It is finally time to share our German adventure with you all and what a week it was!
7 nights, 1100km driven, 120,000 steps and a whole load of sausages. Definitely another unforgettable holiday!
The first day started like all trips, with the journey to the airport and the first hotel. This time around we had a lunchtime flight, which was nice, as it meant we didn’t have a 5am start like when we flew to Iceland. We flew from Manchester and had organised meet and greet parking and fast track security which meant that it only took us 15 minutes from arriving at the car park to getting all the way through security to the terminal. Whether you enjoy flying or not I would advise anyone to spend the little extra and go for this option. Couldn’t be easier or less stressful!
For our pre-flight brunch we headed over to Giraffe which does a very nice breakfast menu where I went for the breakfast burger. This seems to be my staple order at this time. When the holiday has started you might as well start it with a burger, right? Especially when it comes with a fried egg, avocado and crispy potatoes… Yum!
The flight itself was really quick and actually arrived early which was great. Then we had the fun of trying to navigate through Munich airport which is absolutely huge!!!
If you haven’t been before it is basically a massive shopping complex where planes happen to land. There are more shops and restaurants there than in my local shopping centre. When we finally found the Budget car rental desk we had a quick chat and were passed the keys to our little grey Fiat 500 that we would be using for the week. We have used Budget for Iceland and Germany and have had absolutely no issues; I would definitely recommend you use them if you are unsure of what car rental company to go for.
Once thing to mention about our new little car was that is was very little! On the website when we booked it said the small car had enough room for 1 suitcase and 4 seats. Unfortunately our suitcase was full size and not just a little hold case so it didn’t fit in the boot at all. We ended up having to squeeze it on the back seat for the entire trip. This didn’t cause us any problems as we didn’t have any other passengers but if you are a family of 4 you would have definitely struggled; unless you squeezed the kids in the boot. Just something to think about if you are hiring a car.
Driving on the wrong side of the road (from my British perspective) was surprisingly easy this time and I didn’t have any trouble adapting. The week in Iceland last November definitely helped with this. I noticed a dramatic decrease in the amount of times that I grabbed the door handle to change gear which was good.
For the first venture out we decided to take the scenic route to Augsburg rather than heading on the Autobahn straight away. This meant I got my bearings in the car and also got to enjoy some of the small villages along the way. If you are unsure about driving on the continent I would definitely advise going for a smaller car. I was far less worried about whether I was going to hit anything or my position in the road because it was so small and I could nip around where I wanted.
By the time we arrived at the hotel we were both starving so we quickly checked in (completely in German I am proud to say) and then made our way into town to a restaurant we had found earlier on Tripadvisor. I always use Tripadvisor when looking for restaurants as the ratings and images are really helpful. The best part of the TripAdvisor app is that you can save the restaurant you like and then bring up a map with your position so it is super easy to find everything. You can now even create a ‘trip’ on the app to bring up all your saves for a holiday. Super handy!
The restaurant we chose was Ratskellar, which was situated in the cellar of the old Town Hall; literally from Rathaus (townhall) and kellar (cellar). It was fairly easy to find but we were momentarily stumped when we got to the large, ornate, wooden door that was closed. I don’t know whether it is the Englishman in me, but when I see a big wooden door that is closed I would assume that the restaurant is closed or that I am in the wrong place. Luckily, as we were just deciding to go elsewhere, some people came out and we quickly slipped in after them.
We had clearly made the right choice as it was completely packed. As soon as you opened the door you were hit with a wall of noise and could see table after table of people enjoying food and lots of beer. We were taken a little out of the way to a small table in the lounge that was a bit quieter in big squishy leather chairs. If I wasn’t so hungry it would have been comfortable enough to have a little nap. Such party animals aren’t we?
After randomly choosing a beer off the menu I ordered my fiancèe the pork schitzel with cranberry sauce and I had a joint of roast pork (not completely sure what cut it was) with potato dumpling and sauerkraut. Both were absolutely delicious! Obviously I tried both meals as any food that is put on my table is usually fair game and I always eat all the leftovers. Nothing goes to waste in our house I can assure you! The best way to try the most food on holiday is to always order different to each other and try both.
We quickly finished the generous portions, washed down with a couple of tasty beers, and slowly walked back to the hotel along the canal. A very nice end to the first day of the holiday.
Coming up next is the best breakfast ever, being celebrities in a castle and our favourite Bavarian village.
Ciao for now!
If you liked this don’t miss out on the rest of our German adventure:
Day 2 – Harburg Castle and Nördlingen
Day 3 – Schillingsfürst and Rothenburg ob der Tauber
Day 4 – Bad Mergentheim, Heilbronn and The Black Forest
Day 4 – Baden-Baden and a tasty trout dinner
