Deutsches Museum & Allianz Arena

We were awakened around 4 am by Peter talking in his sleep. Most of it was mumbling but it sounded like he was dreaming about a field day, perhaps with school. The only parts that we understood were something about someone named “Robinson” or “Robertson” and something about a camera. We told Peter about the talking but he had no memory of it or what he was dreaming. Everyone was amused by his talking in his sleep.

Isartor

Breakfast at the Eden Hotel Wolff was excellent with the breads, cheeses, meats, eggs and fruit. We ate enough that we wouldn’t need much, if any, lunch. We had planned to visit the concentration camp at Dachau but the rail line to Dachau was under repair so we would need to take a bus. This change would add an additional hour to the two-hour trip. It would also make the afternoon trip to Allianz Arena longer.

We had Peter look though a brochure on attractions in Munich and he decided on the Deutsches Museum on an island in the Isar River. The U Bahn ride from the Munich Hauptbahnhof to Marienplatz was short and we walked around a little before we headed to the museum.  Along the way, we spotted the Isartor, a gate dating to the early 1300s when Munich was a walled city.  The 40 meter high gate tower and gate were commissioned by Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV and was restored in 1833 with the frescos added showing the victorious return of Louis IV after the Battle of Muhldorf in 1322.

Peter with VR body

After looking at the ancient gate the walk to the museum didn’t take long. Entrance to the museum was only 27 Euros for the three of us. The museum is large and has separate rooms for multiple aspects of Germany’s technology. We found the robotics room to be very interesting with many exhibits that were highly interactive for children and adults. Peter enjoyed a VR activity that had a user stand in an area and the computer produced a skeleton image that moved as the user moved. Peter waved his arms and legs, tried to pick up an imaginary box and other movements to see if the virtual skeleton of him could mimic his movements. The music room has many antique music technologies from harpsichords and glockenspiels all the way to digital technologies. Mary and I were especially interested in the theremin, symphonium, and a player piano. The room on flight was huge with aircraft going back to a Messerschmitt from the 1920s and an “Iron Annie” from the 1920s and 30s. There were cutaway engines from aircraft boxer engines, 12-cylinder airplane engines and modern jet engines. We stayed at the museum from the 9 am opening until just after noon.

The museum has several flight simulators and Peter enjoyed sitting at the controls of a jet. 

After leaving the museum we walked back to Marienplatz and looked for a lunch spot for Peter. Mary and I weren’t hungry after our large breakfast. It seemed the easiest spot was a McDonald’s Restaurant on the square. As we entered, an employee gave us a Gutschein (voucher) for a free sundae, Peter got two hamburgers and small bag of fries but wasn’t interested in the sundae so I took one for the team and ate the caramel sundae that was actually very good.

Peter and Oma at Allianz Arena

From Marienplatz, we took a light rail to Olympiazentrum, adjacent to Allianz Arena, the home field of FC Bayern München soccer team. After exiting the train, we had a 20 minute walk through a natural area to get to the stadium. We were a bit concerned that we were arriving about the same time as a group of 50 or so elementary school soccer players from Finland, Fortunately, they were not on our tour.

Peter in Allianz Arena

Since we arrived early for our arena tour and had some time, we went to the FC Bayern Museum for the soccer team. The German National team was also featured at the museum. There were trophies from European and FIFA championships, biographies of current and former players and coaches and life sized cutouts for photos. We didn’t spend a lot of time in the museum, so we went to the gift shop for FC Bayern. Peter picked out a home jersey and had the name and number of his favorite player, Luis Diaz, printed on the back. He also got an FC Bayern T-shirt and some team gummy bears. By then, it was time to meet for the tour of Allianz Stadium. Our guide was English speaking with an Australian accent as well as a German accent. We guessed that he was German but had learned English from an Aussie. The guide told us about the dome being made of two layers of a fire-resistant foil that is filled with air. Hundreds of thousands of LED lights allow the stadium to be programmed to show any color or pattern desired. 

Peter at Luis Diaz' locker

Inside the stadium, we saw the various classes of seating and the strategies for placing supporters of the guest team, reporters, dignitaries and others. We learned that the turf is replaced each season and the techniques for assuring the field is at the best for each home game. The guide took us to the locker room where we were able to take photos with the players’ lockers. We ended our 45-minute tour by walking out of the tube carrying players into the field before each game.

As we were leaving, Peter agreed to get another team jersey with his name on the back and a number of his choosing. He also got the Bundesliga patch on the arm of both shirts. This shirt would be a gift from his other grandfather. We exited the stadium, took a few photos of statues of notable players and made our way to the rail station near Olympiazentrum . The train was full but the ride back to Marienplatz was short.

