We always stay in Munich when the weather is crummy. And it always makes us miss home (in Switzerland). Our hotel was in a pretty seedy area by the train station. So we checked out the pedestrian streets and the parks just a little. Then we rented a car for the Romantic Road. (That’s really its name).
We had a few stops on the Romantic Road. The road was only fun for part of the time and we were told to use the highway for most travel between towns. We did pass through a place called Hapsburg that had a cool castle and looked really nice. Our first stop was for lunch in Nordlingen. It was old in structure but didn’t have much personality. Next we stopped in a town called Dinkelsbuhl. We walked around part of its wall and into the center a bit. It was very pretty and fun to imagine life hundreds of years ago there. We then decided to skip Wurzburg and instead have a more liesurely time in Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Rothenburg is a walled city and is amazing! The walls are gorgeous and the views are so nice. I loved that part.
Everyone who visits the Romantic Road should do the Nightwatchman’s Tour in Rothenburg. The guide was funny and quirky. He gets to carry a “halberd” for his job. I was in a pretty crummy mood the whole day. My only complaint about this tour is it should have been at the beginning of the day because it was so fun.
We followed a guidebook’s suggestion to go to a spa in Baden-Baden. It’s not part of the Romantic Road. It’s closer to Strassbourg, France and the Black Forest in Germany, which puts it on our way home. The spa has 17 “stations” of showers and steam rooms and hot pools and cold pools. It was really relaxing! All the stations are nude. Some of them are co-ed. This was a little uncomfortable at first! 😳 But we’ve known about it for weeks so we kind of got to prepare ourselves. On the way out, Elisa looked at me funny and asked if I was wearing this outfit earlier. “No, I was naked!” We could have just done that and our vacation would have been fabulous. And I can add one thing to the list of jobs I never want to have: the guy who gives soapy massages to naked men, which was a highlight. (You have to be there. Don’t use your imagination.)
Elisa’s doctor appointment went well on Tuesday. We got the news that we’re having a
girl!
The official due date is September 10. Everything looks healthy, except for the fact that she was totally hiding. It was really hard to get a good ultrasound. The ultrasound made a lot more sense to the doctor than to me, but I’m taking her word on it. I realized that afternoon that I just expected a boy. That’s just the way it works, isn’t it? 🙂 I was a little shocked and disappointed at first because of that expectation. I think that boys are usually easier to deal with, so we’re getting a hard one. I can’t imagine a better dad for a girl. I think a mom is really important in a girl’s life, but a father teaches a daughter the most important things. I’m really excited! Now we just have to pick a name.
We celebrated with some baby-girl-themed sugar cookies. Cream cheese frosting and strawberries really hit the spot.
Today was our last chance to see the Dome of the Rock and it was open. Elisa covered up in her new scarf, even though it was roasting out. It turned out not to be necessary either. We were able to get into the courtyard but no one is allowed inside the Dome of the Rock anymore, from what we understood. We tried to be as reverent as possible. I am still trying to understand why the site is still so holy to the Jews, given that the temple itself has been gone so long.
On the walk back to our hotel we stopped at the Garden Tomb again. This time we were actually able to walk inside the tomb. Inside the tomb was one of the few sites where we didn’t feel like it would be appropriate for us to take pictures. I was really glad we were able to come Friday and today. Friday was a day of meditation so there weren’t any tours allowed and it was so peaceful. But today we were able to access everything, which was great too.
Traveling back was relaxing. Stupid Swiss Airline cut short the entertainment before we were finished watching Enchanted though. Back in Zürich we were greeted by new snow! From our stay in Jerusalem, we were under the impression that the whole world was sunny and warm. We sure lucked out with the heat that Israel has been getting.
