2007 Central Europe Trip

A picturesque haybarn along the trail to Partnachklamm Gorge.

Partnachklamm Gorge.

Partnachklamm Gorge.

Partnachklamm Gorge.

Partnachklamm Gorge.

The view from the hillside above the Partnachklamm Gorge.

The view from the hillside above the Partnachklamm Gorge.

View of the Bavarian Alps from the hills above the Partnachklamm Gorge.

Postcard image of Bavarian alpine farmland.

Sunset over the Eibsee. This was the view from my hotel room.

Sunset over the Eibsee. This was the view from my hotel room.

The Post Office in Berchtesgaden, with its infamous "Little Nazi Drummer Boy" mosaic.

The entrance to the tunnel, leading to the brass elevator to the top. The Eagle's Nest itself is just visible at the top of the cliff above the tunnel.

The tunnel leading 400ft into the mountain to the famous brass elevator to the peak.

Kehlsteinhaus, commonly known as Hitler's "Eagle's Nest", on the Kehlstein Peak above Berchtesgaden. Unfortunately, by the time I got to the peak in the mid-afternoon, the clouds had moved in, blocking what must be a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains. As for the building itself, there's not much to see unless you're a customer in the restaurant inside, which is the only way short of a guided tour to get into the main rooms. The drive to Berchtesgaden was great, but the Eagle's Nest wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Looking down from the terrace below the front of the Eagle's Nest. My one glimpse of the surrounding landscape was appropriately ghostly.

The car I rented the day before in Munich. I was expecting an Opel or a Ford...imagine my surprise when it turned out to be a Mercedes. I think this car had the tightest clutch of any manual I had ever driven. Not a bad car, but absolutely miserable to drive after two weeks -- I could hardly put weight on my left foot, let alone work the clutch.

This takes a little explaining... I found the website for this little pension in Koszeg via the town's own website. It looked innocent enough, but there was one little thing about the website which gave me pause: a watermark or background image of a woman's silhouette oddly reminiscent of the "chrome cuties" often seen on the mudflaps of trucks. So, before I left for Europe it was something of a joke as to whether the pension would turn out to be a brothel. I don't know whether the place was a brothel or not...it was a Monday night, so there were hardly any people around. But when I saw this sign in the morning while loading up the car, I had to laugh.