12 August – Just a short drive from the Wolfgangssee, past Salzburg to Berchtesgaden crossing the border into Germany. There is a legend that the angels got a fright when god growled at them for taking so long to distribute the beauty spots around the world and they dropped them all in this area. I think they probably dropped a few in NZ first! It is a beautiful valley with the spectacular Berchtesgaden Alps on all sides. We rode our bikes along a great cycleway beside the river, past Berchtesgaden village and thru to the emerald green lake Konigssee. The area was packed with tourists. We caught a small electric ferry (no power boats) down the lake to the little St Batholoma church. Beautiful but very touristy. It started to drizzle while we were there and everyone suddenly wanted to return so we had to wait in a huge queue for a ferry. We stopped in Berchtesgaden village on the way home. Very cute.

13 August – It rained in the night and the cloud was down over the mountains. It did not look good for a visit to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, built for his 50th birthday by Martin Bormann in 1937. At lunch time the skies cleared a bit so we rode to town and caught the local bus up the hill where the next bus took us up a private road (spectacular) to the car park below the Eagle’s Nest. The last 124m was in an ornate brass lift which ended in the building. It was easy to imagine the old Mercedes Benz cars dropping off Hitler and his officers and them going up the lift. Unfortunately the building is now a restaurant so there is no admission. We walked around the building and climbed the last few 100m up to summit of the Kehlstein at 1837m. The views were great. The building itself was a bit disappointing however. We had decided to walk down from the summit to the local bus stop about 6 kms. The first 4 kms were on a great track but the last part we had to follow the road. We were a bit leg weary when we got back to our camp.

14 August – A beautiful clear day and stunning drive thru the mountains and villages to Innsbruck. We crossed the border back into Austria. The camp is 7 kms from the city with views of the mountains all around. It is very flash with a man-made swimming lake and a man on a Segway to show you to your site, but expensive! We caught the free bus into the city which has hosted 2 Winter Olympics (easy to see why) and enjoyed the old town with some unusual buildings. We sat and had a beer at a café watching the sights go by. Many people actually wear traditional Austrian costumes. It’s like they are all going to a fancy dress party. The Inn River flows thru the town (hardly a brook) looking like a typical glacier fed river. (grey/green) The whole city is dominated by the towering mountains in every direction. We are still a bit stiff and sore after our down hill hike yesterday.

15 August – Another great drive thru alpine mountains and villages to Fussen. We are back in Germany and this is the starting point for the Romantic Road which we will follow for a bit. We are in a camp about 4 kms out of the village on the shores of a lake. The area is dominated by two castles built by King Ludwig II. We biked to the most spectacular one, the Neuschwanstein Castle. It was built in 1869 and is a fairy tale theme. The Walt Disney Castle is based on this one. As usual there were heaps of tourists and we joined them to walk around the castle. We did not queue up to go inside as it is only partially completed. We walked up the hill behind the castle for a view from a bridge. This bridge crosses a water fall 100m below. It was packed with tourists also there for the view. We both got a bit nervous as it just seemed to be too many people on the bridge. After a quick photo we got off. Perhaps they have not heard of Cave Creek here! We biked back to Fussen. Halfway there the skies opened and it teemed. We were soaked to the skin despite our parkas. Unfortunately we got lost going back to the camp which was a bit miserable. We have never biked in such heavy rain!

16 August – We continued up the Romantic Road thru pleasant farming country. After a shop up we turned right (off the Romantic Road) towards Munich and stopped about 30 kms outside the city at a nice camp with another lake. After lunch we enjoyed a swim in the lake and a lie in the sun. We rode to the bahnhof (railway station) to investigate our visit to Munich tomorrow.

