Europe: Day 4 (Germany)

Guten morgen liebling!

I was so excited for today coz I heard the location is as enchanting as a fairytale.We all know Germany has magical woods, villages that come out from storybooks and Disney-like castles. Best of all we get to see this in real life how awesome was that! Check out the previous post on Cologne Cathedral, Karl Theodor bridge and the gorgeous medieval Heidelberg castle.

 Lol me being so ss! But you really have to visit this place. Titisee is a very peaceful village that one might consider to retire at. The lake will be frozen in mid-winter but the weather is just nice for now. Surprisingly its warmer up here than on lower ground.

 Yet another day in Germany. We woke up at 6am and had breakfast at 7am.

This server actually didn't allow me to take pictures of the buffet but I took anyway. It's not like I'm gonna come back so I took pictures of every moment for memory irl.

The breakfast was fine tho. We had lotsa cheese during this trip.

We went out for a moment. Here's the exterior of our pretty small hotel.

We walked to the left side and saw cute houses in Christmas deco. Such a wonderful feeling despite being cold af.

If you walked to the right you will see Penny Markt. Bought lotsa chocolates inside all for myself...ok la 2 boxes were for my dad. Seriously chocolates are dirt cheap here compared to the price in Malaysian supermarkets.

Hmmm...I thought Basel is in Switzerland? Anyway we started our journey at 8:30am and it took 2.5 hours to reach our next destination which is Titisee-Neustadt, a place guaranteed to blow your mind.

The fog was damn thick till I was scared as hell anything bad gonna happen but this is normal for our experienced bus driver. There's one time where we totally could not see the road at all.

As we elevated higher and higher the fog seemed to get lighter. We were so worried that we could not see the lake later but surprise surprise we got super bright sunshine!

Passed through a small town which I forgot the name but we were getting close now.

Yeah, like finally! We reached when its almost lunchtime and spent like 3-4 hours in this town. Titisee is a spa town located in Black Forest at the north shore of Lake Titisee that covers an area of 1.3 km². What is a spa town? A spa town is a resort town situated around mineral spa such as lake, hot spring, thermal bath etc. Kinda like onsen in Japan.

As we walked towards the lake I started to feel very excited and skipped on the road. Thank God for such a beautiful weather. You see how blue the sky is.

The town is so peaceful and tranquil. Love the wooden houses and their roofs.

 Lotsa pet owners walking their dogs. Wish could bring mine along.

Sharing with you my excitement walking here.

Very obvious tourism is the only economy they rely on. You can only find resorts, souvenir shops and restaurants.

A tiny stream when we walked towards the end of the town. There's only one main street here so its impossible to get lost. The spa town is part of the municipality of Titisee-Neustadt.

I tied these pigtails while in the bus. With almost 3 hours, all you can do is just sleep or do silly stuff like this.

There's construction going on else usually tourists get to stand in front of the giant clock. The figurines started to dance along the music as the clock struck 12pm. Now we are going into a Drubba cuckoo clock workshop.

We went into Drubba for about half an hour. I forgot to note down his name but he explained very well about the history, how its made, the tools used, the weight of the pendulum and many more. It is said that people in the Black Forest were the first to build cuckoo clocks.

A little demo.

Very detailed and gorgeous but damn expensive.

We came into a touristy restaurant that serves pork knuckles. We were told to try pork knuckle and black forest cake at this part of Germany coz it's their specialty. Btw black forest cake contains kirsch which is a type of fruit brandy meaning the cake has alcohol.

The set meal that consists of soup, mains and dessert costs €20. First, we were served vegetable soup that tasted like Maggi soup.

Star of the day was the pork knuckle that both of us shared. It was crispy on the outside and a bit tough on the inside.

German sausage with sauerkraut, their national food. Some people might not like it but I can tolerate sauerkraut.

 Rice and fries were served as sides.

It was kinda huge. So glad we made decision to share the meal.

Another star of the day was this pathetic piece of black forest cake that was recommended for every tourist to try in Germany. It tasted like normal chocolate cake with a hint of alcohol to me.

After we filled our stomachs we explored the town and came upon a beautiful empty field. Everything here is beautiful la.

Next we walked towards the lake and got stuck there for almost an hour due to its breathtaking beauty.

This already looks like a postcard.

Truly amazing beyond words omg I died.

Hubby couldn't wait to set up his gears. Can tell he was impressed by this place coz he likes nature more than monuments.

Zoom into the villages and resorts.

Modeling for Matsu Gloves. Read about my sponsored review here.

Actually its quite fine not to wear gloves here. Not so cold as I thought.

Vain pot can't help it.

 The ducks love it here.

As usual I got obsessed and quack at the ducks to come to me. This is why my parents and hubby avoid bringing me to farms and zoo often.

One last photo here before we walk further.

You will see this photobooth somewhere along the shore awkwardly surrounded by ducks lol.

 We walked over to the pier.

