Alvin Reynolds

My wife and I are both retired, and will be visiting Oberammergau for the Passion Play in August 2000. We want to fly into Munich, then after the Play travel around Germany, Austria, Belgium, etc. for 3 weeks, staying in pensions or elderhostels. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Bob K

<BR>We will be doing the same trip in July. We have not made final itinerary but I am thinking about a cruise on the Danube to Vienna after Oberammergau. We are then thinking about heading down to Italy to visit Venice and Rome. I was stationed in Germany in 1969 and loved Bavaria. The beauty cannot be discribed in words. I work with a student exchange program and have students we could visit in Germany and Italy. It is nice to have locales to help you avoid the normal tourist traps. Have a great trip!

Al Reynolds

Hello, Bob K. Thanks for your note. Wnat types of things are you guys going to be doing in Bavaria? My wife and I are both heavily into liturgical music and the country of Bach, etc, so we plan on doing a lot of cathedral viewing and listening to pipe organs. Also want to see as much history as we can work in. Where are you flying into? Do you have any ideas as to places to stay, etc? We already have our tickets to the Play and the two nights surrounding that; however, we have done nothing more than that. Any advice will be appreciated. We live in deep South Texas. What about you? AHR

wes fowleer

Al, <BR>I have a number of Bavarian itineraries, suggestions regarding Munich and itineraries in Belgium that encompass some magnificent churches. Email me directly if you're interested and I'll send you a sample or two. They're too lengthy to post here. forward you

Al Reynolds

Note to Wes Fowleer: Wes, thanks for your note. My wife and I are most definately interested in any itineraries or other information which you might suggest. This will be our first trip to Germany, so we are almost totally in the dark. I really want to fly over, then rent a car, and motor around, on our own, for the three weeks we hope to be there. We want to stay in pensions or elder hostels, eating "native" foods, etc. If you have any suggestions, PLEASE let us talk! Thanks again. Al Reynolds.

wes fowler

Al, <BR>I tried sending you an Email with a load of information to no avail. Will try again immediately after completing this note. In the meantime, here's a thought or two. The Passion Play, an event taking place once every ten years, will be performed daily in Oberammergau from mid May until early October. It will attract 4,700 theatre goers daily during that period. You can anticipate a couple of things: the 4,700 hundred tourists at the Passion Play today are all going to be at Ludwig's castle, Neuschwanstein tomorrow, or were yesterday. Accommodations are going to be difficult to find and prices will no doubt be inflated. Restaurants should be overflowing. Roads will be jammed with tour buses and theatre going traffic. I wouldn't entertain the thought of getting tickets to the performance; those that haven't been reserved (as far back as 1993!) have been gobbled up by tour companies. <BR> <BR>I've got some itineraries that may circumvent some of the crowded roads yet allow you to truly savor the delights of Bavaria. They're on their way to you again, I hope. <BR>Feel free to Email me with any questions. If you do, fill me in on your interests in Belgium; I can provide some insights and suggestions for there as well. <BR>Feel

Bob K

<BR>AL, <BR>I live in the northern Suburbs of Chicago. We will most likely fly into Frankfurt. Haven't made the final arrangements. We are in your same situation as far as making plans. We are probably going to spend 3 to 4 days in Vienna and take a cruise on the Danube for 1 or 2 days. Are then looking at heading to Venice for 3 days and then to Rome for 4 or 5 days. We will probably fly home from there. We are pretty flexible on our iterniary at this point. I like keeping it simple and going with the flow. We will outline out trip and set up a final plan on the dates and cities we will visit. The only things we plan in advance are the hotel reservations and travel arrangements. The rest is decided on after we arrive. We do have our tickets for the passion play but other than that, we still have some planning to do. We hope to hook up with a previous exchange student in Rome. Let me know of any ideas you have as a must see. <BR> Thanks, <BR> Bob K. <BR> <BR>