I've been trying to bring the blog entries up to date for the last few destinations we have been to.
So onto our time in the Black Forest.
On a few recommendations of the black forest as a great place to visit, we looked into the general area and the best locations for visiting the black forest. For inspiration we went straight to the tripadvisor forums to research the best way to go about a visit to the black forest.
There are many tour companies that take day tours into and around the different parts of the forest but the main suggestions were to set up in one of the towns within the forest for exploring the area. Titisee was recommended as very picturesque, so that is where we started our search for accommodation and how to get there.
The train trip from Zurich to Titisee was quite straight forward. Leaving Zurich and travelling west to Basel which is just near the borders of the three countries, Switzerland, France and Germany. The train stopped in Basel for a brief time but we did not have to change trains, then the train travelled north to a town in southern Germany called Freiburg. There we did have to change trains to the regional train which then took us to Titisee.
The town of Titisee is especially picturesque as it sits at the top end of a large lake.
We were lucky to find this little gem of a guesthouse which was just off the main road through town so it was an easy 5 minute walk to the lake and the main town facilities. The bottom pictures are of the breakfast room which have been kept in the traditional German style.
The owner of the guesthouse is a very lovely man who was always on hand with lots of helpful tips and a big bright personality. The lady who looks after the office each afternoon brings her dog to work with her and the dog was also very friendly, cute and large.
The guesthouse also offered free use of their pushbikes so we took advantage of that to explore some of the area. There are 3000 kms of walking trails through the whole area but of course we only covered a tiny little section out from the town of Titisee and a curcuit around the lake.
This picture gives some perspective of the height of the trees throughout the forest.
Some of the aspects of Lake Titisee.
The main town square is a postcard looking German village with cockoo clock shops on every corner and quaint looking buildings everywhere you turn.
Of course eating some of the famous black forest cake was an essential activity while staying in the black forest. We only managed a slice on the first two days, that was all we could manage of the famous cake.
There is a scheme that provides free train travel if you are staying at any type of accommodation in the Titisee area so we made good use of the train travel to check out some of the other areas in the district.
We caught the train to another large lake nearby to have a walk around and a look at that area.
On one afternoon I took the train back into the larger town of Freiburg to have a look at the cathedral which was built in the 12th century. It was the first time in the entire trip that David and I had not gone together to see some sights. David decided he would have a restful afternoon back at the guesthouse and I would spend a few hours going to Freiburg for a look. As luck would have it (or not), as the train left Freigurg to return to Titisee, there was a major disruption on the train line just out of Freiburg and we could only go one station before being turned back. Needless to say, not being able to understand a word of German and therefore not understanding any of the announcements being given on the train, I was a bit concerned about how I was going to A. get back to Titisee and B. let David know that I was going to be very late getting back.
After much coming and going and by chance having the phone number of the guesthouse in my bag to get a message to David, a two hour wait for a bus that never came and a 65 euro taxi ride that I shared with an elderly couple and a young primary school teacher that could speak reasonably good english, I finally arrived back to Titisee in one piece 6 hours after I left.
We had only planned to spend three days in the black forest having decided to take an overnight train from Titisee and travelling all the way through to Amsterdam without making any more stops in Germany. What we hadn't allowed for was the heavy demand on train travel during weekend periods. Not wanting to have to travel onto another city just for one night we made the decision to stay on at the black forest for a further two days. We were able to eventually book some tickets (with a sleeper compartment) for the overnight train on the Monday night. We loved the area and it was really not a problem being there for an extra two days.
On our last day we spent some time at an indoor tropical pool centre just 5 minutes walk from the main street of Titisee. Apparently there are a few of these centres throughout Germany. I can imagine how relaxing it would be after a long day of hiking or skiing. All around the pool there are jets of water and jacuzzi type areas, great for relaxing in.
That was our time in the black forest. Late afternoon we called back to the guesthouse where we had stored our luggage for the day. Doris (who works in the office and owns the big dog) drove us to the station, and we were off on our way to Amsterdam.
Until next time. Bye Bye
No comments:
Post a Comment