17 August – After a relaxing morning we had an early lunch and rode the short distance to the bahnhof and after some help from a kind lady bought a day partner pass for the S Bahn to Munich. (3/4 hours). We eventually found the tourist information in the huge central railway station and set off into the city. The whole centre is pedestrian only with very wide streets, shops on each side and cafes and bars down the centre. We climbed the St Peter’s Cathedral tower for a great view of the city, which is flat. The city was busy but as the streets were so wide it did not seem crowded. We passed the town hall with its famous clock and eventually found the Hofbrauhaus (the famous beer hall) and felt obliged to have a beer. We sat with a local who told us of the beer hall and its history. As it was still early, and the band was having its 2 hour break (it plays from 11pm until 4 pm and then from 6 pm until??) we walked to the English Gardens, a huge park bigger than Central Park, in NY. Hundreds of people were sun bathing and swimming in the very swift river that follows thru it. We passed the Chinese Tower with a Bavarian band playing for a huge crowd in the beer garden. Boy, do these Munich citizens know how to drink! We headed back to the Hofbrauhaus and found a table (they are actually long benches which you share. Part of the charm.) The band started and we got our beers. Luckily it was before 6 pm so Val could have a ½ litre stein. After 6pm they only serve 1 litres! The music was “um-pa-pa” Bavarian stuff with everyone standing and drinking for an Ein Prosit every 20 minutes. We had a typical Bavarian meal, roast pork and dumplings and pickled pork knuckle. The waitresses are huge frauleins in traditional costumes. Great muscles from carrying the huge steins! We retraced our steps to the Bahnhof (railway station) and caught a train labelled back to our town. Two stops from the town the driver made an announcement (in German naturally) and we stopped. The train was almost empty so we sat waiting to continue. The next thing the lights go out and the doors lock. We pushed an emergency button and the lights came back on and the doors unlocked. The driver spoke no English but signalled that we should wait and eventually a train would come and take us the rest of the trip. Fortunately he was right and we were reunited with our bikes for a ride home in the dark.

18 August – We rejoined the Romantic Road. It has been a bit disappointing as it is poorly signed. We passed thru the large town/city of Augsburg before ended up on the motorway to our camp near Donauworth, where the Danube River follows thru. After lunch and a rest we cycled the 6 kms to the town on a cycleway thru beautiful farming country with fields of corn, turnips, chives and parsley. The town was great with 2 beautiful churches. The Holy Cross Monastery had some fantastic frescoes. After an ice-cream in the square we returned to our camp. We will follow the Danube east for a couple of days now.

19 August – We headed east along the Danube River. It very quickly changed into a wide navigatable waterway. We have not had internet for the last few days so we stopped at a McDonalds to clear our emails. We are at a great camp on the banks of the Naab River, a tributary of the Danube. We have a great site 3m from the river. The camp game for young and old is to walk up stream and float down the slow flowing river to your site. The water was cool but very enjoyable. There are many canoes and kayaks on the river. Some thunder and rain. It is cool at night and damp in the morning.

20 August – After washing, we biked 28 kms (return) up the Naab River along a great cycleway passed some beautiful little villages. Every village, regardless of its size, has a spectacular church, most with stunning interiors and frescoes. There were lots of people enjoying the cycleway or on the river. Back to the camp for a late lunch and some more “floating down the river”. There plenty of signs of fish in the river but no one fishing seriously.

3 August – We followed the coast road winding in and out of the bays and coves. The further north we got the drier the country became until eventually the hills and coast were nothing but gray rock with a few stunted trees. The off shore islands were just a yellow gravel. At some points the road dropped down to the water where there was a small village and sometimes a camp. At one village we fuelled up. I had thought the fuel gauge was faulty as we had done so many kms since our last fill up in Montenegro but it was just the type of driving we had done. Better than 10L/100kms!! We chose a large sprawling camp which was set on a series of terraces down to the beach. We were able to choose any area you fancied as there were no marked sites. We parked under a tree with a great view of the water. The beach was small but there were a series of coves along the camp edge. We swam in beautiful clear warm water again. I think the reason the water is so clear is that where are no rivers or run off from the land to make it cloudy. We found a discarded deck chair (very Paul Seddon like!) so I cut the webbing off it and Val has repaired our dilapidated beach chairs.

4 August – We drove north again and passed the large city of Rijeka, where we shopped, and onto the Istrian Peninsular where we are camped. Just as we set up the thunder and lightning started followed by heavy rain. After it stopped we went for a short walk. This camp is bloody dear so we may stay only one night. We are very near the Slovenian border. This area is called the Medveja Riviera.

