France to Germany

Travelled:653km (over 2 days) France, Switzerland, Austria, Germany

Stay:Sirnach (CH)- free parking near start of walking trails 3km from motorway N47.45420 E9.003209

Stay: Ottobeuren (D)- Stellplatz free parking, paid services N47.94889 E10.2956

Visited: Ravensburg (D), Ottobeuren (D)

It was now time to say ‘au revoir’ France and head towards Munich Airport, Germany. The fastest and easiest way was to go through Switzerland and Austria.  At the Swiss border we purchased the annual vignette for motorway travel (CHF40/€36). 

As we weren’t too sure on the road conditions and exactly how long it would take us, we drove as far as we could,  eventually choosing a place to spend the night not far from the motorway at Sirnach. It ended up being a lovely spot where we could stretch our legs with a walk in the forest and up a tower to admire the views. 

With an early start the next morning we returned on the motorway until Austria where we were reminded at the border that a vignette was required to drive on their motorways. We decided not to get one as we were only passing through the western most corner to get to Germany. There was a moment of confusion and we needed to pull over to reprogram the GPS, then off we went again. Checking the internet we realised the €1.21 ave for diesel was cheaper in Austria than Germany €1.28 (France €1.42). So we made sure to fill Bluey’s tank before leaving.

It was tricky to know when we had crossed into Germany as there was no official crossing except for some border police waving cars down at a wayside. For the first time in 6 trips we were actually stopped and asked for all our documents! Passports, Bluey’s registration papers and Drivers Licenses. It was good to know that all were good and we were allowed to continue our journey.

 

Having made good progress we thought we would make a small detour and have a look at Ravensburg-the city of towers. We parked at the Disco for €2.50/day and walked into town through Untertor (Lower Gate Tower) built in1363 as part of the towns fortifications. 

We then found the tourist office that was next to the Town Hall and Blaserturm (Trumpeter’s Tower) 51m high. 

Further up Marktstrasse after passing a few museums and theatres, we could see the tower Mehlsack (Flour Bag), the town’s landmark built in 1429.

And at the end of the street was Tower Obertor (Upper Gate) whose bell would be rung during executions! 

From here we decided to return into town rather than climb to Veitsburg at the top of the hill which occupies the site of the original Welf castle. We next saw the 14thC Church of Our Lady with the Lady’s Gate ( Frauentor) nearby. 

Along our stroll we came across the 15thC Gruner (Green) Tower, taking its name from the colour of its roof tiles and the Church of St.Jodok.

 As we made our way back to Bluey we spotted a few more interesting buildings.

Then it was on the road again taking country roads back to the freeway to Ottobeuren. It is a relatively small town with a colourful main square which is dominated by its beautiful basilica which is part of a Benedictine monastery founded in 764.