencing root rot and the powers that be figure that you can get out of the way if you're hiking, but if you're asleep in your tent, you just might not get out of the way!

The park was beautiful and it would have been nice to have more time to hike. 

Howard Miller Steelhead Park: THE place to camp!

Start: Ferry Terminal in Anacortes, Washington

End: Howard Miller Steelhead Park in Rockport, Washington

Mileage:

Weather:  Nice spring weather, some rain towards the end of the ride

States Conquered:  None

States Being Conquered:  Washington

States to be Conquered:  Idaho; Alberta, Canada; Montana; North Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Illinois; Indiana; Ohio; Pennsylvania; New York; Vermont; New Hampshire; Maine 

Particulars:  Howard Miller Steelhead Park is a beautiful campground on the banks of the Skagit River.  With only a few RV's in the area, we had the park to ourselves.  We had not cell phone service, but we did have WiFi thanks to the tavern just across the road.

Interesting People Along the Way:  After Hannah was asked to leave the tavern, we headed back to the campground.  The men stayed behind and apparently one of the customers bought drinks for the house.  Not sure if we are to believe what we were told about this generous patron--he lives under a bridge?

Right next to our campsite was a wonderful playground.  Wich there had been some more kids around, but Hannah did get some coorperation from her parents on the swings, rock wall, and spider web.

Hannah was thrown out of a bar!

We're not quite sure what to expect as we travel down the road, what amenities will be available, accommodations, food . . .  There was one eating establishment in Rockport, Washington, a bar, and Hannah was not allowed, but the dogs were.  In fact, Hannah went in and was promptly told by the barkeep that she was not allowed.

So, she sat out on the front porch while I ordered a drink and then back to the campground.  Next thing I know, there is a woman sitting next to her on the bench.  Yes, the woman was drunk, smoking AND having a very animated conversation with my 11-year old!  Hannah was quite entertained by the whole situation and was even brave enough to ask the woman to not allow the smoke of the cigarrette into her face.  No hard feelings with the barmaid.  What interesting situations will we experience down the road?

As we left that evening, Hannah's new friend kept bidding her a fond goodbye and even left her address with the barmaid so that we could update her ont he trip.

Note to self: Add San Juan Islands to the list of places to explore.

This is the first time that I have been in this part of the country and it is BEAUTIFUL!  A definite add to the list of places to spend more time is the San Juan Islands.  One day!

And, they’re off!

Start: Ferry Terminal in Anacortes, Washington

Weather: Sunny and BEAUTIFUL!

States Conquered:  None
States Being Conquered:  Washington
States to be Conquered:  Idaho; Montana; Alberta, Canada; North Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Illinois; Indiana; Ohio; Pennsylvania; New York; Vermont; New Hampshire; Maine

Particulars:  Lowell Klassen, Mike Thompson (good friend of the Klassen's, former neighbor and yes, the guy Annette used to work for), Kelly Thompson (Mike's brother), Joe Thompson (Longtime friend of both Mike and Kelly and brother of Kelly's wife, Marianne who was Marianne Thompson before she was Marianne Thompson) converged in Seattle on Sunday, May 23 in preparation for their departure on a cross-country bicycle journey.  Hannah and I arrived at the Seattle airport where the men met us and on Sunday evening we drove the two hours to Anacortes, Washington--six people in the truck, six bikes on the trailer!

They dipped their rear tires in the Pacific and then they were off!  Hannah and I will follow in the truck.

Interesting People Along the Way:

Here she comes, Miss America! At least we think so!

Well, we think she should have been crowned Miss Draper!  They couldn't have asked for a better candidate--a beautiful dancer with brains (how many of the candidates have a four year scholarship to Westminster, take that!).

Great job Ellie!  On to bigger and better things!

A sting ray feels like velvet

After mulling over a trip to Hogle Zoo, the weather helped Hannah and Peter decide that the Living Planet Aquarium was a better option.  It was VERY busy, but we did get to see many interesting exhibits including the anaconda, penguins and piranha.  The highlights were the miniature sea horses and the sting rays.

It was a fun day with Peter starting at the Apple Store and Barnes and Noble at Gateway, then on to the Living Planet Aquarium, Noodles and Company for dinner (it was yummy!) and finally the Miss Draper pageant.

Cloud over the Eiger, Cloud over our trip . . .

Yes, we had a wonderful time touring Holland, Germany, Switzerland and Austria, but just like the clouds hanging over the Eiger, there was the ever present cloud of my mother’s health. I was very concerned, but had to remind myself that my sisters and brother had all well in hand in Salt Lake. Thank you for covering my share of the responsibility.

