Guten Morgen!
I think I have a problem. A big problem. No, it isn’t that die Polizei pulled me over today. Nor is it that I pissed off a German so hard he cursed at me in both German and English. It isn’t even that our AirBNB apartment in Berlin was cancelled last minute.
I have a bigger problem than that.
I’m addicted to German driving culture. The roads are immaculately maintained (think 2 feet of snow on both sides of the road, perfectly sculpted to form a boundary, yet not a drop on the road itself). I’m addicted to the well-placed and thoughtful signage that clearly tells you what to do and where to go. To the traffic circles that efficiently distribute traffic. To the ONE stop sign that I’ve encountered in this country so far. Finally, I’m addicted to the Autobahn.
Oh, the Autobahn. This is the perfect balance in government regulatory oversight. First, the basics. Not all of the Autobahn lacks a speed limit. Near the cities it is about 60 mph. At significant interchanges, it is about 80 mph. But the rest is gloriously unrestricted. Driving is different here. To Germans, it’s a bit like an honor code system. You follow the speed limit when there is one (every single driver has, so far), and then drive as fast as you can when there isn’t. You DO NOT drive in the left lane, unless you are passing someone. Always drive in the right lane. Driving culture.
Needless to say, it was time to see what der Gerät is capable of. Speed is restricted electronically to 155 mph on the car. And on my first day in the Autobahn, after some thoughtful time learning the car, the roads, and properly analyzing the weather conditions, I followed an Audi RS5 toward the Zugspitze. The car accelerates so quickly that I was doing 120 mph before I even noticed. Trust me, however, when I say that you notice right at 120. It is the precise moment when I realized I was driving a real machine. It’s also the moment unparalleled angst crept into my mind. Not angst over a potential crash. Definitely not angst over a poor driver (they don’t seem to exist here). Angst over being pulled over and ticketed. My American brain cannot comprehend that it is legal to drive so fast, even though it felt incredibly safe the entire time. I reached 135 but constantly had to slow down for slower traffic. I followed the Audi until it was nearly our exit, and then scaled it back as we neared the Austrian border.
During this part of the road, we found some amazing sights. In the background lie the Alps, which are some of the tallest and most beautiful mountains in the world. Also nearby are the amazing alpine lakes that glisten with turquoise blue water. Lakes here (See, in German) are just gorgeous.
I noticed a really sharp 7 series BMW parked on the side of the road, and commented that it looked really nice. A few moments later, it pulled out behind me and then i saw the LED sign in my rear view mirror: “die Polizei”. I pulled off to the side of the road, rolled down my window, and waited. The officer approached and politely asked me if I spoke German, to which I responded that I did speak a little. Nonetheless, he switched to English and asked for our documentation and the cars. After some very thorough checks with his colleague in their car, and a very, very thorough check of the car’s engine bay, doors, mirrors, etc, our documents were returned and we were wished a safe trip. The officer even told me I had a very nice car!! The car has tourist license plates, so it seemed to be a very routine stop to ensure all was good.
A little more driving into the Austrian border and we arrived at the Zugspitze, the highest mountain peak in all of Germany. We rode a cable car to the top (2,963 meters – 9,721 feet or about 32 football fields high). Our ears popped on the way. I wish I could put into words how breathtaking the views were, but I cannot, so I will share pictures instead. From the top you can see the alps in four countries: Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Germany. You could even notice the curvature of the earth from here. Unbelievable.
We had a very German lunch at the highest Biergarten in all of Germany: Weißbier, weißeurst and a pretzel with sweet mustard. After a little more bewilderment over the sights, we came back down the Zugspitzbahn. But first, we grabbed a momento: A small chunk of rock from the Zugspitze that we found in the museum. Please don’t tell the Germans!!
After we left, we returned to Germany and into Füssen to see the famous castles of Bavarian King Ludwig II: Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. We had no interest in exploring the interior, so we just snapped a few pictures of the exterior as we weaved through the many, many, many tourists literally walking in the street. We tried to get closer to Neuschwanstein but were politely told that we were trespassing on a private street. Oops.
It was then on to Langenargen, a beautiful little town on the Bodensee (Lake Constanz) that borders Swirzerland, Austria and Germany. To get there, we took a beautiful road known as the Deutsche-alpenstraße (German Alpine Road). Lots of twists and turns with the Alps just to the left. Unfortunately, much of this road came at night, after both dark and fog had descended. I took a few videos on the GoPro and hope to share them sometime. The last section of the road is an incredible Driver’s road. Perhaps not as beautiful as the Romantischestraße, but definitely a more engaging drive. Upon arrival, we strolled through the town but it was virtually deserted. We stumbled upon a delicious Italian bistro and had a marvelous pizza with a bottle of red wine.
Tomorrow, it’s off to Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber via the Romantischestraße, where we will teach Herman the German what “Haters gonna hate” means and I piss off a German Tankstelle attendant.
Tschüss!
Adverb the Noun 