05.09 - Day 234 - Augsburg, GER to Salzburg, AUT
Thursday 5th September - Augsburg, Germany - Salzburg, Austria (Day 234)
As a birthday treat I’m allowed to do some early exploring of the city on the available hotel bikes. Except it’s dark just after 6am, so I wait with a coffee in out Arthotel Style reception until 6:30 when daylight is closer.
Over the next hour and a half I cycle 16 km around the city on the decent hotel bike along well maintained bike paths.
I’m almost the only person in the Rathausplatz (main square), cycling up around the cathedral, down past and poking my nose into the Fuggerei - the supposed oldest social housing, over 500 years and still going - where rent costs 88c a year.
It seems a charming city centre with wide streets overlooked by, classical 4 and 5 storey buildings, filled now with shops and cafes.
The downside of the fire was standing outside for an hour, the upside is the free breakfast buffet as a ‘sorry’. As we tuck into that, the kids and Kate present me with some cards and chocolates for turning the ripe old age of 43.
Sienna has crafted one of her Acrostics:
M - Magnificent
A - Amazing
T - Terrific
T - Too into castles and cathedrals
After schoolwork and checking out we drive the couple of kms into a car park in town, wandering around the main square, briefly in a room / building about water management for which Augsburg is a UNESCO site due to their use of rivers and canals to power and supply the drinking water.
The Augsburg Natural History Museum has an entrance and is in a building as far removed from its London counterpart as possible. Still, for just 7 euros for a family ticket the kids get much enjoyment from the 4 floors of displays, repeatedly uttering which animal from each window they’d want as a pet.
Some of the small ‘scenes’ created are very impressive. I also think we’re the only visitors, again in contrast to South Kensington, London.
Loaded up with a few pretzels we stroll along some of the canals and up and down windy interconnecting alleyways.
It takes 3 hours for the stint past Munich and into Austria to Salzburg. Clem and Claudia’s postcard house is perched on the hillside, nestled at the edge of the forest, a stream running to one side.
Sienna and Seb are thrilled to have Noah and Mila to play with and all their toys too.
Catching up with old friends is always comforting and a glass or two of champagne helps, along with a birthday cake baked by Clau. Sienna and Seb (eventually) go to sleep in Noah and Mila’s room as the adults replay the wedding from less than a week ago, albeit two countries away.
