Munchen nach Obersalzberg, tag acht, neun und zehn

The Kehlsteinhaus (Eagle's Nest)

Inside the brass lined elevator that goes up to the Kehlsteinhaus

Pat in Eva Braun's tearoom

Pat in the tunnel that leads to the elevator

Mark outside the entrance to the tunnel

Your's truly at the Kehlsteinhaus

View from our balcony at our hotel "Hotel Zum Turken". The driveway going to the left is where the Berghof used to stand

Machine gun nest in a bunker

Sign in the bunker

A bunker entrance

Our hotel. Pat is standing in the guard house the SS used

Another view of our hotel. Our room was on the second floor with a balcony

The only remains of Hitler's Berghof

A view from the Kehlsteinhaus

A view from the trail leading to the summit above the Kehlsteinhaus

A view from the Kehlsteinhaus. The large horseshoe building is the Intercontinental Hotel. The Hotel Zum Turken is to the left with the green roof.

Munchen to Berchtesgaden, Tag Acht

We are writing the blog on the computer today but will be unable to post till we get into Berlin. We checked out of our apartment in Munchen, and were so sad to leave. Gabrielle and Josef were so good to us we definitely plan on coming back!

Our drive to Berchtesgaden was a good one, the highway was rather crowded today with lots of tourist and buses on it. Top speed today: 200 KPH, and only for a short time. We crossed right over into Austria no problem but the border was rather crowded. With cars lining up to get a “Vignette”, which you have to have to drive on the Austrian Autobahn or they will fine you! Sure enough when we exited, they were on the side of the road and flagged us down….as we slowed he saw our Vignette and waved us through. Good thing we knew!

We arrived around 12:30, and found our way to the Hotel with one stop to ask for directions. We ended up asking two wood cutters on a narrow road where the Zum Turken was, the answer: Rechts! We backtracked and found the Hotel. You have to ring the bell at the hotel, as the front door is never unlocked. Being a historical building Frau Scharfenburg keeps the door locked at all times. We rang and told them who we were and Pat came and answered the door, in perfect English! Pat has come to the hotel for the last 27 years and helps out in the summer, she is from Boston. We got checked in and shown to our room. Obersalzberg is such a beautiful place, perhaps one of the most beautiful that I have ever seen. The room was cosy, bed comfy and the view spectacular!

The Hotel Zum Turken was the building that Hitler’s personal body guards the "Leibstandarte" stayed in. This hotel was here long before Hitler but has been made famous by him. It was damaged at the end of the war but the building remained intact and the Scharfenburgs restored it and is now once again a hotel. No internet or TV or telephones in the rooms, very old fashioned but wonderful. The Bavarian government has tried to take it and is still trying. Many of the buildings associated with the Third Reich have been destroyed by the government. They want people to come to Berchtesgaden and Obersalzberg for other reasons. Not something I quite understand since it is an enormous tourist draw, and there are many other things to do here but don’t try to cover up the past history. The Platterhof (General Walker Hotel) was demolished a couple of years ago, along with several other important buildings. Frau Scharfenburg keeps up the fight to keep her hotel running. It is a beautiful place and she deserves much praise for the condition and cleanliness of the building. Not a speck of dirt anywhere! Anyway, after checking in we went and met our tour for the “Kehlsteinhaus” and Obersalzburg. Our tour guide was Sharon and she was from Zimbabwe. She is married to a German man and her English was perfect. We toured the Documentation center and the Platterhof bunker that is underneath it, and had a driving tour showing us buildings that still exist and the places where others used to be. Last stop was the Kehlsteinhaus. Unfortunately it was overcast but none the less what a drive and view! It was given to Hitler for his 50th birthday, but he only visited it 14 times. Seems he was afraid of heights! Eva Braun spent much time there. After the tour we made our way back to the hotel and Pat recommended a good place to eat, the “Holzkafer”. Dinner was fantastic! I had the ofenkartoffel mit turkey and a salat. Mark had Schwein Schnitzel that was sehr gut too! We made our way back to the hotel and stopped in at the bar (an honor bar) and had a beer and listened to some music. Then off to bed, we slept well.

Tag neun:
Das wetter ist schon! Our first stop today was to go and explore the bunkers underneath the hotel which are quite large and have many passageways. We went in at 9am and were the only ones inside and it really takes your breath away as it is very eerie. It makes your heart pound and I had to just stop and relax for a few moments (which it did!). Clear skies and cool so we decided to go back to the Kehlstein haus. I can’t say enough about how beautiful it is up here. We took pictures and had a beer on the terrace with some coldcuts. Just to sit there and look out at the valley below and mountains. Some of the most infamous people in the world partied here, and to think we are where they once stood, really cool. After the Kehlsteinhaus, we made our way to Lake Konigsee and took the tour. To get to the boats you have to go through a tourist wonderland, like your at Six Flags or Disneyworld! We were disappointed by the “Tourist Trap” that the lake has become. As we got up to one of the windows there were another group of people beside us complaining in English that they couldn’t understand and needed to know the costs. I asked for 2 tickets round trip in German and the man at the ticket window understood me perfectly. I asked if my German was correct, he answered and said it was “sehr gut” (very good). The lake itself is very beautiful, but if you do the complete round trip beware that it takes some time. On the way back we picked up some passengers from the monastery and two Russian men sat across from us speaking loudly the whole time, not to mention that they smelled liked they had smoked two packs of cigarettes …in the last half hour! It was so awful that Mark actually opened a window so we wouldn't suffocate! We have many pictures for all to see and hope to post some soon after we get to Berlin.

Tag zehn::
We got up early today to make our way back to Munchen and return the rental car. We hit a top speed of 210 KPH today on the autobahn. Finding the garage for the rental car was quite difficult and Mark stopped and parked and went into the office to find the right garage to return to. While I was sitting there I decided to translate the sign on the building in front of me: “Be Careful, dangerous area and pieces of the building may fall during storms!” That made me feel a little uneasy as I looked up and saw that we were parked at the peak of the building…….. Good thing he came around the corner as I sat and squirmed! We found the correct garage and took the S-Bahn to the Hauptbahnhof. Our ICE train was waiting there and we hopped on board and found a seat in first class. We both fell asleep for a while and when we woke found chocolates in front of us on the table.. nice touch! We have been watching the countryside on the way to Berlin, it’s so neat to see how other people live in other countries. Lots of Solar Panels in this Germany, perhaps we in the USA should think more about doing this. I had some soup and a beer while sitting and listening to my IPod and typing in the blog.. We should get into Berlin at 5pm, plenty of time to get to our apartment before 6pm. We had a grand time in Berchtesgaden and perhaps it is one of the most beautiful places in the world. We met many Americans there working which we were amazed at. Our waitress at the restaurant was from Virginia, Pat at the hotel is from Boston. Funny!!

We arrived on time at the Berlin bahnhof and walked to our apartment. We met Ellenore and she showed us the unit, and I told her we were pleased and how nice it was to meet her in German. Mark's eyes bugged out! It is nice to speak more than one language. It is very modern and quite nice, sehr nett! We settled in and then went out for dinner. We had a great meal at an Italian place down the street and will elaborate morgen as it is sind spat hier, und ich bin mude! (very late here and I'm tired!).

Pat and Mark