I received an e-mail Friday morning that the news from the oncologist was not good. That is part of what prompted our decision to leave a day early. We’re glad we did. When we arrived in Dallas, Lowell checked the news on his phone and there was a report that all airports in Northern Europe would be closed beginning Saturday because of the volcanic ash cloud. Whew!

We arrived in Salt Lake and picked up my mom’s craving—a salmon dinner and a bowl of clam chowder from Market Street Grill. It was good to see her. She seemed like her old self and is facing this challenge in the way I expected—hoping and planning. That’s the way she’s always approached any obstacle or difficulty in her path—no dwelling on the past, but always looking forward.

Why did our plane wait for the London passengers?

So, last Saturday, Jeni, Jack and Peter missed their connecting flight to Salt Lake because of their late departure from London. Now I’ll need to find out more details, because our plane to Salt Lake had to wait 30 minutes for the 28 London passengers to clear customs. Why didn’t they do that last week?

We have ruined our child!

One of the perks of using miles for plane tickets is the fact that sometimes you just have to fly first class to save your sanity (and your body). This was the case on this trip. When we initially made our travel plans with my mother, I told her that I would fly her first class, so now Hannah has experienced the good life. Will I ever get her in coach again? Her seat is fully reclined and she’s on her second movie—first Fantastic Mr. Fox and now Marley and Me.

We’re almost to the Canadian coast. Five more hours until landing in Dallas.

Drunks are not pleasant people!

While waiting for our flight to depart Heathrow, we waited in the American Airlines lounge where we could access Internet, power plugs, drinks and snacks. One interesting observation is that most of the people in the lounge were working n their laptop computers and most of those computers were Lenovo/IBM Notebooks.

Our peaceful work was interrupted by a drunk and his poor wife who was trying to calm a belligerent drunk. He was extremely verbally abusive towards his wife and she walked away several times to calm herself, but never raised her voice. After several reports to the front desk (including mine), an airline employee came to him and quietly told him that he would be changing his ticket to fly on a later flight so that he would be in a better condition to handle the trans-Atlantic flight. Fortunately he was on the flight to Chicago and not Dallas.

When we left the lounge he had fallen asleep in his chair after refusing the requests of his wife to move to a more comfortable recliner. I walked up to her and told her that she was very patient and “good luck”.

Today is your birthday!

When you’re in London, it is only appropriate to wake your daughter on her 11th birthday by playing the Beatles “Today is your Birthday!” She WAS amused! It is an understatement to say that she has been looking forward to her birthday.

Quick packing job, breakfast at the Marriott and then taxi to Heathrow. We arrived to find that our flight had been delayed one hour. Were we going to get stuck in Dallas too?

The Eiger says “Go home!”

Cloudy in the Alps again today and no views of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau--well, let me clarify, yes, we did see the base of these monoliths and a brief glimpse of some of the glaciers.

Checked e-mail first thing this morning and received news that things did not go well for my mother at the oncologist. I guess the Eiger is telling me to “Go home!” Changed our routing to Salt Lake City and departed Zurich Friday evening for London and spent the night in London allowing for an early departure on Saturday morning. Hannah was not happy about the possibility that she would not spend her birthday in Switzerland. We appeased her by telling her that we would take her to see Big Ben and Buckingham Palace.

On our way back to Zurich we visited Trummelbach Falls near Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland. These falls run through the rock crevices inside the mountain and rage with melting glacier water. Quite impressive, but I don’t know what impressed Hannah more, the falls or the glass elevator that went up and into the mountain.

While checking in at the Heathrow airport Marriott, Hannah decided that she was too tired to go and see the sites and wanted to go to bed. Yes!

42 Swiss Francs at McDonalds!

I guess I should have added a Foreign Exchange calculator app to my iPhone because going from Dollars to Euro to Swiss Franc to British Pound back to Dollars is taxing my brain. What am I really spending? The 42 Swiss Francs at McDonalds seems like an awful lot, but was it really? It calculates out to $36.

Driving THROUGH the Alps

Yes, we expected a leisurely drive through the Alps, but what we didn’t expect was that of the 120 km between Zurich and Grindelwald, 50% was in tunnels. You’re literally driving THROUGH the Alps and these tunnels put the Zion National Park tunnel to shame (although you do get the occasional view of grandeur in that tunnel). I’m very impressed by Swiss road builders!

