A Surprise Adventure

A happy mistake took us to an amazing place!!

We were on our way to Hohenzellern castle when after two and half hours we realized the GPS had taken us to somewhere we hadn't intended to go.  In an effort to make the best of it, we found the nearest castle ruins (just a couple miles away from our non-destination) and then had a drink at the restaurant just outside the ruins.  Suddenly, Stephen suggested we go to Garmish, Germany which was only 2.5 hrs further, we were in the middle, do we make an adventure of the day, or get back in the car and head home?

After hostilely overthrowing my dad's opinion we got back into the car and headed for Garmish, making it a true adventure with no change of clothes or a tooth brush. Garmisch is my favorite place in the world and I was so excited share it with my parents.  I knew that despite my dad's now foul attitude, he was about to see the magic and splendor of the German Alps.

As the mountains began to rise from the horizon, my mom started crying because of the beauty.  My dad's grumbles and defeated sighs became fewer and my own soul buzzed with the excitement of our return.

I found an excellent hotel on my iPhone, chose a restaurant as recommended by Trip Advisor users and had a great evening with my parents.  Sadly Stephen had to take Zac back to the hotel.  Poor Zac was way to wiped to do the restaurant thing.   But it did give us an opportunity to dine leisurely and not have to worry about Mr. Z throwing a fit or having trouble.  Thank you Stephen!  I'm sorry that you had to eat your dinner as take out, but your sacrifice was not taken for granted.

The next day, I convinced my mom that a gondola going 2950 meters straight up into the clouds was our next must do.  Sadly the cloud cover at the top of the summit prevented us from seeing anything further away than about 10 feet.  The observation deck was already covered in snow and ice even though it was upper 70's at the foot of the mountain (Zugspitz).

After the gondola ride, we took Zac to a small play ground, at a restaurant and had a drink before heading out to our final restaurant choice - a place that Stephen and I had spent Thanksgiving dinner with his parents two years before.

With our bellies full and Zac totally exhausted, we set out for our 3.5 hr trip home.  We made it home in great time with no trouble and we are still talking about how amazing our spontaneous adventure was and how very well Zac traveled.