Where the Eagles Fly...

Trip Start Jun 25, 2011
Trip End Dec 05, 2011

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Flag of Germany  , Bavaria,
Friday, August 12, 2011

Ok so the reason most people come here is the Eagles Nest. It has a German name but I am not sure what it is off the top of my head. It was basically a present to Hitler from Martin Bormann and the Party to Hitler for his 50th birthday. Its pretty much just a big oppulent house at the top of a cliff. But as an engineering feat it is quite stunning. I have no idea how they built the road up there. They blasted it straight out of the cliffs, so there is a sheer drop on one side and a sheer cliff on the other. Its mostly remarkable though how well they were able to manage the grade. It goes up about 500m or something and is never really all that steep....but there are only two cut backs, hairpins, on the entire road. Thats the amazing part. And then when you get to the foot of it, the only way into the building is through the 100m tunnel, bored straight through the rock...on the side of a cliff...in the 1930s....and you get to the antechamber with a huge brass elevator....in a mountain....123m deep....bored straight through the rock.....which gets you there in like8 seconds or something...all done in the 1930s. They built the whole bloody thing in under 13 months. Amazing. German efficiency for you. There isnt much left inside the building though. There never was heaps in there, it was only reallz used to impress foreign dignitaries, and when the 101st Airborne got there in 1945 they basically looted everything. But its a pretty cool building. They cant runs tours in German though apparentlz because they had some troubles with the Neos a few years back. Freaks.

Buuuut....the most amazing thing was the scenery. If I was Hitler, and could have any place in Germany to have my summe vacations, and if I wouldnt to build an ostentatious fort thing on top of a mountain...here would have to be it. Its hard to describe, but you have Lake Koningsee just down below, all these awesome Bavarian Alps, you can see Salzburg off in the distance. Apparently you can see 200kms or something from up there. I didnt doubt that little stat. Ill have to put some photos up. But so far I have seen the Bavarian Alps and the Austrian Alps back at ZaS and they are both truly spectacular in the summer time. Its very vivid, with the light greens, dark greens of the trees and grasses, the blues of the lakes, the greys of the glacial rivers, the black and dark grey rocks of the mountains....Loved it. Its a shame that it is spoiled so much by its history, which although is not obvert, it definitely taints the magic of the place.

Oh yeah while I was waiting for the bus to Obersalzburg some lad from both came up, recognised me as Aussie from my backpack brand and started chatting to me. He was a cool dude from Perth, working in communications or something like that. But yeah basically just chatted away for a while, got the bus together and when we got off its like, Ok where should we start?. Its so strange the intensity of the relationships you form overseas. Hed come down from Munich by himself. But we went site seeing together like we were best friends from home, talked shit, had a laugh, took photos etc. And yeah so you both know from the outset that youll know each other for not more than three or fours hours then in all likelihood never see them again. But it kinda doesnt matter. We were both there, doing the same thing, at the same time, so why not head up together. And its not weird or anything at all. Its quite enjoyable. And then when we left I went to get the bus and him the train its just like, Ok catcha later, good luck with your travels mate and all that. And even then its not that weird. But for those couple of hours your someones best mate by default, by virtue of your backpack brand reallz. Kinda strange. But things like that make the trip just that little bit better. Its like a friendship hooker I suppose.

Ill have to put the photos up in a few days so check back cos they are magnificent!
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