WEDNESDAY
JUNE 21, 1961 - MAINZ, GERMANY
Arrived here at 7:15 AM
too tired to go to the factory for the car. We got a room and conked out for
about 5 hours. Just got up it’s about 2 PM. Guess we’ll get the car tomorrow.
Went to see famous Dom(Cathedral) then had 2 beers each and sandwiches. Conked out again at about 7:30
PM slept through till about 10 AM. About
19 hours sleep, boy we must have been tired.
THURSDAY
JUNE 22, 1961 – MAINZ, GERMANY
Arrived at Opel factory. Had some trouble about white sidewalls that were paid for
& not on. Spent 6 hours here to no avail. Returned
to Mainz to get original order issued in Laguna. Thank God we brought it along. Will go back
again in the early AM. Hope we have better
luck this time. Had beer & cold cuts again, Ser goot!
FRIDAY JUNE
23, 1961 - OLD & NEW HEIDELBERG, GERMANY
Got our car OK with white
sidewalls - no more trouble, so we packed & hit the road for Heidelberg,
Germany. Arrived here late in PM, got a room in New Heidelberg, freshened up &
drove up to Old Heidelberg. It‘s simply
beautiful. Went in to see the world‘s
largest wine barrels. Gee, Don would sure be happy here. Went through the castle, rode on the cable car, had dinner and drinks in the Red Ox where the student prince used to hang out. The place is a
museum in itself. We‘re going back tomorrow.
On our way to Heidelberg
we passed through Worms, a town just crawling with Amer. G.I.‘s. As bad as Camp Pendleton. Heidelberg - (Hotel $4.00) Kept up the good
work of sightseeing. Took in everything of interest. While wandering around we
ran into Marilyn & Betty Holstein, a couple of girls off the ship. Later in evening we went down for beer &
since the place was free, students began to fill the place & before long
our table had 4 Heidelberg students & their girls, most of which talked
some English. Before long we were friends & having fun. They all decided to
leave here & go to a place that served rare Greek wine not far from town.
They asked us to join them, we hesitated but they insisted. So, we went. It was
a lovely spot high over the Necht. We sat outside. Dad stuck with beer, the
rest of us had wine. What a wallop it had. Chas. lost his car keys. The gang
asked us to join them later today, but we should hit the road. After the Greek
wine, gardens at Neckargemund Griechusche Weinstrube. We went back to Heidelberg & closed another place. About
6 of us here, then to bed, dead tired & smashed. Got away with a wine carafe.
Beautiful day.
SUNDAY JUNE
25, 1961 - HEIDELBERG. GERMANY
Spent the day seeing the
remaining historical sights. Later had dinner at Perkeo, famous restaurant of student prince (we also heard the lion
roar). Late about 7 PM a knock on our door
and there stood Hans our Heidelberg student. Hans said that they have been
waiting downstairs for 2 hours for us. So, we joined about 20 or more young
folks, students and their girls at a long table. All the students in their green caps &
stripes (across chest). We had a wonderful time. Then along came the
traditional drinking of beer out of a “boot” (2 qts). It starts at one end of
the table & goes around until finished (the 1st, a toast to us). The boys said we were highly honored as the
first foreign couple to be asked to join on such an occasion (I think it‘s
because Dad kept up with their beer drinking). Then we bought a boot full ($1.00)
about 5 marks. After 4 boots full and
God only knows how many glasses full of beer & very much singing of college
songs we hit the sack dead tired.
Dachau - hotel ($3.00) G We left Heidelberg & surely hated
to...had such a grand time there. We headed for Munich (Muchen) but only got as far as Dachau really quite on purpose as Dad wanted to see the concentration camp known
throughout the world for the cruelty, etc., where thousands died & were
burned in large ovens. These ovens are
still all here, oven & large vault like rooms which were crowded with
prisoners & gas turned on, when they thought they were being defleaed, etc.
Such horrors.
TUESDAY JUNE
27, 1961 - TRAUNSTEIN, GERMANY
Trauristein (Park hotel $3.25)
VG Spent the nite here just to get off
the road due to heavy rains. I don‘t think there‘s anything to see, small town.
Headed for Berchtesgaden, Hitler’s hideout about 30 miles from here.
Berchtesgaden - Decided to take the 4 hour tour, since cars were not
allowed up any higher than the GeneralWalker hotel which is 1/3 of way up.
Tour cost $2.25 each. Left at 1:15 PM
returned 5 PM.
The trip up was terrific.
Only 6,000 ft. but straight up. Our guide was very good and willing to explain.
Arrived at Eagle‘s Nest where Hitler’s
hideout still stands. Large conference room with Italian marble fireplace, a
gift from Mussolini, Eva‘s room & Hitler’s tearoom. Beautiful elevator of copper
and brass cut through the stone of the mountain. Also saw and went through tunnel
to the lift destroyed SS barracks, hotel Walker where Hitler housed VIP visitors etc.
1.
Eagle ‘sNest
4.
Tea room
5.
Eva Braun‘s room
7.
Hotel Plattenhof - Now
called General Walker
8.
Hitler’s 1st house or farm house
Walker’shotel served us a great meal
& real American coffee really inexpensive. Leave Germany, had dinner at
Berchtesgaden hotel occupied by American servicemen. A wonderful American meal
for $1.00 (also breakfast next day 60 cents each). This hotel is famous for the
surrender of German armies under Field Marshall Kesselring & Von Westphol
to General Maxwell Taylor Hotel‘s main lounge. Famous guests of German Third
Reich (slept) stayed here: M. Borman, H. Hemmler, J. Goebbles, Dr. Ley, Mr. Swarez, Marshall Rommel spent 6 months here after African campaign.
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