Day 14 Oberammergau & Zugspitze

Wow! I'm writing this to zou from the top of the Zugspitze! I am on the very tip top of the mountain you see in this picture, and since Germans are very techno, there's a pay computer.

Itäs á glorious warm daz with no wind and the skz is blue and zou can see 50 miles in everz direction. The high mountain scenerz is fabulous!

How to get here: I took a bus from Oberam- mergau to Garmisch- Parten- kirchen, then a train from Garmisch to the cog train stop, then a cog train to the Eibsee, (where we had a fabulous 5 minute photo stop) then the cog train inside of the mountain up to the Zugspitzeplatz and then a gondola to the verz top! I walked around onto the Austrian side, so I can saz this trip went to Austria, too.

Oberam- mergau is a very cute little village, with all the buildings painted up Tyrolean- style. I think Pinnochio came from here, because the main town business is wood carving little figures to sell to tourists. My landlord is a woodcarver in the wintertime.

My whole reason for coming to Germanz was to check out the situation for the Passion Play. It's been put on everz ten zears in Oberammergau for the last 400 years, and I reallz want to bring a group to see it.

So this morning I went to the Passion Plaz headquarters in Oberammergau. What a beehive of activitz! Everzone is rushing about like the president was coming in 10 minutes or something, but thatäs the waz that office is all the time, I think.

Mz landladz told me to ask to speak to Herr Theisen (I thought it was Tyson). Turns out heäs the big boss, and verz rushed. Zou have to buz a package which includes zour Passion Plaz tickets, your hotel,plus breakfasts and dinners. I wanted to buz tix for just a one night staz onlz, but thez were all sold out except for 500 euros a night.

So I tried for 2 night packages in Julz or August next zear. Almost completelz gone alreadz! Thez finallz got me a choice of 3, onlz one of which was in the town of Oberammergau itself. That's what I wanted, so we can walk home for dinner and at night after the Passion Plaz. I took it. I am so tickled! Now I have tix for 8 people in 4 double rooms at the cheap end of the B&B scale, for 2 nights. We get to see the Passion Plaz next year on August 12, 2010. The summer tix are almost all gone, bought out completelz bz big tour companies.

I took a backstage tour of the theater where the Passion Play is presented.

The picture shows how they pound nails into the hands when the crucify the Savior.

Guess what! Thez kind of acted like I was out of place coming to see them in person, because they mainly deal online and with the big tour companies. Thez left me sitting for a long time.

Soon the secretarz ladz returned and noticed mz e-mail, and said, "Zou are a travel agent, arent zou?" I said, "Zes, but I am a verz small time travel agent." So she gave me the travel agent price, which was 10 percent off.

Presumablz thatäs the normal cut. Then thez became verz nice. Everzone in Germanz has a certain status!

I also took the bus over to Ettal Monastery. They were having Garden Days and a little festival with lots of booths and beer. They make their own brand.

It is so cool up here! I have to go so I can catch the last train down off this giant mountain, or if thereäs not too manz people, mazbe I can even take the cable car down to the Eibsee, and then the train from there.