Visitors!

It wouldn't be summer without a visit from K & J Poles...and true to form, the traveling pair showed up in Italy mid-August during another (whirlwind, crazy, ambitious) visit to Europe.  Luckily this year, they knew how to operate our door, we knew more restaurants and places to visit with them and we all had a more relaxed time.

In between their travels to neighboring countries, they joined us for two weekend trips:

Weekend 1: Germany/Austria

The Tea House- Hitler's Eagle's Nest

During the long, hot summer last year we decided to book a hotel in Germany for this summer.  It happened to be the same weekend of the Poles visit so we all decided to head to Bavaria.  Although we have been in that area several times before (and are going back soon!), there were still a few sites we had not seen.  Unfortunately, K & J had seen the sites we had been too and vice versa.  We decided to head different directions- we went to Berchtesgaden where Hitler's Eagles Nest is located and K&J headed to the Neuchwanstein castles.

As you can see, it's quite the tourist attraction

Berchtesgaden is a town right on the German/Austrian border south of Salzburg that is known as the site of Hitler's mountaintop hideout.  It was the location of many top Nazi homes and bunkers in the hills in what was a favorite retreat place during World War II.  Although it was eventually bombed by the Allies near the end of the war, the bunkers and the tea house remain.  The tea house- or Kehlsteinhaus in German- is now a functioning restaurant, which is very strange because it's also a bit of a museum complete with a fireplace that Mussolini gave Hilter as a birthday present and a room dedicated to Eva Braun.  I honestly thought there would be a lot more substance to the whole place- the only real "history" is in the nearby Documentation Center, which is all in German (but with an English audio guide).  The bunkers were probably the best part and I don't have any pictures!

The birthday fireplace- right behind this is a modern restaurant

To get to the mountaintop, you must take a special German bus to an elevator that is powered by a UBoat engine.  The views are very nice on a clear day and we got enough of one to be able to see into the surrounding towns.  Speaking of surrounding towns, our tour made a stop in the town of Berchtesgaden.  The town was rather sleepy on an August afternoon, but picturesque nonetheless.
We met up with K&J for a nice German dinner and prepared for another day.

The town of Berchtesgaden

On day 2, the skies were picture perfect blue- a real rarity in Germany.  We decided that now would be the best time to attempt the Grossglockner Pass.  The Grossglockner is a high alpine road that connects Germany/Austria/Italy with magnificent views of the highest point in Austria and a glacier.  It also happens to be my father's absolute favorite sites in Europe and he has not stopped talking about it since his visit last fall.

The windy roads of the Grossglockner

Hi Dad!

The road is very scenic and we had the perfect day....

Really out of the way...

Unfortunately, we did not realize how out of the way it brought us and we spent the majority of the day in the car.  We ate all our snacks, listened to the same songs, stopped talking because we were tired of listening...it was a long day.

Weekend 2: Croatia


K&J really wanted to add as many countries to their travels as possible, so we ventured out to Croatia on the following weekend.  We decided to try the Istrian town of Rovinj on a recommendation from Rick Steves.  The seaside town did not disappoint...and neither did our accommodations.

The lovely apartment

We rented an apartment in a very residential section of town from a lovely lady who spoke no English.  Upon our arrival, she had her grandson attempt to translate for us, but his English was spotty and we got by with some hand signals.  The place was spacious, comfortable and in a cute neighborhood.

The rugged coastline

On Saturday, the weather was surprisingly very warm, so we ventured to the "beach".  I say "beach" because there was really no sand.  Instead, the Golden Cape coast is a combination of woods, bike path/walking path and rocks.  We were definitely in need of some good aqua socks in order to swim, but we were able to find a place to get in easily.  The water was very warm and enjoyable....until we saw a
massive Adriatic jellyfish.  My fear of all things aquatic initiated a very fast exit.  We can also cross off "Go to Nude Beach" from our bucket list as we ventured onto one while wandering around.

The Golden Cape

We enjoyed a lovely dinner right on the Rovinj harbor and walked around the Old Town, which just happened to be having a festival.  The city was packed with people, all the way past midnight and the fireworks show.  We also caught the performance of now famous Croatian cellists- Stjepan Hauser and Luka Sulic.  If you aren't familiar, check them out!

Rovinj Harbor at dinner

The downfall of the weekend came on our walk back to the apartment, which was a good distance from the Old Town.  My famous last words sounded something like..."We should just go back the way we came..." but my travel companions decided they knew a quicker way.  The quicker way got us lost near a Croatian nightclub in the woods where people were tailgating in the abandoned parking area nearby.  We were hopelessly lost without a map or any idea where we should go.  Eventually, we did make it back and argued for a while about whose decision-making got us back on the right track.

Entry to Old Town, Rovinj

On Sunday, we returned to Italy and bid K&J farewell with a nice dinner overlooking Vicenza.  We know they'll be back soon!