Editor drags us out of bed to watch the sky 'burn'. Looks like clouds on way to douse flames, the magic of nature
Loving clouds smother the 'monster'. Envious. That's just where we'd like to be
'Loving' clouds now attack our favorite (the monster) a few hours after the first picture above.
(This is the location of our next hike)
Some of the trails are easier than the pronunciation of their names—it appears the Germanic nations use many
letters in forming words. Possibly, it's a sign of sophistication of language compared with we who call
a spade a spade...oops, we see their point now.
This morning, the editor was struggling to sleep. It meant we went out early to see how the sun works
in this part of the world. As far as we could tell, it's pretty much the same as everywhere else. The
common denominator is that it's always a stirring few minutes before the ball of fire appears in
the sky. What was particularly interesting was the contrasts we witnessed. The morning was fairly clear
of clouds with a pleasant temperature, giving it a look of a good day dawning. However, the weather
forecasters predicted something different: Intermittent rain with heavier falls around lunchtime.
'Aha', we said to our editor, 'Doesn't that smack of arrogance?' Don't you love that additional comment
about lunchtime. How do they know what time we eat?
Sure enough, it panned out exactly as forecast. This is most disheartening as they are predicting rain
for much of the forthcoming week.
So much for the fine early start. Haunting looks pervade most of the mountains
Just after sunrise, clouds threaten Wettersteinbirg range. Hmm!
After this start to the day, who'd expect grey clouds and rain to follow
After yesterday's big mountain climb, we decided to try a Nordic hike, to get an idea of what they mean.
This one took us up a lowish mountain, in a forest, with panoramic views at the summit. We did not expect
much from the hike itself and weren't disappointed or should that be surprised. However, the views were
outstanding of the Wettersteinbirg range of mountains. We observed them from a different angle the day
before and of course, from a higher altitude. Today, with fast moving clouds, we witnessed what we term
a theatrical production as they (the clouds), acting as curtains on a stage, moved across the mountains,
blocking them from view only to be blown away moments later. The continual movement allowed us to watch
the mountains disappear and reappear within short intervals. It was an outstanding performance. It also
allowed us to identify the mountains we wish to get to know better by climbing them. Mind you, the grey
and white surreal look is quite haunting; we need to work on our courage over the weekend.
Constant cloud build and movement throughout the day as Jen stands on the summit
Let's get back to sleep. Who needs to smell the 'roses'? (A scene in the town)
Of course, language is a problem. It always is. What a blessing it would be to communicate with
fellow humans in their own tongues. It's been quite entertaining as we approach people, asking
whether they speak English and then proceeding with our questions while trying to make sense of
the answers. As we travel in our rental car, collected in Zurich, we notice half the signs
and informative boards are quite meaningless to us. The other half we tend to ignore, making life
quite interesting. "There must be a lot of sick people in the area," we mentioned to our editor,
noticing 'H' signs often and on the local map, too. A little research and we substituted bus stops
for hospitals.
We came across Spar Grocery Stores here in Austria, a big chain in South Africa. When we went
shopping on arrival, we discovered that the stores don't provide carry-bags, neither plastic nor
paper. With Jenni's African background, she was able to balance half our purchases on her
head—a nice touch. The other half she agreed to carry in each hand while we opened the door for her.
We try to show the correct level of consideration at all times.
A constant reminder of California's Mount Shasta, in Austria—trying to tell us something
Only 'open' after sunrise and until before sunset. Walk past later for a peep inside
We hiked seven miles although it could have been more as we went off trail and climbed a few large hills en route.
The elevation gain was a modest 1,000 feet but hey, sometimes the editor needs a rest. We met a couple on the
trail today who happened to be English. Communication proved to be a breeze for a change.
Should the weather be kind to us, we hope to have a big week. A good week to all our friends
and family, too.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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