5 August – The beach here is about 80% private so everyone is crammed into the rest. We found a spot and had a couple of great swims. If you are sick of me going on about the clear warm sea you will be relieved to know that this will be the last time. We will not be on the coast again until northern Germany in about 7 weeks. After lunch (we made the most of the expensive camp fees, $76 NZ!) we drove north thru the border into Slovenia. What a change. It was like throwing a switch. As we climbed away from the coast came into green forests and villages very much like Switzerland. We stopped at an “Aires” in a car park for the Postojnska Caves. After some investigation we decided to pay the 22 euro and see them. They are huge and attract a large crowd. They are so large that you travel the first 4.7kms into the mountain by a narrow gauge train passing large caverns and down low tunnels. At the end of the train ride you line up with your appropriate language group and are guided for a 2 km walk. We thought it would be hard to top the Perama Caves in Greece but these were better. The tour was less personal but the limestone formations were spectacular. The “Aires” filled up but we were able to sit on grass in the shade behind “Lefty”. It was a very cool night. Great for sleeping!

6 August – 7 degrees when we woke this morning! We drove north following the motorway to bypass Lubljana and turned off to Bled. This is a beautiful lake and we will come back to it in a couple of days. We are now in a great camp on the side of Lake Bohinj. It is cloudy with a few spots of rain. This is a National Park and right in the Julian Alps. After lunch we hoped on our bikes and rode 4kms (up hill) to the start of a short track to the Savica waterfall. It all looks like NZ but the bush is different. When we returned (down hill phew!) we had a swim in the lake. More warm clear water. (Sorry but it’s not the sea).

7 August – It is a cloudy morning but Val did a huge wash. After lunch we walked 4 kms along a track following the lake shore to the village. 1 km from the village the skies opened and it teamed. There was a beautiful church in the village, St John the Baptist, with great frescoes depicting his beheading. We had intended to catch the small ferry back to our camp but as views were obscured by cloud we decide to walk back. The washing was soaking and the rain set in for the night.

8 August – It is still raining and we drove the 20 kms to Bled. The camp is on the lake shore a short distance from the town with a great view of the church on the island. It rained all day so we sat inside, played Scrabble and watched a movie on the computer. We play Scrabble most evenings (with a drink). The score is 37 to 39 in Val’s favour! I have developed a “modified Scrabble” which makes for much closer games. The vowels and consonants are separated into two bags and you draw 4 consonants and 3 vowels. You retain this ratio thru the game. Try it. It takes some of the luck out of the game. I cooked roast chicken, roast potatoes and broccoli for dinner. Not bad with just a sailor’s frying pan!

9 August – It dawned cloudy but the skies cleared and out went the washing, parkas, towels and caps to dry. We set off on the bikes along the lake shore into the town. Great views of the castle on the hill and the churches. We continued on around the lake to the camp. Lake Bled is the venue for the 2011 World Rowing Cup (last year in NZ) The course just fits into this tiny lake. There are very few signs of preparations for this event which starts in 3 weeks. A small media tower and small open grandstand (neither new) and some work clearing a grass area. Perhaps this is why NZ lost $2 million!!! After lunch we hired a lovely wooden boat and rowed to the island and visited the church. There is a tradition that you make a wish and then ring the bell. (casted in 1534) The bell rings all day!! We rowed down part of the World Cup course to return the boat. Dinner at the camp restaurant (cooks night off) with a couple of old guys playing Slovenian songs on a squeeze box and a guitar. Very pleasant.

10 August – A beautiful morning and we headed north out of Slovenia and into Austria. We bought a motorway toll pass as we were heading into the high mountains only to find that it worked for the motorways but we had to pay extra for the two longest tunnels (8 kms and 7 kms.) The drive thru the Austrian Alps was great with spectacular peaks all around. We are now in the north of Austria at Wolfgangsee, a lovely lake about 30 kms from Salzburg. It is now much cooler and we’ve had track pants and jerseys on. We even put the duvet back on the bed.

