Tuesday July 6

We THOUGHT this was going to be kind of an easy day, but ...nuh uh. Got away by about 9:00. We went across the Slovenia/Italy border about 30 minutes after leaving Bled. Again no border check. Stoppedin a little Italian town about 10:00 and had a tiny beer, to say we had. Town was evidently known for its market, which we saw while having out tiny morning beer. Stayed in town about 30 minutes. We were headed for our next destination, Ruhpolding, when we decided that we'd get there about 1:00 with nothing to do. It's a very small ski town in off season, so not much to do there. At all. So....we rubbed our two mental sticks together and actually came up with a fire!

• Thanks to American Airlines, we were robbed of the "Hitler's Nest" thing at the beginning of the trip. Turned out we had plenty of time to get there.
• On the way there, there, and on the way away, some of the most spectacular Bavarian Alps scenes. Plenty of pictures later. Got to Bechtesgaden (remember General Burkalter talking about that place all the time on "Hogans's Heroes"? No?. Sigh. Thought not) about 2:00 or so. Ate at the touristy restaurant, then caught a bus to the top o' the mountain, "Eagles's Nest".
• It was completed in 1938 for Hitler's 50th birthday. Given to Hitler by Martin Bohrmann on behalf of the people of Germany. There's some really famous footage of Hitler up there on the terrace of the place wearing a white coat. He only went there 3 or 4 times because of his concern for security. I'm trying to imagine the expense of building the road up there, the elevator shaft to the top. building the place.....damn. The final episode of "Band of Brothers" has some lengthy scenes shot up there. Or at least the movie set was really good. But I think it was actually shot up there.
• Anyway, stayed there, got our pictures, came back down, started raining like a sumbitch, so we set out for Ruhpolding, Germany, where we had a room waiting.
• Checked in hotel. Went to have a beer at the same place Rob/Joan ate and partied a few years ago when they came here. Of course, the owners had been talking to the owners of the Kodaly museum in Budapest, and this damn place was closed too. So we piddled around in the downtown area, then headed back to hour hotel to eat a very traditional German meal. Read that....very tasty. Yes, Mary Kay and Joan, you're correct about all those food things you're thinking right now when you see "traditional". But dang it was good.
• That's it. This will be our last big day. Tomorrow drive through Lichtenstein on the way to Zurich to return the rent car and stay the night.

Random thoughts:

• I remember now. Noboday in Europe...and we've done 8 countries in 8 days....knows what fresh fruit juice is. Watered down something-flavored pisswater. Just change the color of it and the fruit that's on the label, and people will think they're drinking nectar of the gods, right?
• Did I mention that every third woman has her hair dyed the colors of a Jimi Hendrix shirt from the 70s?
• Biotch yet again took us her "shortest way". There's one place we were convinced we were on a $%^#$$%  golf cart path in the middle of a rain forest. Oh, and it hailed on us while we were hearing the banjos again. (no damage to the car) BUT....as always, we ended up back in civilaztion, no worse for the wear. That is all...