FridayWe have finally arrived in Stuttgart. It has not been an easy trip. Initially we were going to drive down and spend a few days enjoying the journey, visiting Ypres and Strasbourg. However, the Freelander developed a problem, the tail gate would open as we were driving along. This is not helpful unless you want your finest possessions (or even the dog) spread across the M25.
On Tuesday it went to the Garage and on Wednesday they said they had fixed it . I filled it up with diesel and then Linda hovered it all out, so it was nice and clean. I then went to put some air in the tyres and the door started opening again. So it was back to the garage – and the car has been there for a couple of days. The plan to drive down had come to an abrupt end. Of course we could take the Micra – but the thought of driving 600 miles plus cramped in the car made it a non starter.
So it was onto the internet to find a last minute deal, and we did with lastminute.com. Unfortunately It meant flying out of Heathrow with BA – so they may have lost £50 million in the last quarter but I have given them a couple of hundred for the next. It was cheaper to book the hotel as a package then to do the hotel and flights separately.
The main problem was it was a 0750 flight – which meant being there at 0550 – which meant leaving home at 0400 – Linda’s face was a picture when I gave her the good news. Roy, next door, is looking after Chelsea – so she will be spoilt rotten, although she did want to come with us in the morning.
We left at 0405 on Friday , which is not bad for Linda and the motorway was reasonably clear, although it takes longer these days with all the road works and reduced speed limits. We parked the car at the long stay car park and then caught the bus to the terminal, arriving at 0554 – just on schedule. As I had checked in on line we went straight to security. It wasn’t too bad and we were soon through. Linda then decided the first thing she needed to do was go to the toilet, so I had to wait outside with the bags.
We had about 40 minutes before the plane would board, so time to get a paper and read the lasted on the John Terry saga – boring! It was breakfast time – and Starbucks (of course). The plane left on time at 0750 and we had a drink and snack on board – all included in the price unlike other airlines. Although if they are loosing so much money – why do they bother with the snack on a 90 minute flight? I had my ipod on and was soon snoozing.
We arrived 90 minutes later in Stuttgart and what is the first thing Linda wants to do? – go to the toilet, I don’t know if she has a card and is ticking off airport toilets she has visited. So I wait outside with the bags yet again. I don’t’ why she didn’t go on the plane, although she gave me some excuse that as she was sitting in the middle she didn’t want to wake me up to get out – although that doesn’t usually bother her. We get the S-bahn into the centre and our hotel Intercity Hotel is right by the Hauptbahnhoff (main train station for those whose German is rusty). We can’t check in but they will take our bags and because we are staying at this hotel we get a ticket to use on the metro and local buses.
We went for a walk and saw the Schlossplatz, the Rathaus and yes I found it – a Starbucks! However, I resisted temptation and we went into a local coffee shop as the cakes were better. We wandered around the shops and the centre, it was raining so we decided to go to the Mercedes Benz Museum.
We got the train there and it cost 8 euro (each) to get in. There were exhibits spread over 7 floors. The good news is that you do not need to go – Linda has taken over 70 photo’s so she can’t have missed any exhibits – so if we offer to show them for 2 euro to several people, it will save them 6 euros and we will regain the 8 we spent!!
We were at the museum for a couple of hours, which is good for me, unfortunately they don’t let you take the products away to test so it was back by train. It was now nearly four so we could check in at the hotel – and we had a snooze, its tiring looking at all those cars and walking around.
About 7pm we went out for dinner and found a steakhouse. It was popular as we had to queue and wait for a table. I had a steak and Linda had chicken, it was very nice. After that I found another Starbucks in the station – and it was rude not to partake so I had a latte to take away.
We are going to Oberndorf am Nectar tomorrow on the train. This is for the Federation Christian Police Fellowships Board meeting and I really need to go as I am the Chair. Its about 1 hour 20 minutes away and the train leaves at 0818 so we need to be up early. We bought the tickets today in preparation.
Saturday
We woke up at 0700 as we had to catch the 0818 train to Oberndorf for the meeting. We left the hotel about 0740 and went to the station shops to buy some food. Linda had a pretzel and I had a cheese sandwich – plus a Latte from Starbucks (of course). The train was a double decker so we sat upstairs and enjoyed the view. There was more snow as we got out into the country. It was slightly colder. The train arrived at 0937 very prompt. It was a pleasant ride and plenty of room in the carriage. Matthias met us at the station and we went to his house. He has a shop in town and lives above it, it was a big flat. The other board members were there and so we held our meeting. It lasted about 5 hours with a break for lunch.
After this we went to the Scholsswasser (Castle with a Moat) and it was a 20 minute drive. It does the original Black Forest Gateaux and so we were going to enjoy a slice. It was a big piece and I definitely won’t need dinner tonight – it was delicious and full of black cherries. After this we wandered around the old town and Linda took a few more photos. We caught the 18.23 train back to Stuttgart.
You can see some photos here