Schwarzwald, Colmar & Alps

Friday morning - and back at Isi's!!   What a week of experiences this has been.   Franzi drove me around the southern part of the Schwarzwald (Black Forest) on Monday afternoon.   Although the weather was not brilliant, it was wonderful to see all the small villages and lovely old typical Black Forest houses.    I could have spent a fortune on all the souveniers but I restrained myself a bit (bearing in mind my weight limit for my flights!)   On Tuesday we were up bright and early on a glorious sunny day and we caught a tourist bus to Lake Constance (Bodensee) and an island called Mainau where there is the most beautiful exhibition garden.   They employ 60 gardeners and when you see the garden, it is no wonder so many are required!    It was actually quite hot but I loved it!   We spent the day wandering around the garden, and admiring the views of the lake and having another typical (lovely!) German lunch.     Back on the bus by 3.30 for the journey home, over the second biggest mountain in the Schwarzwald, with glorious views of deep valleys and always the beautiful Black Forest houses.

Wednesday saw Gabi (Franzi's daughter) and Isi picking me up early and we went to Colmar in what used to be Alsace but is now part of France.    It was quite strange in the shops to hear French spoken instead of German - but English usually gets you by!!   It is another historic old medieval town with lovely timbered buildings - and masses of tourists.  And another hot day!  We took a ride on a tourist train so we could see which parts of the town we would like to explore more, and then had some lunch before wandering around the old streets and into tourist shops.    Also (apparently surprisingly) the clothes were very reasonably priced and the three of us went a bit crazy buying things.   In the late afternoon we crossed back into Germany and made our way back to the "Three Countries Corner" (which is what Weil am Rhein is called), via an old Roman villa excavation site, and an evening meal at a typical family "Wirtschaft" (Family pub) in a village not far from Weil.

But then comes Thursday - and the promised trip to the Alps.    Needless to say - another gorgeous sunny day.   Michael and Isi arrived to pick us up early, and we were off.    Bruno (partner from Franzi) came along, and also Julian (younger son from Michael).   We drove through Basel, and Bern and on to Interlaken where we could see the Alps already.   Then we drove deep into the Alps.   Our first stop was for coffee and the best Brownies I have ever tasted, then on to the  Glazier near the Jungfrau mountain.   We went in a type of  Funicular railway right up inside the glazier and then climbed a long winding staircase which had observation points every so often so we could see the water thundering down inside.    We climbed right to the top and made our way back down by all the stairs to the bottom so we could see the different vantage viewing areas.    What an experience.   I have never seen anything like that before and was amazed by it all.   Unfortunately my photos of it don't do it justice so you will just have to imagine what it was like!

After leaving the Glazier we drove a short distance to the Schilthorn which is a very famous mountain with a restaurant right on the very peak.   The James Bond movie "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" was filmed on this mountain.   We took a Gondola up to the first stop on the mountain and had lunch surrounded by typical Swiss Chalets and glorious mountains shining in the sunshine.   Quite a lot of snow still lies on the mountains.   Then after three more Gondola rides we were on the very top and at the restaurant - but unfortunately the top was covered in mist which swirled around us and now and then gave us tantalizing glimpses of the views of the mountains around.    We saw a Steinbock (a type of goat with long horns - and not domesticated) and also an Eagle sitting beside a nest on the top of the mountain.    After waiting a while for the mists to clear we decided to return to the valley below.    The trip down was more adeventurous than the one going up and Isi laughed to see me taking photos out of the window but looking in the other direction!    The drop was so enormous you can't believe it.    And down below in the valley the houses were so tiny.   

We drove back to Thunersee (Lake Thun) via Interlaken and stopped for a cold drink in the grounds of an old castle there.   Lake Thun is a summer sports area with lots of yachts and other boats and many people making the most of the hot sunshine.

What a wonderful day it was - and a thousand thanks to Michael for giving me such an experience.   To be right high up in the Alps right amongst the peaks is something I will remember always.

Today is a more peaceful day after the hectic times of the past few days and tonight it is to be a BBQ in Franzi's garden with quite a number of the family there.

The photos are a bit out of order but I can't get them into the right order!!   My next stop is England, on Monday, and after a few days there it is off to Greece.  

An old house in Colmar

A typical Schwarzwald house

Thunersee

High in the Alps

Typical Swiss village

More of the Alps

View of the Schwarzwald

Looking down to the Valley in the Alps

See how far down it is!

Isi made this photo from a postcard!   It is of Lake Constance and the Island of Mainau

One of the amazing flower exhibits on Mainau