Day 8
This is the day to discover the Salt Mines of Berchtesgaden - the salzzeitreise. We put on one piece jump suits and get on a little open train that we straddle. It goes down under ground very fast and the tunnel gets very narrow. When we reach the bottom it is about 32 degrees. There are very large rooms that we walk through and tour the making of salt. When they find a pocket of salt, they drill a huge hole the size of a football field. Then they fill it with water and let the salt dissolve in the water. Then they drain the water and distill it and the salt is left. They repeat this process many times until all the salt is out of the rock. In two areas they put us on a wooden, long slide that we sit on and it chutes us down another two stories. We all go together - Chuck, me, and Bill - we scream all the way down and the Germans give us dirty looks for making so much noise. Another thing to note about Germans - they hate noise or loud talking - they even close car washes on Sunday because they make too much noise for the neighbors that live near by - really!
I have now conquered the mountain tops by cable car, the tiny elevators, and now the caves and salt mines below the earth. I am over coming any fears that I once had...Amazing!
After the salt mines, we stop at a small little store and buy home made sandwiches, Cokes, and chips and head up the mountain following the Rossfeldstrasse. This is a little windy road that climbs the mountain above the Obersalzberg and straddles the borders of Germany and Austria. It reaches 1500 meters. We stop and have a picnic lunch on the way, looking at the mountains above and valleys below. Truly amazing sight to see the majestic beauty.
The weather is sunny and warm today. We have had PERFECT weather - in the 70's each day. When we climb the mountains it gets cool, probably in the 50's, and we need our jackets but when we are down below it is just comfortable. Today though it is very warm - high 80's and so we next head to the Konigsee, "Lake of the King". It is a beautiful emerald green lake with mountains towering up the sides of it. There is many shopping stores along the water streets and so Bill and Chuck sit and Chris runs through the stores.
We get back to the hotel and go swimming in the outside pool and lay in the sun for a time before having dinner outside on the terrace at the Alpenhof hotel. Bill is close friends with many of the watresses and so we get to meet Mandy #1, Mandy #2, and Katerina. Very nice young girls who love to tease with Bill.
A few more thoughts about Germany: Diesel Gas is 1.51 Eros/liter There is 4 liters to a gallon (so about 6 Eros per gallon) and $1.50 dollars per Ero. So we are paying about $9.00 per gallon of gas. WOW! Regular gas is just slightly more but you get more miles to a gallon with diesel.
Houses/towns: They love flowers and so there are flower boxes under every window. Did I mention there is a church in the center of every town and the cemetery is always within the church gate and go right up to the church. They often have pictures in ceramic of the person on the grave stone. Every town also has a memorial monument that lists all the men that have died in each war from the town. Often there is a painting or mosaic picture on the outside of their house and always have the name of the family painted on the outside of the house. Example: "Haus Anna" "Haus Watters" Often there are rocks on the roofs so when it snows the snow doesn't collect on the roof but falls off easier. There is such a uniformity of life here. No one is allowed to paint their house any color other than white unless they get permission from the town. They must keep it up or they will be fined. They would never think of not following the law or even small rules. They police themselves - they will tell you if you are not obeying the law and expect others to do what is right.
Many of the older women still wear the diendl dresses and especially the shop owners and waitresses in the restruants wear them. Men often are wearing the Bavarian suit coats with the little stand up collars.