11 August – After skyping the girls we caught the bus into Salzburg. The bus stopped at the Schloss Mirabell palace and gardens. This is “Sound of Music” country and part of it was shot in these picturesque gardens. We cross the Salzach River (in flood) into the old town (pedestrian or horse and cart only) and visited some of the great churches. Mozart lived here and we saw his birth place and home. There are shops totally devoted to Mozart stuff. We climbed the hill to the Hohensalzburg Fortress which dominates the city and gives a great view. After lunch we caught the bus back to our camp. After a rest we hopped onto the bikes and followed a cycle path to Strobl at the head of the lake. (12 kms) Very picturesque.

27 July – We walked down to the little harbour and caught the ferry to Dubrovnik. On the way we passed more signs of the war with bombed out buildings and a no go area which has not been cleared of mines yet. The Serbs came to within one hill of capturing Dubrovnik but were repulsed. Some of the old town has been rebuilt because of the war damage. Approaching Dubrovnik from the sea is great, as you can appreciate the beauty of the old city and the area. The water is a beautiful blue contrasting the stone work and the tile roofs. Our ferry arrived at 10:30am and we had a return ferry at 2:30pm which gave us plenty of time to explore this great city as the old part is quite small. There were lots of tourists from two huge cruise boats anchored outside the harbour. We wandered the streets and alleys enjoying the great buildings and churches before climbing onto the city wall and following it right around the city giving spectacular views. After a nice sandwich and a beer we caught the ferry back to our village and spent the afternoon on the beach. In the evening we managed to skype Canada and caught up with Lynne, Paul and our Canadian friends.

28 July – A nice quiet morning catching up on washing and cleaning the dirt of Albania off “Lefty”. We changed some more euros for kuna (local currency). 7.3 kuna to 1 euro so everything looks hugely expensive until you do the sums. As we can not use our euro card to get money out of an ATM in this part of the world we have stashed cash in various hiding places around the camper. In the afternoon we went back to the beach and enjoyed 3 hours of sun and swimming.

29 July – Woken with the wind and I hopped out of bed to save the awning, then the heavy rain started followed by thunder and lightning. It all lasted about an hour. We drove north up the 210 km coast road between Dubrovnik and Split. This has been described as the best coastal drive anywhere and it’s pretty spectacular. Just north of Dubrovnik we crossed the border into Bosnia. There is a bizarre 10km stretch of Bosnian coast before crossing back into Croatia. Fortunately we were waved thru both border crossings. On the right there are the mountains and on the left is the coast. There are many islands just off the coast so the sea is very sheltered. At times it looks more like a lake than the sea. We wound thru many coves with villages and beaches in each one. Unfortunately it rained off and on so the colours were not as good as they could have been but it was still great. We are now in a large camp 6 kms from Split. It has a nice beach so we will stay at least 2 nights here. We went for a walk and found the information centre where they told us we can ride our bikes into Split.

30 July – We set off around the coastline on mainly cycle paths to Split about 8 kms away. A great ride passing some nice beaches and bays. Split is where the cruise ships can moor at a wharf so the place was packed. It has a great water front where the old city is. We followed a map and navigated the lanes thru squares and lovely old buildings including the cathedral. After a gelato we hopped on our bikes and returned to our camp and beach.

31 July – We drove north again following the coast. The mountains are now further away and the land is flatter and drier. We hoped to find a nice quiet camp in a cove but after several attempts (camps full) ended up in a very busy holiday camp but right on the sea front. We can only stay one night here but that will be enough. The beach is very crowded but we found a spot and enjoyed a swim. A pro beach volley ball tournament was in progress so we watched the women’s final. The local girls won much to the delight of the crowd. After dinner we walked down to the village (Filip Jakov) which had been transformed into a lively outdoor market. Many families wandering around enjoying the atmosphere.

1 August – Back on the road north again along the coast. We drove until we found a nice quiet family camp with a great beach. We will spend a couple of nights here. The swimming is great. The water is a little cooler as we are now in northern Croatia.

2 August – We spent the morning with domestic duties including washing the bedding and giving Val a hair cut. (much to the amusement of the Slovenian family next door) The beach is great here and very quiet. This is the height of the holiday season so we are lucky that this camp is small. There are a lot younger children. There are no villages close so it probably does not suit families with teenagers. This area has a peninsular opposite so the sea is very flat again, more like a lake.