On The Other Side

Our pack out was exhausting but not bad as far as pack outs go. We were able to clean the apartment as space cleared which meant by Friday we were done. There were some last minute touch and go items that I wasn't sure we'd finish. There were some things I completely forgot. By Friday night we were ready to relax and try to enjoy our last two full days in Germany. 

I decided we should try out the V8 motel in Boeblingen. It was hilarious. We I chose one of the novelty rooms. It was comfortable, quiet and fun.

The next day we hopped on the train and made our way down to the Bodensee. We took the ferry from Friedrickshafen to Meersburg only to find out we were there on the busiest weekend of the year. After three and a half hours of walking and one more ferry ride into Konstanz we finally found a place to sleep, quite possibly the last room available. It was 9:30pm, the kitchen was closed, and we were hungry. We asked the waiter if he could make us a sandwich he asked if we liked fish and said the chef would not mind making us a plate. In other words, excellent customer service beyond our expectations and the food was fantastic.

A fun garage over looking the water

My dream home

The next morning we walked to Mainau and saw some gorgeous scenes. 

That night we were back in Stuttgart at the Movenpick, another absolutely wonderful hotel. It's right across from the airport so it's very convenient.
Kelly came the next morning to have breakfast with us, see us off and help us schlep our ridiculous amount of baggage (all essential, really) to the airport. So ends our time in Germany. When are you all coming to see me here?

Mini Escape - Bodensee

You know who and I woke up Saturday and after realizing the weather wasn't so bad here in Stuttgart, thought we'd go ahead and try out the Bodensee for the day. Normally if it is decent here, it's spectacular there. This was our view during lunch.

We decided to go to the Pfahlbau musem. It was pretty cool. They did a nice job on the reconstruction.

And on a more crafty note.... I don't usually post fabric BUT....

 Look. At. This!

Kelly and I finally made it to Hilco. Oh my! Don't tell you know who but I spent some money. A lot little. I hope to post soon with some of the product of my purchases. In the meantime, I just plan on sitting and looking at these mushrooms.

Have you been to the Bodensee?

Whatever you choose to do there, where ever you choose to go, the Bodensee is one of the most gorgeous places on earth. Bordering Germany, Switzerland and Austria it is Central Europe's third largest lake. It's my way of not missing the ocean so much. A two hour drive from Stuttgart gets you to a micro climate wonderland. Fresh fish, fruit, vegies and most of all SUN. So in the era of "stay vacation" I'd recommend it to anyone living in Southern Germany.

Mainau has a butterfly house that I could live in.





Meersburg, touristy yes, beautiful yes.
Ferrying around the lake is fun. Forced relaxation. The sights are sometimes very interesting.

This lovely seagull, tormented us most of our way around the lake. My big boy faked him out several times pretending to throw food in the water. Mean.... Nah. Funny, yes.

More later.

Two perfect weekends

Haven't done any crafting, but we are having fun. This is on the Bodensee. We were taking the ferry from Mainau back to Meersburg. It was almost 9 in the evening and still about 75 degrees. Perfect.

I will try not to bore you.......

I tried to get these in order but between blogger and I...... Most of the pictures you see of me were taken by you know who while he was riding...... I think he did a good job. Crazy man. A bit crowded on the train.


From our room in Bregenz.

Loved cleaning up at night.

Beautiful hotel in Meersburg.
Stein am Rhien is a must see.


Catherdral in Konstance.How cute it this??Leaving Konstance, last day.

You can't tell from this, but it is pouring and a bolt of lightening had just flashed across the sky. I don't like.

Things I learned on the way..... sun, wind and rain are not helpful; I can do more than I thought, but not as much as I hope to.

Things I already knew..... I love boats; I hate hills; I love hot running water and a clean bed; I really, really love traveling with my husband.

We ended up not riding much day one. I think riding to the train station and into Bregenz from the boat counts. I called it getting my feet wet, someone else had a different opinion. It was windy and rainy though so he didn't really mind. I am glad to say the weather for the rest of the trip was perfect.

Day two we made up for our lack of biking on our biking trip by making it to Meersburg. (Really liked the hotel there!) It seemed so far but I surprised myself by going even further day three. I must say that day hurt a bit. There were a lot of hills, I had to walk halfway up two of them. Day four we took it really easy with a short run and the train ride home. We calculated that we road somewhere between 120 and 150 miles. When we got home we checked some other people's stats that said it was around 104 miles. That's probably correct if you just ride straight through. We did take some side trips in and out of places. (Some were intentional.)

I'm glad we made day four short because we came back to, as my DB said, "Stuttgart welcoming us home with open arms." For those of you who may not know, this means lightening, thunder and huge drops of rain.... Let me tell you, that was a fun ride up the hill. I kept smiling though because it was a really great trip.