After our trip to Neuschwanstein, we decided take a couple of days off. We headed to the pool at the resort and just hung out for the next couple of days. Even though the kids swim every week during their swimming lessons it is never enough for them, they are Florida kids, they could live in the pool! We enjoyed eating lunch at the pool and ending the evenings playing games in the cabin.
On our third morning we decided to walk into the local town Garmisch and visit their pedestrian shopping area. The walk from the cabins took us about 30 minutes at a relaxed pace. Downtown Garmisch is beautiful. We enjoyed window shopping and even bought some chocolate from a local store.
Following our mini vacation during our vacation we decided it was time to head out for our next big adventure: Italy!!!
We headed out on the bus at 8:00 am and proceeded to drive over the Alps through Austria and into Italy. Once again we were very happy to have the tour guide as he gave us great history about the area as we drove. We learned about the Roman roads and the local history between what is now Germany, Austria, and Italy. This specific area is a melting pot of all three cultures and traditions.
We had a rest stop at a road side McDonalds where we encountered our first pay toilets. Pay toilets are common in Europe and I guess so far on the trip we had been very lucky to not encounter them. The plus side is at this location you received a voucher that you could use on your order at McDonalds so in the end we ended up breaking even and had a great reminder to always carry change while we are in Europe.
We continued on our journey to our first stop. Reifenstein Castle. Reifenstein Castle is at the top of a decent size hill that you have to climb up. Once inside the castle our tour guide from the hotel guided us. We were not allowed to take pictures in the castle except from the windows facing outwards. Reifenstein Castle is one of the most intact and authentic medieval castles in all of Europe and it was definitely worth the visit. The tour lasted about an hour and a half.
After the castle, we headed into the town of Vipiteno, Italy. Once there we took a quick walk around and we were able to see the tail end of their Friday market before we went into a local shop for wine tasting. This wasn’t a traditional wine tasting but more of a “Here are our specials” wine tasting. We were still able to choose from a large array of wines and liquors, so we stocked up! The shop boxed up our purchases and had them waiting for us at the bus when we returned, so we didn’t have to carry them around town.
After the wine tasting we headed to lunch at Zur Traube. Lunch was absolutely amazing. We ordered Speck (a local cured meat) and pizzas! It was divine and a great value. This restaurant was the best food for our money the entire trip and even had leftovers. I highly recommend eating here if you visit Vipiteno.
We worked off our lunch by exploring the town before it was time to head back to the resort.
I absolutely loved our day trip into Italy and it definitely made me want to visit more of the country before we move back to the states. The food, scenery, and people were amazing. Coming up next we head to some very important historical locations in Germany Dachau Concentration Camp and Hitler’s Eagles Nest so I hope you continue to follow along on our journey.
Around the World with the Love of Five 