My utter ignorance on this trip clearly shows how much I prepared for this trip - none at all. I knew that Hitler was born in Austria, so I assumed that his summer residence: Eagle's Nest, was located in Austria. So you can imagine how surprised I was when our guide told us that we had crossed the border over to Germany.... and I was ESTATIC... I'm in Germany! I told Ryan and Jordy much to their amusement. The weather was extremely good today so it was perfect. Eagle's nest was built for Hitler as a summer retreat and cost over 50 million marks (old german currency). However, he only went up there 14 times as he was apparently scared of heights. An entire SS neighbourhood was established at the base of the mountain with top SS personnel like Himmler having their residences there together with schools/military barracks, so alot time was spent here by Hitler and his SS crew. After WWII, the British bombed the entire area to prevent any kind of Nazi memorial from happening, but an intercession from the Bavarian governor prevented Eagle Nest from being bombed and so we can still see it today. Today, Eagle's nest is a hotel so only guided tours are allowed to go up there.
To go up to eagle's nest, we have to take a separate bus from the base up the very steep mountain ( you can actually feel it). Along the way, the scenery is really pretty and fantastic... as you can see from the pictures below. The bus ride is about 20 mins.
So once you get to the site, you have to go through this tunnel and take this brass elevator lift up to eagle's nest. The lift is the original from when eagle's nest was first built, so I can say that I rode in the same elevator that Hitler did! The reason why it's brass inside is because it makes the lift look bigger and apparently Hitler was claustrophobic as well... figures...
Inside the hotel, and you can see the original marble fireplace from that time. The marble was donated by Mussolini.
View of the surrounding valley from Eagle's nest.
Ryan being a monkey on the cliff :P
Anyone for a hike?
The guys from the hostel who came on the tour with me...
Me against the backdrop of eagle's nest....
We stopped at the german town of Berchesgaden (sp) for lunch. I would have prefered to sit down and have lunch, but Ryan and Jordy were just keen on grabbing a quick pastry and exploring the town... I wasn't too fussed so I followed them anyway, so I got to snap some pretty shots of the town.
Can you spot the fake window?
So thus ends my trip to Salzburg. I really liked this town. It's really good for a weekend trip, though you could obviously extend it with a trip to Munich since it's only 2 hours away from Salzburg. Would definitely come by here again if I had the time to do so, but I would do Munich also this time!!
To go up to eagle's nest, we have to take a separate bus from the base up the very steep mountain ( you can actually feel it). Along the way, the scenery is really pretty and fantastic... as you can see from the pictures below. The bus ride is about 20 mins.
So once you get to the site, you have to go through this tunnel and take this brass elevator lift up to eagle's nest. The lift is the original from when eagle's nest was first built, so I can say that I rode in the same elevator that Hitler did! The reason why it's brass inside is because it makes the lift look bigger and apparently Hitler was claustrophobic as well... figures...
Inside the hotel, and you can see the original marble fireplace from that time. The marble was donated by Mussolini.
View of the surrounding valley from Eagle's nest.
Ryan being a monkey on the cliff :P
Anyone for a hike?
The guys from the hostel who came on the tour with me...
Me against the backdrop of eagle's nest....
We stopped at the german town of Berchesgaden (sp) for lunch. I would have prefered to sit down and have lunch, but Ryan and Jordy were just keen on grabbing a quick pastry and exploring the town... I wasn't too fussed so I followed them anyway, so I got to snap some pretty shots of the town.
Can you spot the fake window?
So thus ends my trip to Salzburg. I really liked this town. It's really good for a weekend trip, though you could obviously extend it with a trip to Munich since it's only 2 hours away from Salzburg. Would definitely come by here again if I had the time to do so, but I would do Munich also this time!!