A Long Drive & A Fun StopEven after departing the alps, we got to enjoy some wonderful scenery on the road into Germany. We cruised past Lake Zurich where Elyse took dozens of photos to get a decent shot out the bus window, then lunched in Lindau on Lake Constance. An important part of our trip back into Germany was changing our Swiss Francs, which are not accepted anywhere else in Europe. Donald explained that the best conversion rate is achieved by "changing Swiss Francs into chocolate" and our bus driver Jos helped by stopping at a truck stop with a particularly nice candy selection.
Our favorite thing: Exchanging Swiss francs for Swiss chocolate at the Swiss border |
A Day Spent Snoozensnorfeling
If you are not familiar with the term snoozensnorfeling, it is because Lex coined this term on our journey and is likely the reason our party was relegated to the rear of the bus. As Lex described and ultimately demonstrated, snoozensnorfeling is the act of falling asleep and then waking yourself up by snoring. He felt it sounded like a German word and was quite descriptive of the action. On our trip aboard our Heidebloem home away from home, there was plenty of time to spread out and catch up on a few things other than napping. While the guys read their Kindles and grooved to tunes on their iPods, the girls did some much needed catch-up work on their journaling. While the seven hours didn't exactly fly by, the trip was enjoyable with a lunch-time stop at the beautiful island of Lindau and by Donald's tales of alpenglow, the Habsburgs, and apple-lover William Tell.
Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone: Rick & the Relentless RideI do not like bus rides - there I said it. Agreeing to a tour that involved many hours of bus travel was definitely out of my comfort zone.
However, this tour experience has changed my viewpoint. The bus was quite comfortable, we made interesting stops along the way from one city to another, and it afforded us opportunities to nap, plan ahead, and get to know our fellow travelers. The fact is that, on a tour, one has to travel from one place to another. On the bus , I wasn't responsible for driving or navigation. Thanks, Donald and Jos. |
A Little Mediterranean Charm in Southern GermanyPunctuating a long day of travel from the Swiss Alps to Bavaria, we made a very pleasant stop for lunch in the island city of Lindau. While the densely populated city sits on the border between Germany and Lichtenstein, it looks almost mediterranean with colorfully painted pink and yellow buildings and hundreds of docked sailboats. We grabbed lunch to go from several locations, then walked around slurping gelato and enjoying the scenery. Lindau boasted quite a bit of memorable architecture, including a harbor entrance flanked by a Bavarian lion and a combination lighthouse clock tower, as well as an old town hall that was richly decorated with scenes of pirates and naval battles. We enjoyed soaking in the scenery, while catching some rays and feeling the soft, warm Lake Constance breeze.
|
|