160 km/h!

So what do you do when travelling at 160 km/h?  I think the Klassen's are a little out of control with their computers!  Sad, very sad.

Train to Zurich from Salzburg. I could have spent a few more days in Salzburg because we didn’t even begin to visit the Mozart sites.

Our train from Salzburg to Zurich approached 160 km/h (roughly around 120 mph). Should arrive around 4 p.m. this afternoon Zurich time and then on to the Eiger and Grindelwald.

Cloudy in the Alps today so not too many views of the peaks. Innsbruck was clear the views spectacular. Yes, it is just as you would expect—green pastures, steep inclines and alpine homes (they pretty much all look the same).

Asparagus Chocolate, Ketchup Chocolate and Sushi!

After our long day of tours, Hannah and I decided to stay close to the hotel rather than attend The Sound of Music marionette show. We would have like to attend, but all we wanted to do was eat something and go to bed. Our hotel was in old town Salzburg, so all we had to do was exit our hotel and we were in the shopping district near Mozart’s birthplace. Hannah had spotted some small dolls for one euro each and she wanted to make a purchase. Unfortunately, just about everything shuts down by 6 p.m. and the doll store was closed. We did manage to find a chocolate store that was open and made an adventurous purchase—asparagus chocolate and ketchup chocolate bars. No samples available (why would they when they know you’ll make a purchase just to try). Lowell was back in the hotel room and we were excited to bring them back for him to sample. Since we wanted to give Lowell some time to work, Hannah and I went to find a place to eat. When we spotted the Japanese restaurant, sushi sounded really good. It was a very limited selection, but we were able to purchase some of our favorites—California roll, maguro and cucumber roll. Ninja in Cedar City spoils us with their choice of rolls, and our California favorite, Taiko in Irvine, spoils us with great sushi for a great price. But, how many people can say they had sushi in Old town Salzburg?

Lowell is the best husband ever!

How many men would accompany their wife and 10-year old daughter on a four-hour bus tour visiting sites made famous by the movie, The Sound of Music? Lowell did! What a good sport! I’m sure he would have rather been in the hotel room working ob the electrical equipment designs for the big new Oracle building in West Jordan, Utah.

It was a typical bus tour with a guide that is also thinks of himself as a comedian—telling jokes about the Hill family and Dracula (ask Hannah, she’ll tell you the joke), turning the lights on and off on the bus when we get to the line “fate will turn the light on” from “Sixteen going on Seventeen”. Lowell does say the tour guide made the tour pleasant.

We learned that Hollywood took great creative license in changing the story and actual locations for their version of the movie. In fact, the Germans first released a very successful, closer to reality version of the story called “The von Trapp Family Singers”. My friend Annette Klassen was familiar with this version, but not the musical. Is that even a possibility? I’ll have to send her the movie so that she can see the musical. Maria von Trapp was not happy about what Hollywood was doing with the family’s story and expressed her dismay. I guess she was appeased by the $900,000 she received.

We saw so many locations featured in the movie: Nonnberg Abbey, the von Trapp Hollywood home which is now a musical school, the gazebo where love was declared between Rolf and Liesl and Georg and Maria and St. Michael’s Basilica in Mondsee (yes, they were actually married at Nonnberg Abbey, but St. Michael’s was so much more “Hollywood”. It is beautiful!

Our tour guide told us that there has been a Sound of Music tour in Salzburg every day since the movie opened. So which comes first, Salzburg was good for The Sound of Music or is The Sound of Music good for Salzburg?

Hitler and Maria von Trapp on the same day!

Did the typical tourist thing by making arrangements for a bus tour to Kehlsteinhaus, (Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest) near Berchtesgaden in the morning, and The Original Sound of Music tour in the afternoon.

We had talked with an attorney from Seattle who was travelling on her own for 16 days. She had been to Kehlsteinhaus that day and couldn’t say enough good things about the tour, especially the view. On that recommendation, we made our own reservations. Should have paid attention to the weather. Once we got to the top, we couldn’t see a thing because we were up in the clouds.

It was interesting to learn more about Hitler, Eva Braun and how little this beautiful place was used because of Hitler’s fear of heights.

Arias, strings and dinner with a Tibetan Terrier

So, if your hotel is a few doors away from Mozart’s birthplace, should you not incorporate Mozart’s music into your travels? Absolutely! One of the hotels in town hosts a Mozart concert and dinner set in a very old building which contained beautifully adorned hall with amazing acoustics. Five string players (two violins, viola, cello and bass violin) accompanied two opera singers who shared selections from Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute.

