I would just like to add a couple more thoughts about the Passion Play, and then I will stop. I was asked what my favorite part was, and I mentioned 2 of them. First was the Last Supper. Very humbling to see Jesus washing the feet of the apostles. Next was the soliloquy that Judas gave. The anguish in the voice and the pain on his face when he realized what he had done and who he betrayed. Those 2 pieces will stay with me.

On Sunday we met up with my good friend Kathy’s son Matt and his wife Erin. I have known him since he was 13 years old. He is stationed at Stuttgart, so I knew he was a couple of hours away. We took a cable car straight up the mountain to Zugspitze. 10,000 feet up to be exact. Germany’s highest peak. And it was snowing. Couldn’t see the view, but it was cool to see anyway. We went down by a cogwheel train.

We started our road trip through Switzerland. First stop was Giessbach. Overlooked Lake Geneva, with a waterfall coming down the hill. Next we went to Vevey. That sure was a peaceful place. Of course getting there was driving through small villages on small winding roads. We spent one day wine tasting. There were vineyards everywhere. The fall colors are beginning to show on the trees. We sure did see some pretty scenery. We spent a day and a half in Geneva, so we got to spend a little bit of time in the big city. Last stop is London.

We went to this beautiful Bavarian village to attend the Passion Play. This event is put on every 10 years, but in 2020 it was put on hold for 2 years, and rescheduled. This play is put on because of a vow, and all having to do with being spared from the plague. The first performance was in 1634. Besides 2020, the only other 2 times the play didn’t happen was in 1920 because of the Spanish Flu, that was rescheduled for 1922, and 1940 because of WW2. They begin performing in May and it will end the beginning of October.

1 village, 1800 participants, 5 hours of theater and a 400 year tradition. The Passion Play takes place the last week of Jesus Christs life. The various acting parts are announced about a year out. The men have to sign a contract stating that they will grow their hair and their beards out, even the boys grow their hair. The players are people that were born in Oberammergau or have lived there for very 20 years. It use to be that only Catholics could be in the play, but that rule was changed years ago. This year they had the first Muslim to have a major speaking part, and that was of Judas. There were at one time 500 people on the stage and that also included animals; goats, horses a donkey and a camel.

The villagers are totally committed to this play, even making arrangements with their employers. It is performed in German, but I had a booklet in English to follow along. The acting was extraordinary, you felt like you were truly witnessing the life of Christ. I was mesmerized and in tears the last hour of the play. I can’t believe I actually got to see this performance. Easter week will never be the same for me ever again.

Austria is a beautiful country full of green landscapes, small villages, and lots of cows. Interesting thing about this country, everything is closed on Sunday. Including grocery stores. I found out from a cab driver they can only be opened 72 hours a week. Not sure why, but that’s what he told me. If you need anything you are out of luck. The only places I did see opened were gas stations and the convenience stores attached to them.

We spent some time in 2 villages while driving towards Salzburg. St. Wolfgang was the first one. A small village in central Austria. Lots of biking, walking and hiking and also a very popular ski resort in the winter. One of the shop owners told me that after a 2 year break they finally able to have their Christmas Marts this year. She said,it was to be bigger and better. We drove to Halstaat after a couple of days. Because of their beautiful lake there are lots of water sports and camping. It is also a World Heritage Site.

We only had 2 days in Salzburg. We had been there before so we had already done some touristy things. This time we chose to go to the Eagles Nest. I have always been hesitant about going there, just because of the evil presence that had been inside that place. He never liked it. Only went there 14 times. Didn’t like heights, hated the cold, and was claustrophobic. The fireplace, the elevator which has brass walls to make it seem bigger are the original pieces. The small tea room and conference room are now restaurants. Because of the rainy weather, I never saw the actual building, nor the towns down below. I was hoping to see more of the inside. Now we are off to Germany.

We had been to Vienna before in December of 2013, so this time we decided to go wine tasting in their wine region. Our tour guide was a lovely gentleman named Tom who drove us about an hour out of Vienna in the Wachau Valley. The winery’s are family owned and consist of 50-60 families. They use a Viennese blend and 80% of the wines stay local. They produce almost all white wines of a dry Riesling blend. Because of the temperatures it’s hard to grow the red and purple grapes to produce any reds. There are vines growing up the side of a hill known as The Hill of a 1000 Buckets. During picking season workers go up and down and fill their buckets with grapes.

After going to a couple of wineries, we went to the medieval town of Durnstein. Little tasting rooms, restaurants and beer gardens dotted the cobblestone streets. In the middle of town was a Catholic Church with a blue steeple. It was explained to me that the color of blue cannot be used for that purpose because it is used for the Greek Orthodox churches as well as Mosques. The only other one is in Bratislava which I also saw, but didn’t think anything of it at the time. For some reason they were allowed to keep it that way. And that was something I never knew.

Then we left there and went down to the Malat Hotel and Winery. We were smack dab in the middle of the vineyard. Anna and Alexis were our gracious hosts who would do anything for you. Wilma was the wonderful lady who made breakfast. She has quite an extensive album collection. She told me I could pick out one and she would play it during breakfast. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd was the music selection that morning. Over looking the vineyard is the Stift Gottweig Benedictine Monastary. 45 monks live there and it was established in 1072. One of the buildings is used as a B&B, but you must obey their rules. Will be on the road again soon.