2010 Travel Preview

Can this actually exist?

A few weeks ago, I sent a picture of the Swiss Alps to Donna at work with a message that simply said, “Next?” She replied promptly with, “Looks good!” Although we have been near the Swiss Alps, we have not gotten a good look at them due primarily to weather. During a trip a year ago last November, we visited Munich, Dachau, Salzburg and Schloss Neuschwanstein. We were closest to the Alps while visiting Schloss Neuschwanstein but, since the weather is pretty unpredictable at that time of year, the mountainous areas were shrouded in low hanging cloud cover. What we did see was amazing and left us wanting to see more. Below was the view of the castle the day we visited. We were not bummed out because we knew what we were in for. Besides, sun or not, this is not something that you see everyday!

Schloss Neuschwanstein in Southern Bavaria

The photo below gives you a bit of context for the castle. Pretty amazing thing to be driving down the street and then seeing something so beautiful perched upon the hillside. For those unaware, this is the castle that inspired Walt Disney’s version at the theme park.

Schloss Neuschwanstein

So, we are flying into Zurich this summer to explore Switzerland and will be on the ground for two full weeks. If any of you have been, I would love to hear of the places we should stay or the restaurants that we must visit. We are completely flexible and plan to take the train around the entire Swiss countryside while we are there. We definitely plan to spend some time at the lake areas and head up into the Alps to take the Glacier Express as well.

Heading to Sedona

Before heading to Switzerland, we have also decided to take a trip with good friends to Arizona this spring. This is in part due to our desire to warm up a bit from the cold of our Colorado winter. At one point during the trip we will be in Sedona staying up against the Red Rock State Park. I am looking forward to getting some painting in and plan to complete at least three field studies while we are there. I will also be taking my camera and will shoot pictures while I paint. With all the rain the desert is getting right now, the flowers should be in full bloom!

In the true spirit of A Day Not Wasted, I always like to have something on the calendar to look forward to. We are excited about these trips and highly recommend stepping out into the vast unknown to sample the incredible beauty and culture that surrounds us!

Munich Trip Highlights

For those interested, below are photos of the trip to Southern Bavaria that inspired our desire to visit Switzerland. The first is a photo of interesting contrasts that I took while visiting the central square in Munich and the Dachau Concentration Camp, which is about 25 minutes by car from the square.

Marienplatz present and past

It was fascinating to just have been in the square hours earlier and then receive such a stark reminder of the past when I saw the historical photo on the right at the camp. The day we visited Dachau clouds rolled in and out and there was hardly anyone there – a fitting mood for the somber realities of the place. I got chills and felt a wave of emotion preparing the photo below for the blog. I guess I should not be surprised, now that I have visited the camp, how much emotion can be stirred by such a simple image.

The gatehouse into Dachau prision compound

Then there was Salzburg. Equipped with my pocket Garman, we had a great time flying through the Bavarian countryside on the Autobahn at up to 120 miles per hour on our way to Austria. And yes, there were people passing me. We were only there for a few days and really enjoyed the time we had. We visited shops on the very street that Mozart was born and hiked up to Hohensalzburg Castle, which is almost 1000 years old and towers above the old part of the city.

Hohensalzburg Castle

I love architecture and Salzburg, as is much of Europe, is full of wonderful examples of its potential creativity. Below is just one frame of inspiration!

The rooftops of Salzburg