Quiet July
We spent most of this month in Munich. I thought European summers (at least north of Italy) were lukewarm affairs, but July has been hot - like over 30 and up to 35 degrees day after day.
Don't hate me Melbourne ppl - I know it's cold over there. If it helps, Phil hates the heat and GOMPs all over the place. Case in point from the GOMP files, he says on the first non-nuclear day in Munich "ah this is pleasant - I almost feel a tiny bit cold". Agreeing, I say while shivering slightly, "yeah, after the last hot week, it's nice". He snorts derisively, "you mean after the last f&@$ing boiling hot month and a half". Ouch - I'm on your side....
We spent a few of the hottest days at the lake and swimming in the local river, which took the edge off. We also chilled out with long walks through the forest and bike rides, lots of cooking, rollerblading practice (all limbs still intact at time of writing...), a few biergarten visits and a couple of days' window shopping in Munich's beautiful city centre.
Swimming at Lake Worthsee on super hot days
Atmospheric forest walks
Our street in Munich on a summer eve - perfect for blading practice!
Hiking the Alps
We also had a couple of bigger events in July - the first being an overnight hike in the Alps!!
I had really wanted to make July an active month - we had done lots of walking on our Eastern Euopean adventures, but I did get a bit lazy by the end of Istanbul - in a good coffee drinking, mezze eating, shopping kind of way. Plus our hiking days in Bratislava and Sofia were some of my favourites.
So when Klaus and Cornelia suggested that we could take the train to the bottom of one mountain and walk up to a hut, stay overnight and then walk across the ridge of the mountain to another spot and then take a gondola back down the mountain, I was keen. And when they said we might see wild rare mountain goats, I was very excited!!
The best part is that you can do the whole trip by train! We set off in late July and were blessed with the coolest weather in weeks - it certainly wasn't cold, but 22 degrees was a welcome break and perfect walking weather...
The first day's hiking was all on well made tracks or roads and very popular with mountain bikers.
We started walking along shady paths
The first glimpse of the mountain
This adorable house looked like something out of Heidi... There were Alpine cows wearing traditional bells wandering around this meadow!!
Teeny wild strawberries - I ate this one!!
Cornelia and I were treated to Klaus and Phil hauling our stuff up the mountain for us, which is a very luxe way to hike... Also luxurious was our overnight hut. I had imagined a sort of log cabin with a couple of beds and maybe a bathroom. It was a nice surprise to find what was in effect a rustic hotel. We had delicious meals, beer on tap, showers and comfy beds - if I'd known how awesome Euro hiking could be, I would've done this earlier!!
When we arrived on the first afternoon, we found a big group sitting at a table, already pretty tanked and playing an epic party mix of early 90s Rock, ABBA and Austrian classics. These guys were troopers who kept the party going for about SIX HOURS... So not quite the meditative arrival I'd envisaged, but once my brain starting blocking out the tunes, I was just impressed by their stamina!!
Actually, there was a great communal atmosphere at the hut, with serious looking hikers relaxing with awesome old school board games (we played Yahtzee) and a seriously cosy bed. I may have passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow.
The following morning was fresh and cool thanks to an evening thunderstorm and we set off early for a day of walking along the mountain ridge. The scenery was just stunning - especially the Alpine meadows studded with wildflowers. A mere 30 minutes or so into our walk we spotted... fresh goat poo on the track.
And then moments later, Phil spotted a female mountain goat perching on the edge of a rock following by a majestic male with full horns making his way towards her. It was a serious "wow" moment. We must have stood there transfixed for 20 minutes.
Stunning Alpine meadows
Can you spot the goat on the green ledge?? He was a magnificent steinbeck.
And we saw a few more before the day was out... Cornelia told us this is pretty unusual, so we were very lucky to have spotted so many.
The walk was beautiful and also challenging in a few spots (I'm not super confident on the rocks and so was super slow, especially on the downhill parts) which made it all the sweeter to reach the end and tuck into a well earned schnitzel!! Ahhh... schnitzel
The view of the mountains at the end of the hike
My collection of slightly wilted alpine wild flowers!!
Our hiking experience finished with a gondola ride down the mountain (to avoid ending the walk with wrecked knees...) which was both awesome and terrifying. Did I ever mention that I'm quite frightened of heights?? Probably not, as I keep forgetting it myself... I think, "a gondola - oh, cool, sooo James Bond. It's gonna be awesome".
Then I jump on the gondola, it starts to move, I remember to be terrified and squeeze my eyes shut for most of the descent. When I did peek, the views were spectacular, but I was way too petrified to take any photos...
Quick shout out
Meanwhile, Klaus and Cornelia are bloody impressive hikers. Hats off. And huge thanks for organising an incredible experience - I'll never forget it!!
Didn't you say something about a wedding?
I did. And a couple of birthdays!!
The second July instalment to come...
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