My shot of the day using cellphone. It tells a story just by looking at it. The framing of the branches, the blue sky and reflective mirror lake is just perfect. The toddler, the elderly, the pets and other visitors joyfully enjoy the environment just shows how amazing this place is. So are you tempted to visit this wonderful town?

Pretending to feed the duckies but hubby wasn't ready.

I just love this photo of kids feeding the duckies. How cute!

And this is me chasing the duck.

Never forget to jump at tourist spots.

The notoriously creepy black forest made famous by the tale of Hansel and Gretel.

 You'll see this boat as you walk back up from the pier.

Rarely any vehicle so everyone is free to roam.

Some vain shots...

 Gosh I think we spent like 3 or 4 hours here forgot d.

A real Christmas tree with no deco.

The smallest Christmas market we have seen.

It's 3:30pm so time to leave. Love the branches here. They made the picture ada feel.

We continued our journey towards Switzerland. It took 2 hours from Titisee to Rhinefall. 

One reminder for travelers who are driving into Switzerland is you might be required to pay tax. Although Switzerland is a member of Schengen area, which means no need to chop your passport, it is not a member of the EU. The Frontier Guards may ask if travelers have anything to declare. At many crossings, motorists will be asked to buy the "vignette" or autoroute sticker if the car does not already have one on the windscreen. This is the annual motorway toll and as of February 2014 it costs 40CHF. 

At  airports, travelers' passports will only be checked if they are arriving from a non-Schengen member country like UK.  The airports are now divided into "Schengen" and "extra-Schengen" zones so that those who arrive in from a Schengen country simply walk straight to the baggage hall.  Passports are not checked at railway stations as all the countries surrounding Switzerland are part of the Schengen area. When arriving or leaving by rail at some border stations passengers might have to go through Customs. 

We reached Rhinefall around 5:30pm and the sky got darker. I was worried again that our photos might not turn out as good as daylight. could hear the thundering sound of gallons of water as we walked down the stairs. We only spent 30 minutes here.

This largest plain waterfall in Europe is located on the High Rhine between the municipalities of Neuhausen am Rheinfall and Laufen-Uhwiesen near the town of Schaffhausen in northern Switzerland. All I know is this spot is partially Germany and Swizerland. It is 150m wide and 23m high. In the winter months the average water flow is 250 m³/s while in summer the average water flow is 700 m³/s.

Temperature dropped drastically. Brrrr.....super duper cold af.

Snap some pictures first. Too bad we don't have much time or this would be a very relaxing place to just sit and listen to the calming ASMR sound.

Situated above the Rhinefall is Laufen Castle (Schloss Laufen). It is said to be first constructed circa 850. It was the home of the Barons of Laufen and transferred many ownership. Between 2009 and 2010 a project was undertaken to restore and expand the facilities. The castle now serves as a tourist attraction containing a restaurant and a youth hostel called Jugendherberge Dachsen. So yea for only CHF30.50 you can stay in a castle like a princess. Not.

I have seen some of my friends uploaded photos of boat tour here. Not sure about the operating hours but for sure there's no sign of them after 5pm. If not mistaken you can get up to the viewing platform which is very close to the waterfall with a fee of €5.

Ahhh...feel so relaxed just by looking at this photo. Would love to sit on the bench during summer.

The building behind me is a water castle called Wörth Castle. It was built on a small island in the Rhein river opposite of the Laufen Castle. Construction started in the 11th century and the castle served as a major transhipment point on the east-west trade route. As of today it houses a gourmet restaurant called Schlössli Wörth and also a gift shop and a fast food joint connected with a terrace and a brilliant view of Rhinefall. Wörth is also the starting point of the Rheinfall tour boats.

As always, one last jump before we took off. It was only 6pm at this time.

At around 7:30pm we walked to dinner at Zurich.

The Chinese restaurant by the roadside.

Wholesome meal close to home.

Checked in Dorint Airport-Hotel Zürich for 2 nights. It s rated CHF190 per night. Quite expensive after conversion. So glad we went earlier before our ringgit dropped.

Schon gepunktet means already dotted and I was like what's with the dot? What do they mean?

Lovely contemporary room. One of the best rooms we stayed.

Love the clean toilet. I'm a toilet fanatic coz I spend a lot of time inside so must make sure they are squeaky clean. The speakers under the basin fucking freaked me out when hubby turned on the radio while I was brushing my teeth. I thought there's someone or something wtf.

Real cuckoo clock is damn heavy and expensive so bought fridge magnet instead.

 My food haul for the day.

Why la Malaysia don't have these? The spaghetti really tasted like real bolognese. Just add hot water and wait for 5 minutes and you have a delicious meal.

Night view outside our room. See you tomorrow in Switzerland again as we go up to Mt. Titlis and gorgeous Lucerne.

 Our Europe trip video done by yours truly.

An anniversary video of our Europe-Macau trip by my husband using SJCam.

11th April is our 11th Anniversary
11th April is our 11th Anniversary.. A special dedication to my wife.. Love Love..
Posted by Keong Da'Great on Friday, 10 April 2015