We are off on another adventure! After 13 years we are back in Germany. It's been a long time since we followed Will's nose to find ice cream. This trip is a little bittersweet for me. Our family is about to change in a lot of different ways (all good!) and this is the last trip we'll take with just the 5 of us and Camille. I expect it will be Will's last family trip for quite a while too as he is setting off on his own adventures as an adult. I'm so proud of him... but boy will I miss him.
Our life at home has been rather chaotic and exciting and because of this we were the least prepared for this trip than we have ever been. We packed the morning of and right before we left we discovered that James' passport was missing! Oh the panic and the prayers! After a half hour of frantic searching Christian found the passport right where it should have been, where James had already checked three times.
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| Will and Jon watch the planes |
We flew Condor for the first time and on the whole had a good experience. Our first flight was almost 8 hours long and we arrived in Frankfurt at 5am. Because of the tight seats and the time difference none of us had been able to sleep on the plane.
Catching the next flight to Munich was a little insane. We had 30 minutes to get from one gate to the other and we never would have made it if not for the wheelchair we'd brought for Camille. The gate for our Munich flight was not only outside customs, it was also outside! A very nice airport official saw our wheelchair and offered to run us through. We tried to follow him but Will and Jon got stuck on the other side of a security gate and we couldn't go on without them. Going back through German security was a little maddening because they were super careful and also very slow. Jon got stopped, James waited with him, and the rest of us went over to the gate where a little bus was waiting to take us to the plane. They waited for us but it was a *very* close thing.
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| Christian is ready for takeoff |
I wish I'd gotten a picture of the plane on the tarmac. It has been a long time since I've gotten on to a plane from outside. The flight to Munich was wonderful. It was a small plane but the seats were roomier, and because the flight was almost empty, we all spread out and had entire rows all to ourselves. It was only an hour and we were able to get some nice views of the German countryside. I'm always surprised by how much of it, at least near Munich, is covered in small, well defined fields. Christian was delighted and excited at this point and began exclaiming how happy he was that he was here and how much he loved traveling and that this was going to be the best trip ever.
Leaving the airport and getting our rental car was extremely smooth. We have a "large" BMW which has made Christian incredibly happy. The car was a very tight fit for all of us and our luggage, but it is very fun to drive. It has a sport mode which sometimes causes the exhaust to pop to Christian's utter delight. This car is his joy and I don't think we'll have a single ride here without him begging us to hit the gas. It can fly!
We are staying in Krun, a small town between Garmish-Partengarden and Mittenwald. Our ferienwohnung, guest house, is a three story chalet with more stairs than I have ever seen in a single house. Aside from the obvious multiple stories, small stairs lead up to the living/dinning room and then down again to the kitchen. The second story too has a small flight leading to the third bedroom and from our bedroom to the balcony. The third floor also has a small balcony with a lovely view. The kids are all sharing one open space, a bedroom with a large third floor loft. Jon has the big bed, Christian has a mattress on the floor, and Will has a cave. Behind the bookshelf is a storage space with a cot and he has claimed this area. Even though it is small I think all the boys appreciated having some breathing room.
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| Camille on our back patio |
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| Boys exploring the kitchen |
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| Christian takes a break in the living room |
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| Our dining room table |
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| Will uses the pull up bar in the downstairs gym. He has to jump to get up there! |
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| Our bedroom with stairs to the wraparound porch |
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| Jon's bed. You can barely see the loft balcony |
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| The loft. The white blinds are hiding the entrance to Will's cave |
By the time we'd got all our bags in the house it was noon. We'd been up for almost 24 hours at this point (which does NOT get easier as I get older) but we also hadn't eaten anything since dinner on that first flight. We headed into town to find a little inn and restaurant for lunch. Today is also Christian's birthday, he's 14! It isn't ideal to have a birthday on a traveling day, especially on no sleep, but he was a good sport. Because it was his birthday, and because it is legal here, we got him a Radler at the restaurant, half beer and half lemonade. He mostly enjoyed the excitement of drinking something that is illegal at home, I think he prefers the apfelsaftschorle which is apple juice and seltzer water. Will and Jon are able to get beers on their own here and have promised to do so responsibly. Our lunch was very good, Will and Jon shared a surprisingly delicious venison steak meal.
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| Christian's birthday Radler |
After lunch we went to the local supermarket to pick up a few things and then went back to the house for a nap. I'd only closed my eyes for a few minutes when I was woken by a terrible cry. I opened the door to hear Jon telling Christian in a desperate voice that he had "shattered his foot." In a panic I woke James and sent him hurrying downstairs. (He's the injury parent. I can remain calm in an emotional crisis (usually) but he is so much better when it comes to blood or broken bones). Thankfully there were no broken bones but Jon was still devastated. He'd dropped and stepped on his phone, shattering it, during a conversation with his fiancee, Saphyar. James and I remember how hard it was for us to be separated when he went to Germany with his family before we were married, so our goal has been to be as understanding as possible with Jon and Saph. Jon was able to use my phone to call her and we will get him set up with a replacement tomorrow.
After a little more time at home, we regretfully roused ourselves to go down to Garmish for some dinner. We did some window shopping then found a little restaurant with outside seating. By this time though I was almost delirious with exhaustion. I almost fell asleep waiting for our meal until Christian decided to mess with me and wake me up suddenly. After dinner we went back to the house and had a little cake and ice cream for Christian's birthday. We didn't have a candle because it can be hard to find that kind of thing in a foreign store, especially when you can't see straight. But we still sang to him and the cake was delicious.
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| Christian enjoyed startling me awake |
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| Waiting for dinner |
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| Celebrating Christian's birthday |
James and I managed to get a walk in too before bed. We found some lovely trails a short way from our house, it reminds me of the valley at the Glen House by Mt Washington. But the space is bigger and we even passed a couple of cows. We tried and failed to find a shortcut back but we ended up walking through a field of flowers. It was an absolutely perfect end to the day.
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| The view from the supermarket |
Now bed is calling and I must obey. Goodnight!
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