Switzerland and Germany

We had not originally planned to be in Switzerland for 2.5 weeks but we were not able to find suitable housing in Munich Germany until Oktoberfest was over. So we got to stay in our nice Swiss Ski lodge for a couple more days, which we really enjoyed. We love the mountains!
Monday the kids and I took our usual mountain stroll up the mountain to the play ground and collected flowers and pinecones. Alana wanted to play the hide the pinecone game, she loves hiding games. After dinner that evening we decided to go for a little drive, we drove over to the tiny country of Liechtenstein it was about a 30 minute drive from our house. This country is squeezed between Switzerland and Austria. The country is only 62 square miles and is run by a monarch. A Gothic Castle perches over the capital city of Vaduz. We drove all the way to the border of Austria into Austria then turned around just to say we went to 3 countries in 1 evening! We also enjoyed McDonald’s hot fudge sundaes in Vaduz.
Tuesday we took a drive and explored the other side of our mountain, we took a scenic drive along a mountain pass. This country is so beautiful! I love the little Switzerland cabins in the lush green mountains with cows walking around with giant bells around their neck. We were able to see a lot of the country while we were here but I definitely think this is a place I would come back to.
Wednesday I spent the day preparing to move to our next home in Germany.
Brett took Thursday and Friday off so we could move to Germany. So Thursday we moved out of our chalet in Switzerland and headed to Germany. We passed through Austria on the way there. We stopped at the famous fairy tale castle-Neuschwanstein. It is set amid magnificent mountain scenery on the shores of the Alpsee. The castle was built for the Bavarian King Ludwig II. We parked our car in the village of Hohenschwangau and it is a steep 30 minute climb to the castle so we rode in style in a horse drawn carriage to the top. Walt Disney used the castle as inspiration when designing the Sleeping Beauty Castle for Disney Land. We walked over to a bridge and we were able to get some good pictures of the entire castle. We saw the waterfalls, mountains and lakes in the background, this King picked a great spot for a castle with amazing views! We walked down the hill to our car and still had to drive another 1.5-2 hrs to get to our new home in Munich.
We are right in the heart of Munich within walking distance of the old town and the big sites. We are in a 2 room apartment but it’s pretty good sized about 900 square feet, we are on the ground floor so no stairs, and it has an interior courtyard so it’s not right on the busy street. Finding parking is a bit difficult, and can take 30 minutes to find a spot. It’s about a 30 minute commute for Brett to get to work.
Friday we drove over to Salzburg Austria. It is only about an hour and a half from Munich. Salzburg is known as the birthplace of Mozart. His house is here where he composed most of his boy-genius works. He learned to play the harpsichord at the age of 3, and by the age of 5 had already written his first compositions! Mozart spent much of his first 25 years here. Salzburg is also home to many of the Sound of Music spots (including the stately home, flirtatious gazebo, and grand wedding church). I haven’t seen the movie in several years maybe I’ll have to go see it again. The Hohensalzburg Fortress is built above the old town. This fortress was never really used and nobody attacked the town for a thousand years. We also saw the Salzburg Cathedral, one of the first Baroque buildings north of the Alps. We visited the open-air produce market and had some fresh blackberries. We walked around the town and enjoyed the sites and shops then had dinner and headed home.
Saturday we took another day trip, to Rothenburg, driving along the Romantic Road. Rothenburg is said to be Germany’s best preserved walled town. We parked outside the walls and walked into the town. We climbed up to the top of the wall and looked around, the wall is just over a mile and a half around. In the center of town we saw the Market Square with the town Hall and Towerand then we found the Kathe Wohlfahrt Christmas Shop and Museum. This store was a Christmas wonderland filled with enough twinkling lights to require a special electric hookup, instant Christmas mood music and tourists filling little woven shopping baskets with goodies to hang on their trees. On one wall there were little stuffed animals jerking uncontrollably and mesmerizing our kids. I have never seen so many Christmas ornaments! It was all very expensive but fun to look at! We enjoyed the town and then found a good Mexican restaurant for dinner! We were excited to find real Mexican food with chips and Salsa (definitely not as good as Sorano’s or Matta’s back home) but still good.
Sunday we walked to the church here in Munich. Since parking here in the big city is such a hassle it is easier to walk, it was only about a half mile away. Right before we got to church Addy took a face plant on the sidewalk. She had her hands in her pocket so she couldn’t catch herself, she got a good scrape on her chin, as soon as she saw the blood she started crying. The missionary’s were able to translate for us since everything was in German. We walked around downtown Munich in the afternoon. Most of the shops are closed on Sunday so it was quiet, there were a few street performers that we enjoyed listening to. Alana really loves music and wants to stop and listen to all of them. Our apartment is within walking distance to everything we need, grocery store, bank, playground, sites, restaurants etc. It’s fun for a change, but I would prefer to live in the suburbs and have more space. We have had a fun week!