The Trip Winds Down

Leaving Garmisch in the clouds and the rain, we drove to Innsbruck in the clouds and the rain.  Things just weren't cooperating in our quest to see the mountains.  After arriving at our hotel in Innsbruck, we went into old town and saw lots of beautifully decorated buildings.

But couldn't get away from the Golden Arches!

We did find a cathedral to visit, and one thing we've noticed is that the cathedrals in Germany and Austria are much more ornately decorated inside than those in England.

There was an interesting mausoleum for  Emperor Maximilian I, with statues on top that must have told some story, I'm just not sure what it was.

The next day we asked our hotel clerk what would be some nice things to do in the area (since it was still cloudy and rainy, the driving tour of the mountains didn't sound like a good idea).  He suggested the Swarovski Crystal gallery and a cute little mountain town called Seefeld.  So not knowing what to expect we headed out to Swarovski, and found an amazing place, right from the entrance.

There were all manor of objects decorated with crystals.

Including a multi-faceted crystal ball you went into, which made for some interesting pictures.

Then there was art that was beyond my limited understanding.

And some that were more beautiful than a picture can capture.

When we went to Seefeld,  we wanted to see the town nestled in the mountains, like this.

Unfortunately, with the weather the way it was, this was the only way we got to see it.

      

The next morning we got up and started the long trip back.  One good thing was that the rain and clouds had broken and we had some beautiful scenery on the way back.  Somehow we managed not to get any pictures along the way, so you'll just have to use your imagination.

Before we left for the airport, I decided to "retire" the tennis shoes I had been wearing almost the entire trip, and one of the pairs of jeans.  Farewell old friends.

 

We got back to Stuttgart in time to catch our 7:00 PM flight to Heathrow.  When we got there I thought the hotel I had booked was actually in the terminal (there's a Sofitel in terminal 4 that I've stayed in before, which is very convenient).  Unfortunately it was just near the airport, so there was a little confusion.  But we arrived with only a little delay.

The next morning it was back to Heathrow for our flight to JFK.  The flight was easy, but when we got to JFK and waited for our bags the drama began.  We arrived before the bags began being delivered and stood right in front of where they dropped onto the belt.   Mine came out right away, but Susan's never did.  After they said all the bags were delivered, we went out through customs to the lost baggage desk for BA.  We gave the person behind the desk the claim number and a description and she called someone at the baggage area and they said the bag was there!  We still have no idea what happened.  No doubt with my beard they thought I looked like a drug courier.  After a wait, they brought the bag out and off we went to the airport and Act II of the drama. 

I had booked us at a Ramada by the airport, thinking this would be a nice hotel.  Turns out it was a dump!  If only I had known about tripadvisor.com before I made the reservation, I would have known better (one of the reviews summed it up, Filthy, nasty, gross dump!).  The final straw was at breakfast the next morning when Susan put milk in her coffee, and it was curdled!  Needless to say we couldn't wait to get out of there, and since we were still on London time, we were up at 4:00, so we headed to the airport and were there by 7:00 AM.

Now to Act III.

When I had originally booked our flights, the return flight was scheduled to leave around 7:00 PM.  But I kept getting calls from Delta pushing the flight back, until by the time we left it wasn't scheduled to leave until 9:00 PM (remember that time).  I decided that 9:00 PM was too late and that we'd be too tired to head into the city for the day, so I looked and there was a 4:20 PM flight.  So I called to try and make the change and was told I couldn't since it was an award ticket.  But after talking to several agents, I was told that I could make the change for $50 per ticket three hours before the flight (the fact that the first one didn't tell me that is just another instance of Delta's incompetence in Act III).

So I looked online and most of 1st class was empty, so I was pretty sure I'd be able to make the change.  So we headed out to the airport and hung out in the food court until 1:20 when I could make the change.  The change went off without a hitch so we headed to the first class  lounge.  At 3:50 we headed down to the gate, and there was no one from Delta there!  About 15 minutes later the time on the board changes to 5:30 PM, and a gate agent shows up and says that due to weather problems, our plane has been routed to Pittsburgh and the flight delayed.

So we headed back to the lounge.  To make a long, miserable, frustrating story a little shorter, the time on the board changed from 5:30 to 7:30 to 8:30.  About 8:00 I went up to the lounge desk and asked if the plane had even left Pittsburgh yet, and was told no, and the flight was now delayed until 10:00 PM (an hour later than my original flight).  So at this point I asked to be put back on the 9:00 flight, and was told I couldn't because my luggage had already been checked in for the flight that was now due to leave at 10:00.  By this time (which was 1:00 AM London time) I was pretty hot and told them that I didn't care when my luggage got there, I wanted on the 9:00 flight.  So the person behind the counter tried, but couldn't do it and asked me to call reservations and have them do it.  So I went back to where we were sitting and called, and the reservation agent told me that since I had checked in, they couldn't make the change, I would have to get it done at the airport.