It was 5 pm when we arrived at Marienplatz so we got to hear the chimes and glockenspiel again as we walked to Hofbrauhaus for dinner. This Hofbrauhaus was founded on September 27, 1589 by Bavarian Duk Wilhelm V to supply beer to the Bavarian court. Reinheitsgebot (German beer purity law) has assured high quality beer since the first days. Peter was in the mood for goulash since he was so pleased with a bite of Mary’s dinner at the Alpenstunden in Hohenschwangau.The main room at Hofbrauhaus was so loud that we looked for seating outside but there was so much smoke from diners that we didn’t want to eat there. We sat at a table in a courtyard area with three young people who were from the US. We were disappointed that the kitchen was out of goulash so Peter considered Weinerschnitzel. However, the schnitzels come with potato salad and not French fries. 

Hofbrauhaus in Munich

In Germany, it is unacceptable to ask to have a side dish changed. The only meal that came from fries was the curry wurst. To resolve, I ordered the curry wurst and Peter ordered the Schnitzel and we swapped sides, so he got my fries and I got his potato salad, Mary ordered the German meatloaf that came with potato salad. Peter had orange juice, Mary had Apfelchorle and I had a weißbier. We all enjoyed our meals and made our way back to the Marienplatz train station and up to our room at the Eden Hotel Wolf. We played a few games of Farkel then went to bed. Peter seemed to sleep soundly and only mumbled in his sleep a few times.

Everyone had a great day. It was a joy seeing Peter having such a good time. He loved exploring the exhibits in the Deutsches Museum and going to the FC Bayern locker room and field were exciting for him.

Linderhof Palace and Neuschwanstein Castle

Once again, the breakfast at Eden Hotel Wolff was outstanding. The breads, cheeses, breakfast meats, cereals and juices have been excellent and the dining experience has been elegant. We chatted briefly with two ladies visiting Germany for the first time from Virginia. They were very pleasant and interested in our experiences here.

At Linderhof Palace

We left the hotel early to meet the bus to Hohenschwangau at 9 am. We caught the rail at the Hbf which is across the street from our hotel and took a train to Marienplatz in Munich’s Altstadt. We walked the short distance to the bus and checked in with the tour leader. The bus was nearly full with visitors from the UK, Australia, US, Japan and within Germany. The tour was in English, but headphones were available for those needing another language. The tour guide, Gerta, gave us a lot of information on the area as well as about Ludwig II and his family. The two-hour bus ride from Munich to Linderhof went quickly. We drove the small village of Oberammergau that has performed a passion play every ten years since 1633. When the black plague threatened to wipe out the small village, the people there prayed promising to always perform a passion play every 10 years if the village were spared from the plague. To play a role in the play, actors must have been born in the village or lived there for a minimum of 20 years.

Linderhof Palace from the rear

There was rain off and on as we approached Linderhof Palace. However, the previous times we had visited here were all in very deep snow. There was a fair amount of snow at the higher elevations in the surrounding mountains but nothing like when we were here in the past. After putting on raincoats, we took a few snapshots of the beautifully landscaped grounds around Linderhof Palace as we waited for our entry time.

Our guide through the palace was very knowledgeable and shared information about King Ludwig II and his eccentricities. The king lived in the palace for several years before and during his reign. Linderhof is not as large as homes of many monarchs, but the interior is exquisite. Rooms have intricate wood carvings, most of which are covered with gold. Custom porcelain figurines are throughout the palace and weaving depicting events from folk tales, Wagner operas or historical events are in weavings on the walls. One of the most interesting pieces was the dining table. King Ludwig II was so peculiar that he didn’t want anyone to see him eating. To solve the problem, a table was built that could be lowered to the servant's area to have the meals placed then raised for the king's dinner. Perhaps the only negative to our visit is that photographs are not permitted inside the palace. However, we took many pictures outside. Peter was very interested in the palace as well as "Mad" King Ludwig II and wished that he could have photographed more inside the palace.  As we left the palace, we purchased a small informational book for Peter at the gift shop that includes photos and descriptions of the inside of the palace as well as the grounds.

