Willkommen nach Deutschland!

Welcome to Germany!

Last Friday at approximately 4:30am I was packed up and out the door headed for Basel, Switzerland. The first leg of the trip involved taking a bus to Edinburgh airport (approx. 45 min.) and doing the casual stroll around the airport - admiring those having a pint at 5:30am and waiting to board. The flight was fine, I was too excited about the weekend ahead to complain too much about being in the middle seat. 

I was so excited to see Jordan and Rachael and experience the genuine german lifestyle. Jordan and Rachael are friends from back home who are working as RA's in Black Forest Academy's boys dorm in Marzell. They had the weekend off and were very welcoming of my coming to visit! They live about 40 minutes from the Basel airport and were there to pick me up when I arrived. 

The Basel airport is divided into a Swiss and France sectors because of it's location right on the Swiss-France border. I had initially come out the Swiss arrivals side, but managed to navigate my way over to the French side where I found Jordan & Rachael! I hadn't seen them since probably last May so it was an exciting reunion. 

We were then on the road and headed for Marzell. When you leave the airport you are in France, then ten minutes later we were in Switzerland! We crossed the Rhein river and we en route to Germany, drove through the border (no stopping, you just drive across), then we hit the Auto Bahn. It really wasn't exciting as it sounds or is made to look on Top Gear, but it is still pretty cool being able to drive as fast as you want and definitely something to cross off the bucketlist! ✓

I really wasn't sure what to expect of Germany, I think I just assumed heavy accents, fast drivers and good food. 

I was definitely blown away by the landscape, the architecture and the quaintness of the small towns. On our scenic drive back to Marzell we made a pit stop to see some bores!

We took the scenic route to the dorm and words cannot even describe the rolling mountains and hills. Add in some phenomenal sunny weather and you have yourself a constant picturesque view.  

We also stopped at the grocery store in Kandern to pick up some food, so that was my first experience of german grocery shopping. 

At the dorm/home J&R have their own apartment on the third floor. We grabbed some lunch and then headed out on an adventure with the final destination of Freiburg! 

First place we went was Badenweiler to the remains of the castle - it was quiet hours in Germany (1-3pm) so everything was very calm, quiet and serene.

My super cool favourite tour guides :)

Look at all that excitement.

Me & Rachael :)

Selfies! - Like all good tourist do.

Cafe Decker with tables on the bridge

Next we went to Staufen, first with the intent of driving through but then decided it was necessary to stop and have coffee at Cafe Decker! This beautiful cafe on the river side with tables right on the bridge. It's one of those things that you have to do if you're in the area. 

Check out that castle on top of the hill, it is surrounded by vineyards all the way up!

Can you tell I am loving the european lifestyle? ;)

There was also a man playing the accordion in the streets which added to the fantastic tourist feeling of this warm, vibrant town.

Freiburg!

Next we were on our way to Freiburg! Driving into this city was much more modern right around the train station and banks and offices, but once we moved more in towards the city centre, the shops got smaller and that same german style reappeared! This is where I bought my Germany bottle opener for my collection, in a little souvenir shop. I also managed to buy a scarf on my own in a department store - mostly by saying 'Hello' and showing a 'deer in the headlight/I only speak English' type look on my face. 

Rachael learned really quickly that when I am dealing with people who speak a different language I tend to get this panicked look on my face. Thank goodness almost everyone speaks English nowadays.We had dinner at this italian restaurant that was very good - our waiter was italian which only further added to the confusion. I'm still not entirely sure if the menu was italian or german, I just added in some english as I went.

After dinner we wandered around some more, exploring the ins and outs and finding the river that runs through it. 

German McDonald's in the original arches that went around the city

Look at those colours!

Giant cathedral. The top is still being restored from WWII.

Entrance to the Cathedral

Lederhosen anyone?

In our last leg of the day's journey we found ourselves in a bit of a situation. We were not aware that the parking garage we had parked in closed at 7pm so the car was locked away inside the garage while we were on the outside, and eventually had to call a security service to come open it up for us. Ultimately it could have been way worse and we figured at some point we would look back on it and laugh.  

So we then headed back to Marzell, had some tea and played a rousing game of ticket to ride -- in which I did so bad I ended up with a negative score... then went to bed.

The next morning we were up, had some breakfast and were on our way to Switzerland!

Switzerland!

When you only live 20 minutes from the Germany-Switzerland border, it makes it much easier to be a tourist. So we drove cross the border, crossing the Rhein again and through Basel (sort of, via highway). Driving in Switzerland is pretty cool, there are tunnels everywhere through mountains to drive through that are fully lit and the rolling landscapes are speckled with houses and farms - a lot of which the barns and the house are actually connected. Once you get close enough to the mountains to see them in the distance, it is difficult to take your eyes off of them, they get closer, bigger and can be seen all around you.  

Just try to imagine having this view everyday as you drive to work. Maybe even listening to country music.

The first place we went was Broc - the home of the Nestle (previous Cailler) chocolate factory. That's right - a chocolate factory in Switzerland. Bucketlist ✓. But first we sat and had a picnic at the bottom of the Alps ✓. The weather was sunny without a cloud in the sky. It had to be at least 15-16 degrees.

Picnic in Switzerland at the bottom of the Alps!

This picture doesn't even do it justice.

See how we all fit in this one mirror.

The Chocolate Guillotine! Dun Dun Duuuuuuuh!

ALL DAY, EVERYDAY!

All you can eat free chocolate! There's Rachael in the back left corner.

