Wunderbar Germany

We’d had a great time in France, but we were now ready to move on to another country.

The journey from Obernai took us towards Strasbourg, which has another Low Emission Zone (LEZ), unsuitable for Sheldon due to the reasons explained in the previous blog. The sat nav was programmed and set to avoid such zones, which it thankfully did. The journey went well, traffic wasn’t too bad and we were soon crossing the Rhine into Germany. The river at this point is wide. We then entered Germany. This was our first expected border and due to both countries being in the EU, and part of the Schengen Agreement we scarcely realised we were crossing an international border. There is a ‘Welcome to Germany’ sign and further different signage explaining the driving regulations in Germany which also demonstrated a clear difference in road sign design. Beyond this and the more obvious language change, there is little to tell you that you’ve crossed an international border. But we had and we were in Germany.

The Black Forest

Our next stop would be for 2 nights in a place called Wahlweis. Wahlweis is in the German Black Forest. To get to the site we passed through a large part of the Black Forest National Park and as we did the architecture became noticeably more Germanic, with the recognisable Alpine look and the local decorations and flowers which adorn the houses. This is a look which we enjoy and a true delight to see.

The site at Wahlweis is near Stockach. It is a wine-producing area and the small town is surrounded by vineyards and wineries selling their produce. We were very happy with the site and its facilities, it had all we required and in the nearby small local town, we were able to buy the required essentials.

Konstanz and Wahlweis

Tourist Tax and Konstanz

As part of the charge in Germany (as in many other European countries), there is a tourist tax. This is a contribution made by the tourist to the local area, it contributes to the services which are provided. Sometimes, the tax gives you access to local amenities at a reduced cost or without charge. In Wahlweis, we were able to travel on Public Transport without charge. As there is a train station in the town we were able to travel to the City of Konstanz on Lake Bodensee, without incurring any additional costs. (This is particularly helpful when touring in a large motorhome like Sheldon where parking may be a problem).

Konstanz is another historic City in a fantastic setting - next to Lake Bodensee with distant views of the Alps. It has interesting places to visit and a good shopping area, for those who wish to do this as part of a visit.

When we arrived the town was preparing for Easter and was bedecked with stunning floral decorations. One of the new shopping centres had some of the most amazing life-size displays where you could have selfies etc taken. Our visit to Konstanz for sightseeing and doing ‘touristy’ things was very enjoyable.

Stellplatz

It was time to progress further eastwards, so the next day we set off to our next destination which was near Roggenburg. Roggenburg is situated in central Southern Germany, south of Ulm and west of Munich. It is a small town without many facilities.

Our stay in the town was to be our first stay at a Stellplatz, which is the German equivalent of a French Aire. Stellplatz are places where you can park your motorhome. They have basic facilities and are provided by the local community. The facilities may include, electric hook-up (often chargeable), drinking water, wastewater disposal, toilet emptying and refuge bins. They are not campsites and you are not allowed to demonstrate ‘Camping behaviour’ - no outside seating or awnings for example. This makes them generally cheaper to stay at and is a good way to make your motorhome travels more economic

Our chosen Stellplatz in Roggenburg was adjacent to the local brewery.

https://www.brauerei-biberach.de/

When we stayed it was out of season and the brewery facilities were closed, although there was a supply of beer for purchase from a small shop on the stellplatz. (I tasted a few of these which were very pleasant). The weather whilst at Roggenburg was cold and showery which limited what we could do. We did take the opportunity to have a couple of walks and see something of the local area. A local place of interest is the Roggenburg Monastery, a very impressive building. When I called (between rain showers), it was closing so I was unable to look inside.

https://www.oberschwaben-tourismus.de/en/poi/detail/roggenburg-monastery-699e0f91f4

Our stay in Roggenburg was short and restful and we had a good time, but we needed to move further east.

Sunday drive to Taching am See

We left Roggenborg in wet weather and travelled towards Munich. It was a Sunday, which we have found is generally a good day to travel in many European countries, as most lorries are not allowed to travel on that day. This is the case in Germany, so our journey was relatively easy and we could travel at our own relaxed pace. The weather picked up and we negotiated the outskirts of Munich without any problems. The travel on Sunday does present one significant problem though. As lorries cannot move on that day, the motorway services are filled with them waiting for Monday to arrive, This means that parking spaces at the services are extremely limited, especially in a vehicle the size of Sheldon. Therefore, in order to get breaks you often have to stop at a number of services before you can find somewhere to park. This is a small inconvenience but is something travellers need to be aware of.

You were not permitted to access the site at Taching until 2 pm, which is unusual on continental sites (although site staff often have extended lunch breaks). We arrived on time and were greeted by an amiable and helpful owner who gave us a mountain of information about the area. You could tell that he was very proud of the area and wished to share it with visitors.

At our previous site, Sheldon’s shower had developed a slight leak, which needed investigating. This involved stripping back the existing silicone seals to gain access to the appropriate area. I couldn’t find an obvious reason for the leak, other than the silicone seal wasn’t working as it should. We went into the town on a very cold day, purchased new silicone, did a food shop and then went to a local cafe for some of the most welcome soup I’ve ever tasted - it was delicious and warming. We returned to the campsite and I put the shower area back together and applied new silicone. This little repair seems to have done the trick and the leak seems to have stopped. The weather continued to deteriorate and once again we experienced, snow, sleet, some sunshine and cold.

Taching am See

The day after continued in the same vain. It wasn’t the weather for travel or sightseeing, so we remained on the site and took the opportunity in the afternoon to do a local walk. We visited the Church and were delighted to see the Easter Week decorations in place (Palm Sunday had been 2 days earlier). Our walk continued uphill, where we were surprised to see some Highland cattle!

Easter and Coos'

On our return to the site we did some chores, including another batch of washing at a very reasonable price and we looked forward to what we expected to be a scenic journey into Austria.

That would happen on the following day and I’ll tell you about it in the next blog.

Thanks for reading the blog

Until next time,

Regards

Stephen