Peter's Schnitzel und Pommes

We boarded our bus again and drove the 40 minutes to Hohenschwangau where we would tour Castle Neuschwanstein. By then it was after 1 pm and we were getting hungry, so we went to Alpenstuben for lunch. This restaurant was recommended by Gerta for large portions of well-prepared food at fair prices. I had a local lager, Peter had orange juice and Mary had Apfelchorle which is a mix of apple juice and sparkling mineral water. For our meals, Peter had a Wiener Schnitzel with fries, Mary had goulash made with venison from red deer and I had Kasespatzle with cheese made in the Bavarian Alps. We all enjoyed our meals and shared bites of each other’s lunch, but Mary’s goulash was the favorite of everyone. The venison was very tender and flavorful. Peter was especially fond of the goulash and was interested in trying everything.  

Castle Neuschwanstein

After lunch, we stopped by some of the gift shops in the village of Hohenschwangau to look for souvenirs for Peter. Since he lost his water bottle in one of the museums we visited earlier in the week, he found a bottle with the FC Bayern logo which pleased him. He also got two snow globes for himself and Nicholas with Castle Neuschwanstein. He all got some postcards to send to family back home. Peter was especially happy to find a lenticular postcard showing a goldfish jumping in and out of a bowl that he thought Nicholas might enjoy.  We thought that it was very thoughtful of him to want to get appropriate gifts for his brother on the trip.

Peter and Oma at Castle Neuschwanstein

There are three primary options for getting up the mountain from the village of Hohenschwangau to Castle Neuschwanstein. The only way that we have ever taken up the mountain in previous trips is to walk up the mountain which takes about 40 minutes. Of course, there was heavy snow on the ground in all of our previous visits. A second option is the horse drawn carriage that takes about 20 minutes but only goes about 2/3 of the way to the castle. The third option is a bus that goes to Marienbrucke (Mary’s Bridge) a short distance from the castle. We had never been to the bridge, so we decided on that option.

The bridge was very crowded and looked over a very deep gorge. We walked out on the bridge and took a few snapshots but neither Mary nor Peter are especially fond of heights. We walked over to the castle taking a few photos as we walked and stood on the road just outside the castle chatting with other visitors from our bus. I especially enjoyed talking with a gentleman from Costa Rica who now lives in New Jersey working as a chemist for Colgate-Palmolive. Since our tickets were for a 4:10 pm tour we didn’t go through the gate until nearly 4 pm. A board posted the tour times that were boarding with groups leaving every five minutes.

Village of Hohenschwangau

Our guide at the castle was very good. His English wasn’t quite as good as the guide at Linderhof but he had a lot of personality and communicated the information and stories of the castle and King Ludwig II very well. As with Linderhof Palace, photographs are not permitted in Castle Neuschwanstein. The interior of the castle is not as lavish as Linderhof, but was certainly lavish. Ludwig wanted the castle to appear as a Medieval castle even though it was not built until 1886. In fact, King Ludwig II died young under mysterious circumstances before the castle was completed and never lived in the castle. Two weeks after the death of the King, the castle was purchased by the Bavarian Bundestag and used as a tourist attraction. Additions, improvements and renovations have been made to the structure in the 160 years since the death of the king.

Horse drawn carriage in the village

After the tour, we walked down the mountain then revisited the gift shops in the small village where Peter pressed an image of Castle Neuschwanstein into a 5-cent coin. We made our way onto the bus in Hohenschwangau and began the two-hour drive back to Marienplatz in Munich. Peter was hungry when we arrived at the Munich Hof so we went to one of the food vendors in the train station and bought a bratwurst and brotchen (roll) for him. The wurst was over a foot long and stuck out well beyond the roll on both ends. Much to our surprise, he really liked it. The vendor provided two small ketchup packets that were traditional tomato ketchup rather than the curry ketchup that has become so common in Germany.

Before turning in we played a few games of Farkle with Peter then turned in and slept well.

Exploring Munich's Altstadt

Breakfast at Eden Hotel Wolff

Mary and I awoke around 7 am after sleeping very well. That is not surprising after getting very little sleep on the flight to Heathrow on a Sunday night. We eventually got Peter moving by 9 am and made our way to the first floor of the Eden Hotel Wolff for the buffet breakfast. Since the flights had been so long, we didn't want to push Peter but when he awoke, he was ready to get breakfast and begin exploring Munich. Like the breakfast at most German hotels, the food quality and variety were outstanding. There were dozens of whole grain breads and pastries, three kinds of breakfast wurst, bacon and other breakfast meats, several cheeses, eggs, a dozen cold cereals, fresh fruit, yogurt and fresh squeezed fruit juice of every kind. My favorite has the be the various fruit preserves. The Himmelbeere (raspberry jam) was very good, but the sour cherry jam (Kirschkonfitüre ) was outstanding. Peter raved on the breakfast and enjoyed a little of everything. We were very very impressed that he was willing to try things before he passed judgment. Peter really enjoyed the variety of breakfast offerings and was willing to try many of the items to see if they suited him. We all ate enough to carry us through to dinner.

