Austria > Via Dinkelsbühl to Kössen

Breakfast is served in the hotel section in the morning. I don’t have to go to the restaurant first. There is a buffet ready. The waitress points out the plastic gloves. I have to use one of those gloves at the buffet. I don’t mind at all. “Would you like an egg too?” she asks. I order a fried egg. I try to ask in my best German if the yolk can be broken. I fail. She looks at me questioningly. I decide to just leave it as a fried egg. The waitress senses something and asks several times if everything is alright. Using Google Translate, I tell her what I actually meant. “Why would you want that?” she asks, surprised. I leave it at that and hand her my key. Today I still have to drive about 350 kilometers. I set off early so I have time for a walk in Dinkelsbühl. Dinkelsbühl is a historic town on the Romantic Road.

Austria - The Segringer Gate entrance to the old city

Like the better-known Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the town is completely walled. It’s not even nine o’clock when I drive onto the almost empty parking lot. I enter the town through the old gate. I follow the city walk through the town. I walk around the Münster St. Georg church and follow the city wall to the Rothenburger Gate. Via the Musikpavillon, I enter again within the city walls. I pass the Kornhaus youth hostel and the Segringer Gate. On the south side, I climb some stairs along the city wall. Unlike Rothenburg, you cannot walk very far along the walls here.

Austria - The beautiful colorful houses at the Weinmarkt

I descend the same stairs again. After an hour and a half, I’m back at the parking lot. I would have liked to stay longer in Dinkelsbühl, but I still have to drive to Austria. If I leave later, I lose the advantage of my overnight stay and get stuck in traffic. I would then be caught in the traffic flow from the Netherlands and Bavaria. The weather is nice and the road is relatively quiet. This changes at the Munich ring road. Due to roadworks, there are long traffic jams. The navigation indicates the delay is more than thirty minutes. Further ahead, near the Austrian border, the traffic jams increase quickly. There is no other choice but to join the queue. On the other lane, the traffic jams are possibly even longer. A good reason to leave on time next week. Apparently, I should not be here around half past eleven. I slowly pass Munich. I follow the A8 highway heading south. The navigation has found a faster option. Instead of the highway towards Austria, I am guided via a more distant exit. I continue on a secondary road. Over a distance of about forty kilometers, I pass several villages. I frequently switch speeds between fifty inside the villages and one hundred outside. I enter Austria close to the place where I would normally leave the highway. At quarter to three, I arrive in Kössen and reach the accommodation. A German guest points out that I should knock on the kitchen door. Erica welcomes me enthusiastically. “A friend of Fred,” she says immediately. She shows me the room on the first floor. The others stay on the second floor. Together, we drive to the ski slope. First, I go to the ski rental. It helps that I reserved the skis in advance. I have the impression that I am helped faster because of this. With the skis, I walk to the counter to buy a ski pass. I buy a two-day ski pass. I have other plans for the remaining days. I will probably ski in this area on Friday as well, but it’s cheaper to buy a new day pass for that. When all preparations are done, it’s time for a beer at Zigi’s bar. Together we toast to a pleasant ski holiday. With Rafaël, the waiter, we drink snaps. For the evening, we have a reservation at the Alm, the restaurant at the campsite. It’s a good thing we reserved. All tables are taken. We will probably experience this more often this holiday week. The ordered food arrives surprisingly quickly. You would expect the kitchen to be busy too. Soon it turns out the table after us is also reserved. This means I am back in my own room on time. Today as well, I go to bed early. I am tired.