OCTOBER 7 - WINDBEUTEL ALM

Leergut

Spent the morning washing my hair and packing up to depart Garmisch the next day. Wanted to be able to leave the two big suitcases in the car during our next couple stops. We had already taken all the glass bottles to the proper recycling bins. Today we took the plastic water bottles to Rewe (grocery store) to deposit them into the "Leergut", the machine for return of Pfand (deposit) for empty containers. The first machine we tried didn't work, and Ron was going to leave the shopping bag full of bottles on the floor. But, a German gal also tried the machine, and then pointed us to another one beyond more grocery shelving. This one worked successfully, and we were glad we hadn't left all those empty bottles since we got back almost US$8.

This could be the opportunity for a lesson in environmental technology for recycling and waste management. But, suffice it to say that Germany is considered the world leader in this field. It's required by law to sort household waste into specific categories and dispose of each in its proper receptacle. Almost 98% of bottles (plastic or glass) are returned. It's not surprising when the Pfand on one small plastic bottle is between 15-25 cents. The offshoots of this are very interesting, including that people have set up "secret" spots near trash bins so homeless folks can pick up empty bottles and get the money for returning them.

While trying to decide what to do, Ron said that the "windbeutel (creampuff) place" had cooking throughout the day, so we went up there. We didn't realize it was still a little before 2 PM, and were surprised to be able to get a "full warm meal". I had zander filet (pike-perch similar to a wall-eye) with pommes frites. The fish was delicate and tasty, but nothing was quite hot enough.  Ron had a large salad with strips of ham and cheese. We decided not to get the cream puff since we had one a few days earlier.

Garmisch Bahnhof

Later that day we stopped at the Bahnhof to get the NY Times. The Bahnhof is the one thing that seems to remain exactly the same in Garmisch while everywhere around it, new buildings and renovations are springing up. We were amazed to find an enormous development of modern new apartments behind the Bahnhof.

 With newspaper in hand we proceeded to the Zugspitze Hotel again for drinks. Met some American couples in the cozy sitting area. One of the men asked why we were in Garmisch. When Ron replied that we were doing a "nostalgic trip" he laughed, and said so were they. He and his sister had grown up in Furth, living in US Army housing in the early 1970's. They had gone there the previous day, and were surprised to find the buildings still in tact and looking in good shape. We lived not far from Furth in 1973/74 and spent a lot of time there, so knew the areas he was talking about.

We then went to dinner at the "new" (to us) Italian Trattoria Calabrese. It opened in 2015, and is owned by the sons of Antonio Ballecco, who had been a waiter for 28 years in several  top Italian Garmisch restaurants, including Colosseo. Of course, he is now working with the sons. The Calabrese was a cute place, very popular. Ron had lasagna and I just had bruschetta.

We returned to Apartment Loisach in Haus Hausler for one last evening. It felt like home, as the furniture remained much the same for the many years we have visited. Very comfortable, especially with the bathroom modernization. However, the visit was somewhat dampened by a seeming "frostiness" of the owners. They have never been the epitome of hospitality, but we felt since we were long-time return guests, and had taken more than one apartment on several occasions, that they could have been a bit warmer, and, particularly, more helpful. Frau Hausler knew we were concerned with stairs, as we had communicated several times about wanting the ground floor apartment. It never became available, but we would have expected that knowing our age and concerns they would have offered some assistance with the luggage. The experience of wanting 36 EU to replace the bed linens, towels, and a couple garbage bags after one week also soured us. But, we shall always remember with fondness our lovely balcony and differing mountain views throughout the day and evening.

Auf Wiedersehen to the Bavarian Alps