Inside St. Peter's Church

We returned to the room, gathered cameras, maps, passes and water bottles and put our valuables in the room safe before leaving the hotel. The travel agent had left a Mehrtageskarte for us that gets the three of us into nearly all of the attractions in the Munich area. We took the U-Bahn the short distance to Marienplatz in Munich’s Altstadt. We started our visit at St. Peter’s Church that was built in the 12th Century. The church is beautiful and contains so many ancient artifacts. I am always impressed how the US and Allied military was able to bomb German cities in two world wars and was so caring to do so little damage to historic churches. We walked the over 300 stairs to the top of the tower attached to St. Peter’s. The tower dates to the 1100s and is still structurally sound. We took a lot of photos from the top of the tower before descending and continued our walk through the old part of Munich. Before we left the church, Peter bought a refrigerator magnet with St. Peter's Church.

Peter outside the Munich Rathaus

We went through the market and saw many produce stands selling the white asparagus that is popular in Germany now that it is Spargelzeit. We walked the short distance to the Bavarian Royal Residenz where the emperor lived from 1508 until after WWII in1918. The core of the Residenz was built as a fortress called Neuveste in 1385. The Bavarian rulers from the House of Wittelsbach lived in this complex during the 400 year period. The Royal Residenz has been open to the public as a museum since 1920. Much rebuilding has taken place following severe damage during WWII.

Peter in the Bavarian Royal Residence

We have visited here several times and enjoy it more each time. The structure was nearly completely destroyed in the war but has been beautifully rebuilt, restored and redecorated. We all took a lot of photos throughout the expansive building. Peter was especially amused taking photos of his face with his new camera.

We walked back to the Marienplatz train station and caught a light rail to Olympiazentrum where we would have a short walk to the BMW museum. We used the timed passes to the BMW museum that we had purchased online and were directed to a locker room where we stowed backpacks and other personal items. The museum was really interesting with restored BMW cars and motorcycles going back to the 1920s. There were rooms with cutaway engines from cars, motorcycles, boats, aircraft and military equipment. We all enjoyed the restored BMW convertible that was used in several Elvis Presley movies. 

1939 BMW Kamm Coupe

We liked a convertible roadster from the 1930s and a three-wheeled miniature car that the driver entered by opening the front of the vehicle. There were lots of interactive displays where visitors could photograph themselves in BMW ads or driving a vintage car. There was a room dedicated to the forced laborers in BMW factories in the 1930s and 40s during the Third Reich. During a labor shortage people were compelled to labor in factories for little compensation in difficult and dangerous working conditions. After we visited all of the 22 exhibit rooms we walked across to the BMW World building. 

Peter & Oma with a 1953 BMW Isetta Knutschkugel

This large building had many BMW models on display including lots of prototypes and concept cars. Since BMW partners with Rolls Royce and Mini, there were models from those manufacturers on display as well. Since BMW World is free and doesn’t require a timed entry ticket, there were many more people there than at the BMW Museum. We walked through the displays and took a few snapshots before walking to the light rain station and returning to the Hauptbahnhof where we picked up burgers and fries from a stand in the train station. There wasn’t a huge selection at Pommes Freunde but we brought the food back to the Eden Hotel Wolff where were ate in the room then played three games of Farkel with each of us winning one game. We turned in and slept well.

Flying to Germany by way of London

Lunch at Heathrow Airport

By the time we awoke, we were near Ireland with two hours to London. The flight attendants distributed breakfast burritos and beverages. Peter didn’t want breakfast, so we watched in-flight movies until we landed at Heathrow. We had to go through security again at Heathrow but had no issues. Since the breakfast burrito didn’t appeal to Peter, we needed to find something that he would eat for breakfast, easier said than done. We walked by every restaurant at Heathrow airport and found nothing to his liking. Mary took him to a small market in the airport where she bought a yogurt and granola cup that Peter said was nasty, so he threw it out. He said that a ham sandwich might be good, so we tried that. Mary took the cheese off his sandwich as he requested but a small amount of mayonnaise remained and he didn’t want to eat it. On the other half of the sandwich, we removed the cheese and managed to avoid the offensive mayo, so he was able to eat that.

