... on the road again...
Heading north we took the autostrada all the way up. It's very easy to follow and there are plenty of gas stations in Italy that take our coupons. However we made an annoying mistake I thought I'd share incase someone else was going to do this drive. We waited too long to fill up before crossing the border and were coasting on fumes. We decided to stop and just pay at the next gas station as we hadn't seen an agip or an esso in awhile (Those are the two gas stations that take american coupons. We pay $131 currently for 100 litres; however, out in town gas costs over $10 a gallon right now!!) So we asked the gas station people if there were any agips soon and they said, "No! This is the autostrada. There are no agips on autostrada." and were very offended. We thought we must be really close to Austria so we paid $10/gallon to fill up. double ouch. Of course within a MILE there was an agip. SO don't do that. There are always agips every few miles. You can always turn around if you hit the Austrian border! (We can only use the coupons in Italy so it's best to leave the border with a full tank.)
The Alps soon arrived and we were just drooling out the windows. I am so glad we drove because it is very interesting to see the slow change from Italian influence to full out German homes with the little brown thatched roofs and bright green grass everywhere. It dropped 30 degrees in about two hours. It felt like heaven!
We took about 7-8 hours instead of 6 due to some heavy thunderstorms and an accident, plus stopping for lunch. It wasn't too bad though.
The resort is in Garmisch and just right across the border in Germany. The resort itself is surrounded by the Alps and it's just completely gorgeous! From the resort you can walk out the gate into the town and shop, go to eat, or go right to the trails and outdoor adventures.
We checked into Edelweiss and were eager to throw down our stuff and head to one of the restaurants in the hotel. We went for burgers, fries, and beer. After a week of nothing but pasta I was desperate for something else. Edelweiss is a complete bargain and absolutely gorgeous. The resort is for the US military, retirees, and family only. A very large stone fireplace surrounded by leather couches and rocking chairs greets you as you walk in the door. It feels like a rustic log cabin, a luxurious one. There's lots to do here from tours to the spa and it's all in american $ which saves us a bundle right now with the euro being so high!
We met Grandma Debbie and Grandpa Jeff (my parents) at the train station and pretty much all went right back to settle in. The girls warmed up to them after a couple of minutes. They are finally at the age that they begin to really remember them and can develop long standing relationships. They had spent the last week in France and Belgium enjoying lots of beer and lots of walking. We were all pretty exhausted and ready to just relax and do -nothing- for a day.
No comments:
Post a Comment