So by this time, with steam pouring out of my ears I'm heading back up to the lounge counter to raise some hell, but as I'm passing the monitor I see the flight time for our flight is now 8:00 PM.  So I go to the counter and they tell me that they have given up on the Pittsburgh flight and have found another airplane.  So I calm down and we head down to the gate around 7:30, but no plane!  To end this sad tale, we finally pushed away from the gate at .... drum roll .... 9:00 PM!!  We finally got home at midnight, which is 3:00 AM NY time, 8:00 AM London time.  We had been up for 24 hours and had spent 14 hours at the airport!

The trip was wonderful, but the journey back was a challenge.  So until next time, ....

Germany

When we initially planned our trip, we were going to be able to see Susan's daughter Laura dance (she's a ballerina with the Stuttgart ballet).  Unfortunately, she injured her foot, so she had to take a month off for it to heal.  But while we didn't get to see her dance, we did get to spend time with her and her boyfriend, Frank.

Walking in the park.

While we were there, the Stuttgart ballet performed Sleeping Beauty, and they set up a huge TV screen (and I mean huge!) in the park to show it.  We went and it rained on us the entire time.  We stayed until the break and then headed indoors for dinner.

After a couple of days in Stuttgart, we headed down to Garmisch-Partenkirchner, which has a cable car up to the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany.  We had tried to go up when we were in Germany last October, but it was socked in with clouds.  Guess what?  Same thing again.  I guess we're just not fated to see it.  But we spent the night there this time, and there was a street fair that we went to.  It was really fun, until it started raining cats and dogs.  Of course by this time we were a long way from the hotel, so by the time we got back to the hotel, we were totally soaked.  Oh well, the price you pay.

Then we ran across this street that was named after me!

One of the amazing things about the little towns over here is how so many of the houses have these elaborate paint jobs.  I guess being a house painter over here is a little different.

And then when we'd given up all hope of seeing the mountain, the clouds broke a little and gave us a tease.

After we'd dried out, we went out for a walk around town and saw lots more cute houses.

So, once again we didn't get to take the cable car up to the top, but maybe next time.

Newgrange

Our final site to see in Ireland was Newgrange, a prehistoric site that was built over 5000 years ago (500 years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza!). 

It was built so that on the winter solstice a narrow beam of light from the sun would pass through the "roof box" and illuminate the interior.

And yes, it was a little cold and windy that day!

This was the door to the entrance, clearly weaklings were not allowed to enter.

After this it was back to Dublin to catch our flight to Stuttgart.  While the weather in Ireland didn't exactly cooperate, it was an amazing trip none the less. 

The Giant's Causeway

There is a geologic formation on the eastern side of Ireland called the Giant's Causeway.  There's a legend about it being created by an Irish giant, Finn McCool so that he could reach Scotland.  You can read about it in the link above.  Regardless of the legend, it was an impressive site.

The hexagonal rock columns formed when successive layers of lava cooled (much the way a mud lake bed cracks when it dries up).

But it was the haphazard, multi layer aspect that made it so interesting

 

To the kids as well, to them it looked like a giant jungle gym.

Then there were other interesting rock formations, like this one called The Boot.

This one doesn't have a name, but it should.

 

 

There was a walk up to the top of this ridge that we didn't have time (or warmth) to do.

We would have liked to have spent more time there, but we had miles to cover to get to our next B&B, plus it was windy which made it very cold!

There were other beautiful views along the way.

Including another castle in Carrickfergus, the town we stayed in.  We didn't get a chance to go inside, but it was certainly impressive from the outside.

Another island, another overcast day

On the recommendation of our B&B hostess in Clifden, we went on a boat trip out to the Island of Inishbofin.  After the delights of the Great Blasket, we had high expectations, but alas, we were disappointed.  Coming into the harbor there were some interesting ruins.

But when we got on the island, there wasn't any easy way to get to them, and the island itself didn't really appeal to us.  So we only stayed a little while and then headed back to Clifden.

The next day was drizzly, so we decided to go on a boat trip of the only fjord in Ireland, which said it was perfect for a rainy day (I guess they must have a lot of them if they advertise about them).  Luckily we could stay on the inside of the boat for most of the trip, because as you can see it was not a very pretty day.

After we finished the boat ride, we were driving back to the B&B and found a memorial to those who died in the Potato Famine.  Tres Bizarre!

Then it was off to Kylemore Abbey which also currently exists as an exclusive girls' school.

Which had some interesting gardens.

It was situated on the fjord, with a breathtaking view.