So Jordan and I decided we were going to try all the different types of free chocolate at end of the tour which turned out to be at least 20 different kinds. It was pretty gross and painful on the stomach by the end of it but needless to say we did it!

You really start to feel sick by the end of trying all the chocolate.

Brandon (brother) had given me a birthday gift back in September for travelling with three conditions. 

1. I must do something I've never done: Picnic at the bottom of the alps & ate 20+ kinds of chocolate in about 10 minutes. ✓

2. I must take tourist pictures: ✓

3. I have to buy him something: ✓ 

So that was excellent and fun! There's also a playground outside the factory when you come out -- I think so all the children can run off all the chocolate they had eaten. There's 2 revolving mirrors that you can move and take pictures with. 

Super cool selfies of me.

So the chocolate factory was super cool. Next we were on our way into the Alps! We took the JaunPass in and through the Alps.

After our winding trek through the Alps, we drove through the quaint town of Charmey before coming into Spiez! Spiez is a beautiful city on the south side of Thunersee lake. It is absolutley beautiful and you have a prime view of Toblerone Mountain from it!

There's a mountain in the back but you can't see it because of the sun.

We also stopped just off the side of this marina for a coffee, which was lovely. I'm still not entirely sure what language the waitress lady was speaking since in Switzerland they speak Swiss, French, German a combination of them (insert panicked look of uncertainty). So we had coffee and tea before getting back on the road again and heading back to Deutschland.

On the way home we drove through Berne -- the place where Toblerone is made! We also so saw 3 military trucks full of guys going somewhere. In Switzerland (and a lot of other European countries) young men have to complete military train/service for a certain length of time. 

The ride home was nice, scenic, till it got dark, I think we saw about 7-8 castles along the way!

We stopped at Funfschilling Restaurant in Fischingen, it restaurant was massive, with room after room of tables, all of which were full. It also had a fresh food market at one end and is also a church on the weekends. We eventually found a seat when a family was leaving. Tables are also shared with other people to allow for more people, but they eat sit at least 6 people.

Anywho, I had the schnitzel – even order in German ;) It was very good. I look a little crazy in this next picture of me with the schnitzel but I was crazy-excited for it so that’s okay.  

Look at that pure excitement.

Needless to say is was sooooo good. Dinner was followed by some gellato, a stop in the market and then the rest of the trip home. On the way we saw a series of giant bonfires as a part of Fasching in Germany where they fling these little fire discs. 

Driving the rest of the way home was slightly terrifying. We had to drive through the Blackforest, so it was dark up on the winding roads through the mountains, you can drive up to 100km on roads not in towns, so driving quickly on high winding dark roads with no guard rails can be quite frightening. Especially when some areas of the road only fit 1 car at a time. But thanks to Jordan's fantastic driving skills, we made it home safe and sound - after having stopped at the grocery store in Kandern so I could buy a large amount of German chocolate. Why not try all of the different kinds of Ritter Sport right?

Sunday we decided to stay in and around the area after running and driving everywhere the past two days. We went for a hike up through Hochblauen! It was very pretty, long and winding. It was also very warm and sunny to make it the perfect day. 

The view from the top of Hochblauen was absolutely breath taking. We saw two guys suited up and take off for paragliding! One guy had a failed first attempt but got up the 2nd time. Then we climbed a sightseeing tower for an even better view. Next we were ready to hike down to Sausenburg Castle but the hike turned out to be much much longer than anticipated. The last hour or so we filled the walking time by playing 20 questions - of will Rachael won almost every round. Once we got down to the road from Hochblauen we hung out on a nice little hill on the side of the road and took in the scenery before being picked up. 

 

It's sunny out, can you tell?

Post-hike I was exhausted and unintentionally took a small nap. See sleeping picture of me on Facebook. We then had a delicious dinner, watched The Croods (movie), played some more Ticket to Ride through our phones/ipad and headed for bed. 

Early in the morning at about 5am I was awoken to scampering sounds running around. I was praying they were in the walls and roof but they were pretty heavy sounding so I couldn't be sure. As they continued to run around my concern for my chocolate grew, I nervously got up to check on it but it was okay.

I was informed in the morning that they were probably Marders -- cat-sized weasel-like animals that live in attics and are protected so you cannot kill them. Now I googled these to see what I was frightened by...     At first sight, cute. . . . . . Then you see what they do. Holy teeth batman.

So anyways, we had some breakfast and I was all packed up and we headed for the Basel airport.

On the way we got a bit stuck on the Auto Bahn. Transport trucks park overnight in the far right lane so that they can cross the border bright and early in the morning. We just so happened to get stuck in a lane surrounded by trucks that were not moving. I will admit that I was a bit panicked at one point about missing my flight but once the trucks infront started to move we zipped out of that truck-cage and onwards to the airport. 

I always hate leaving at the end of trips, this time especially.  It was so so nice to see Jordan and Rachael again, they're a little piece of home away from home. I still can't even begin to explain how amazing my weekend in Germany was with them, nor can I begin to possibly thank them enough for everything. It was just awesome. We ate soooo much chocolate, drank lots and lots of tea, played Ticket to Ride (to which we can still play together even in different countries), and expanded my German vocabulary.  

So now I am back, reminiscing the fabulous weekend, still using german words that I know (but not actually to people), and trying to determine if I will be able to make all my chocolate last long enough to get home. 

I would definitely like to go back at some point and see the rest of the country.

But for now I have 8.5 weeks left to see everything else. 

For now I am planning a trip to Portugal at the end of March, Taylor is coming in April!!! So we are looking into Italy then, and a trip to Croatia after my exam. 

Tough life, I know. 

Tschüss! 

T.