Monday & Tuesday, September 6 & 7 2010 (diary)

Monday morning the sun still shines, although there is a rather cool wind from the East. The weather forecast is for overcast and rain for the next few days so I decide today is a good day to do my first 8 km walk through the forests and down the Glotter valley to Glottertal. For half the way it is all steeply downhill through very dense forest. Then, once down in the valley, the trails flattens out and follows the small but turbulent Glotter.
I end up at Wirtshaus Zur Sonne in the village of Glottertal, where I have lunch before heading back up to Sankt Peter in the bus which stops right opposite Zur Sonne.

I did this walk several times back in 2008 and waitress Bernadette remembers me well from those days (she had just returned from a trip to Darwin herself then). She also recalls that my daughter Babette was here last year after she completed the same 8 km walk.
Today I have their Special for lunch, which is "Hirschleber auf Kürbischutney" (Liver of dear on pumpkin chutney), with crisp brahtkartoffeln on the side. It is also very pleasing that Zur Sonne supports the small boutique brewery Hirschen-Bräu in nearby Waldkirch. Their beer is one of the best I ever tasted.

Tuesday is indeed overcast with intermitted rain. Wivica has to do some shopping in Freiburg so we drive together over there. I buy some more food in one of their large supermarkets, it has a huge food range with many delicious delicatessen and an endless choice of non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks (curiously dry ginger is not amongst them).

I am a bit concerned with recent photos I uploaded on my Blog. They display very slowly and very poorly. After checking out everything I conclude that it is not my own laptop or the uploading process itself, but this poor display must be the result of very poor reception here 800 meters up in very cloudy mountain conditions.

Wednesday - Friday, September 8 - 10 2010 (diary)

As predicted the weather is still overcast and rainy on Wednesday, so I work on my laptop and check out the Australian Newspaper for the latest on political news.
It is not good, not unexpectedly, as the fate of this great country is in the hands of three so-called "Independents" of mediocre quality and doubtful intelligence to say the least, who now hold the balance of power.

Two of them, apparently more interested in personal gain and fame rather than doing the right thing for their country, were easily bought by Gillard to form a Labour Government and in consequence betrayed the overwhelming wishes from their own constituencies (who clearly preferred a Coalition Government).
But, as the conservative journalist Andrew Bolt nicely put it : "This was the worst way for Labour to win government, and the best way for Tony Abbott to lose it."

In the afternoon Wivica and I are invited by the Heitzmanns and we have a very pleasant time together eating cake, drinking coffee and schnapps. In the evening the two of us have dinner in the Ristorante Bertolds Brunnen again.

Thursday is still overcast. I have a swim in the Hallenbad, then take the bus to Freiburg to buy some maps. They have a great shop there that sells only maps and travel guides and have an enormous choice. When I ask for a map of Southern Germany they immediately come up with 10 different ones to choose from, great. I also purchase a detailed map of the Schluchsee were I plan to do a walk.

Friday morning there is lots of blue sky around in St.Peter, so I decide to do that Schluchsee walk that very day. It is a one and a half hour journey by busses and train through some wonderful country.
I get off the train at Aha (which is exactly where our favourite Imbiss is), then proceed to walk around the lake in anti-clockwise direction. Only halfway mind you, 9kms is quite enough for one day, which I manage to do in 2 hours. I arrive near the dam in time to catch the little steamer St.Nikolaus, which travels around the lake every hour.
In due course I arrive back in Aha to catch the train for my return journey. Although at the Schluchsee the weather was overcast all day, with an hour of light drizzle during the second half of my walk, it has been a very satisfying day.