The libretto for Mozart’s operas were written in Italian because, as my friend Annette pointed out, the language flows with the music. For example, would you rather sing “Tiamo” or “Ich Liebe DIch”?

The food was also very good and once again with dined with a dog--seated center front was a Tibetan Terrier. Hannah and I went to say “Hi” to the dog. He was very friendly and when I knelt down to greet him he wanted to give me hugs and kisses (that’s dog hugs and kisses).

Stress level sky rockets!

We had spent a wonderful day driving the back roads of Germany and Austria. However, once we approached Salzburg, once again we were in TRAFFIC! Freeway traffic feeding into small old European roads and directions make for stress and it rose significantly in the car. Yes, the pressure was on to find our hotel, but we also had cars whizzing around us because of our caution. The Tom Tom was helping, and we located the hotel, but could not find where to park. We made another attempt, but again could not find a place to pull over, even at the front door. What to do, what to do . . . Since the hotel was on a one way street we had to circle around to make another approach which took about 15 minutes. I finally called the hotel and they said to pull up on the sidewalk! Why didn’t we think of that on our first attempt?

The Hills are Alive!

After a breakfast consisting of muesli, meats and cheeses, breads, yogurt, etc., we left the Bed and Breakfast located in the Schwangau countryside and began our trip to Salzburg. It is most appropriate that we listen to the Sound of Music soundtrack as we travel the Alpine roads through Bavaria and Austria. I guess we should run out into the meadow and start singing!

There are no cows in the fields as the grass is not yet tall enough so the milk cows are still inside their winter home. Apparently the milk cows are always kept inside, but the calves will come out next weekend and spend their time in the luxurious meadows giving them time to become big and strong. There are several small huts in each of the grazing fields which are used for storing hay. Apparently the cows are quite picky about their hay and it must be stored very carefully or the cows won’t eat it!

Stopped for lunch in Bayrischvell, Germany. We are so out of our element in Germany with the language. It’s such a wonderful thing to have my friend, Annette Klassen, be our travel guide for a few days. The menu in restaurants can be especially daunting, but we tried some new things, even though we’re not quite sure what everything was.  Lowell did manage to find a non-alcoholic beer.  Cheers!

Behind on your house payments? Give them Bavaria!

In the reading that I have done about Germany and Bavaria, I have come to the conclusion that Bavarian’s are not happy with the outcome of King Ludwig’s castle-building adventures and the debts that he incurred in the process. Just think, he became king when he was 18 years old and had led a very sheltered life up until that point, being schooled mainly in the roles and expectations of royalty.

Shortly after becoming king, Ludwig attended his first Wagner opera. He became enamored with Wagner and several rooms in Neuschwanstein are patterned after his operas with beautiful murals and ornate sculptures and carvings. The singing room is still being used today for exclusive concerts. Man, would I ever love to sit in that room and listen to a concert.

Ludwig never married and became more and more isolated. He followed the wishes of his Parliament and entered a very short war and the Bavarians were defeated. Because of his castle-building debts and the Bavarians defeat, he signed over Bavaria to King Wilhelm of Prussia.

The king’s devotion to Wagner did not help his cause as this great composer had been banished from Germany for political reasons. There were rumors that Ludwig was planning to abdicate and went to Switzerland to discuss his plan with Wagner. He did not abdicate the throne, but shortly thereafter, he was ruled incompetent and he and his psychiatrist were sent to an asylum. They were both found dead under suspicious circumstances. Ludwig was only 33 years old when he died.

Off to Disney! Oh wait, this isn’t Anaheim!

Now, just who influenced who? Walt Disney may have received inspiration from King Ludwig II of Bavareia and his creation the Neuschwanstein castle near Schwangau, but how many people come to Neuschwanstein because Sleeping Beauty’s Castle was patterned after this creation? Check out the picture of the line to the ticket office and tell me this doesn’t look like Disneyland!

Hannah and I took a horse carriage to the top which included a bit of comedy. We were seated on the front bench of the carriage which was pulled by two beautiful Bavarian Cold Bloods. On our way up the hill we kept hearing a strange but familiar sound which came from the horse on the right. In Germany, the word for exit by car is “Ausfahrt”. If you could use the same word for air that exits a horse, you would know what the sound was that we were hearing. Each time it happened, all of the children in the carriage would giggle. I guess that sound means the same thing in many languages. And we could have hiked up the hill and missed all the great entertainment!