A glimpse into a fairytale
-2°C, with strong and cold wind froze every part of me. Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany, is located in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the border of Germany and Austria.
Waking up early at 6:30 a.m. in Munich, I took Flixbus to Garmisch-Partenkirchen and bought an all-day ticket which cost me €48. The price was quite expensive for me in the beginning, but after I arrived at the peak, I realized the magnificent landscape was priceless.
When taking the cable car, people inside became more and more excited as the altitude increased. Mountains, forests and the frozen Eibsee lake reflected in my eyes. How fantastic nature is!
On the top of Zugspitze, there’s a cross landmark. You can reach it by mountain climbing or take a photo from the observatory as I did.
The cold wind froze me from head to toe. Fortunately, the weather was very nice, the sky was clear and visibility was high.
As the first high orographic obstacle to these Westerlies in the Alps, the Zugspitze is particularly exposed to the weather. It is the north barrier of the Alps, against which moist air masses pile up and release heavy precipitation. That causes the unpredictability of the weather of Zugspitze, it was sunny at the last second, and clouds piled up immediately.
A few steps from the observatory, people with skiing equipment were lining up for hot meals and drinks. Everyone equipped sunglasses except for me. Next time I will remember to bring a pair with me. I was just fresh to snow then.
Down to lake Eibsee, the frozen surface was too slippery which caused me to fall countless times. A foreigner couldn’t stand it and came to help me leave the lake.
Back to the ground, it was about 5 p.m. The sky is still bright, so I decided to wander in the town.
I stood on a street for a while, looked around and wished to keep everything in mind. I’ve never seen a town like Garmisch-Partenkirchen, surrounded by mountains with snow, so quiet and peaceful.
My days in town happened to be the Christmas holidays. Many trees and buildings were ornamented with astonishing paintings. Light balls and some Madonnas were placed by the streets. With the background of the mountains and Christmas songs, I mistook it for Disneyland.
Although my 2 days excursion was just a glimpse into a fairytale, all the magnificent landscapes, the Zugspitze, the sky, the snow, the lake Eibsee, the whole Garmisch-Partenkirchen has been comprehensively carved in my mind.
