The second part of our third weekend in Munich, we did something that I had been looking forward to the entire time. I finally got to legitimately use my new hiking boots!! We met at 10 (which meant that I had plenty of time to do other things beforehand ;]) and hopped on a regional train that would take us to the Alps for a lovely day of hiking. Unfortunately the weather wasn't cooperating with our plans very well, and it was cold with a driving rain when we got on the train in Munich. The ride to the mountains took an hour, and we had passed through most of the bad weather by the time we reached the foot of the peaks, but some ominous clouds could still be seen on the other side of the mountains. I'm always just happy to get out in nature, but I was even more excited when I was informed that the majestic, snow-covered (in late June!!) peak I was looking at was actually the highest mountain in Germany. Its name is Zugspitze (which, literally translated, means "Train Peak") - probably because there is a train that goes almost all the way to the top of it. However, our group was by far not prepared for a trek in those kinds of conditions, so we had to content ourselves with climbing the mountain NEXT to the highest mountain in Germany (which is, unfortunately, not quite as cool :P) As it was, we didn't even hike most of the way - we took a train to the very foot of the mountain, then rode a gondola up to the lowest peak. This was cool, too - it was like an enclosed ski-lift, and gave plenty of opportunity for scenic pictures (and wasn't the scenery beautiful!!) When we stepped out of the gondola building at the top, I suddenly realized why Hannes and Mareike had chased me back into my room to grab a sweatshirt when I appeared in the lobby of the Wohnheim in hiking shorts and a sleeveless hiking shirt - it was cold up here! And the wind was much stronger than at the bottom, too. We were already at an elevation of nearly a mile high (which is the highest elevation I have ever climbed to, being the height of Mt. Katahdin, the highest mountain in Maine). After a few more pictures from the viewpoint, we set off on the path that would lead us to our destination at the other peak, Alpspitze. The way was a broad gravel road large enough for a car to travel on, so it wasn't particularly exciting except for the fact that we were walking along the crest of a ridge, so we had a great view of the landscape for miles around on both sides. I took 100 pictures that day - usually 100-picture days are reserved for zoos, so it was pretty special ;) The clouds that we had seen from the bottom of the mountain soon overshadowed us, and before long precipitation was falling. However, since we were so high up, it was more hail or freezing rain than rain, and boy was it cold! Some of the less hardy members of the group began to complain, to which I wanted to respond that if they couldn't deal with a little weather, they should have stayed in the valley and gone shopping or some other equally prissy and non weather-dependent activity, but I held my tongue. Soon enough we reached another stopping point, where there was another gondola car which traveled to our destination. I vehemently opposed such a wussy alternative, especially after eyeing the rest of the trail to the peak which was an actual hiking trail instead of a gravel road. At my pleading the group decided to split into two, with the majority taking the train car to the top and an adventurous few braving the trail. Now we got to the actual mountain climbing, and I was happy. The trail was steep and winding, but absolutely beautiful as it led through high mountain meadows filled with hardy flowers and squat bushes (we were by this time more or less above tree line). Suddenly, as we approached one particularly steep ridge, I was struck with an idea. I whipped out my iPod touch, searched my music library until I found what I was searching for, and the six of us crested the ridge to the epic sounds of the Lord of the Rings Fellowship theme (for those who have not recently experienced the epicness, it can be heard here :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovxbXaJs-90 - imagine this with a background of breathtaking scenery. It was amazing). It seemed we hiked through every kind of weather on our way to the top - rain, hail, sun, wind, even snow!! As long as we kept moving it wasn't too cold, and adversity only means a better story when you're all done, right? Finally we gained the peak, where we were slightly surprised to see a cozy restaurant/gift shop. Guess the Germans don't miss an opportunity for entrepreneurship... The food was pricey, as could be expected, but since they had a corner on the market we didn't have much choice. I split a serving of knödel (think potato balls) and sauerkraut with Greta and was happy. I also investigated the souvenirs, but most of them were also quite expensive (and I'm trying to avoid the feeling of "I have to buy a souvenir just because I was here".) I was very tempted to buy a stuffed mountain goat for my best friend Jennifer, but decided that my 4 Euros could be better spent another way, so I contented myself with a couple of postcards and a pen in the shape of a pickaxe (that ended up not even working, but at least it's pretty, right?) Afterwards we got to the real highlight of the day, which was the observation deck which stretched several meters off the side of the mountain, allowing a nearly 270˚ view of the scenery. The floor of the observation deck was open metal grating and the sides were Plexiglass, which naturally made some people a little nervous. I just laughed and tried to find the resonant frequency of the deck by bouncing up and down; when I did, the entire deck swayed with me which caused the nervous ones to clutch wildly at the handrails and scamper back to the safety of bedrock (aren't I awful?). I am also a little scared of heights, but the rush of adrenaline that the fear produces is also quite exciting, and I even rather enjoy it! Many many pictures later we were finally ready to return to the mountain's foot and the boring life of a flatlander. We took a different gondola down, and it seemed that everyone else also thought that it was about time to head home, because the car was standing room only (which again made some people a little nervous, but as an engineer I know that you don't build something like that which isn't strong enough to function correctly when comfortably filled ;]). The train ride back was a quiet one, as many people who were exhausted from the day's travels (though we really didn't exert ourselves much, in the big picture, by my opinion :P) chose to sleep. We got a double-decker train this time, which was rather exciting, so I naturally wanted to sit on the top level in order to better observe the countryside as we passed through. About fifteen minutes out of Munich a family with three small children boarded the train and sat beside me - the two boys were dressed in lederhose and the girl was wearing a tiny dirndl. When I commented on their clothing and asked them why they were all dressed up, they only stared at the funny girl with the strange German accent. The mother then chuckled and explained that they had all just come from a baptism - seriously, dirndls/lederhose ARE the formal clothes of Bavaria. I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT MINE!!!!
Well, we were soon enough home, and I was more than glad for the leftovers I had which meant that supper required little more than to put them in the microwave for a couple of minutes. And so ended another grand weekend. Despite the weather, I thoroughly enjoyed the Alps, though I wish I could have gone and hiked for a solid few hours, instead of our measly trek up to the restaurant. Oh well, you have to cater to the group, I suppose. Maybe another time, in some far-off future life when I have the kind of money to vacation in Europe and I come back to Bavaria (possibly with husband in tow, depending on how far out we're talking) for a week or something and can really do what I want... ;)
Sorry that this blog post is shorter than most (although, perhaps you're not ;]), but it was really supposed to be part of the one I posted last week. I would go further, but it's time for me to go meet the group - we're taking a trip to Hamburg this weekend. Next weekend I'm in Heidelberg for a conference with my internship - by the time I finally return to the US I will really have seen Germany!! A little silly, isn't it, that I've already been in Clausthal for nearly three weeks and still haven't told you all how it is? Well, sorry! I'm going to try awfully hard to put my nose to the grindstone (or fingers to the keyboard, as it were), and get substantially caught up on this next week, but no promises. I can only say that it will get (mostly) done eventually, and hopefully before I return. Until then!!