We had to laugh that Buffalo Trace has a large presence in London. There was a Buffalo Trace booth in the Heathrow airport. I walked by the booth and an employee asked if I would like a sample taste of Buffalo Trace but I assured him that I had tasted it before.

The flight from London to Munich boarded quickly and we took off for the two-hour flight. We were seated together on this flight and read our devices for the short flight. On landing at Munich International Airport, our bags were among the first to arrive in the baggage carousel. Peter spotted our bags quickly and grabbed them from the belt. We took a light rail from the Munich airport to the Munich Hauptbahnhof (main train station) using the travel vouchers that we received from the travel agent.

Our hotel, the Eden Hotel Wolff, was a short two block walk from the train station. When we arrived at 4 pm the helpful desk clerk got us checked in and gave us additional vouchers for attractions in Munich like the Royal Residence, Nymphenburg Palace and others as well as vouchers for light rail, subway and bus transport in the city for the days we would be in Munich. As with other trips that we have taken with to-europe.com, this hotel is perfectly located for access to many of the places we plan to visit as well as the train station.

Dinner at Augustiner-Keller Biergarten

Our third floor room at the Eden Hotel Wolff was very nice with a king-sized bed and a sofa bed. We unpacked and considered our choices for dinner. The desk clerk said that many locals eat at Augustiner Keller Biergarten only a few blocks from the hotel, so we agreed to give it a try.

Most of the tables were out in a beautiful tree lined courtyard and we were seated immediately despite the restaurant appearing to be crowded. Our waiter had some knowledge of English but since we had spoken with him in German, gave us German menus. We were doing fine with the German menus, but Mary wanted to confirm our choices with an English menu that the waiter offered. Peter had the Weiner Schnitzel, I had the cordon bleu and Mary had Kaesespaetzle topped with onion straws. Substituting is not generally permitted in German restaurants, so I traded my French fries for Peter’s fried potatoes. We were really proud of Peter for his willingness to try German foods to see if he would like them.  Mary had sparkling water, Peter had lemonade and I had a local bock beer. Everyone enjoyed the meal although the portions were very large. Peter was able to eat only one of the large schnitzels with his meal. The meal was not fast but in much of Europe meals at a restaurant are not intended to be rushed. While eating, diners socialize and enjoy the company of friends and family.

Dinner at Augustiner-Keller Biergarten

As light faded, we walked back to the Eden Hotel Wolff, showered and prepared for bed. We were all tired from two days of stressful travel. We had a busy few days lined up with a visit to Munich’s Altstadt in the morning and the afternoon at the BMW Museum and BMW World near the Olympic Center, site of the 1972 massacre by the militant Palestinian organization, Black September during the summer Olympics.

Leaving for Germany

At the beginning of this year, we made a resolution to take each of our four grandsons on an international trip of their choosing after completing sixth grade. Peter, now eleven years old, wanted to go to Germany with us. Since we have been here several times before, this was a good choice for us as well. Mary contacted the travel agent at to.europe.com and arranged a week, mostly in Bavaria but a few days in Berlin. This travel agency Mary uses, to-europe.com, always reserves excellent hotels near attractions and provides tickets to all sites in the area and passes for trains, subways and buses. Their prices are very reasonable and cheaper than we could arrange on our own. All the hotels they have booked for us on any of our trips are historic and offer large, elegant buffet breakfast included in our lodging.

After exercising at Planet Fitness, we loaded our bags in the car and left home at 9 am to the Hilton near the Cincinnati airport in Covington, Kentucky. We each had a personal item for the flight. Mary had a small carry on, and we shared a small duffel bag as a checked bag. We have used OneStopParking.com on several prior occasions and found it to be about half the price of parking at the airport’s long-term parking. It took only about 5 minutes for the driver to take us to the drop off point at the airport. The Koehler family arrived to drop Peter off at 11 am and stayed until we checked in and had cleared the travel of a minor with a non-custodial parent. There was no problem, so we said our goodbyes to Greg, Sarah and Nicholas before going through security and all three of us had TSA PreCheck.

We had learned earlier that our flight to Detroit would be departing later than scheduled, making us unable to get on the connecting flight from Detroit to Munich. It wasn’t a problem for Delta to schedule us to go to Atlanta then to Munich arriving only a little later than our flight from Detroit. Until our flight, scheduled for 1 pm boarded, we walked around the Cincinnati airport and sometimes sat in the terminal to chat. The aircraft boarded only slightly later than scheduled but we would have time to make our connection from Atlanta to Munich. The gate agent offered to gate-check our carry-on bags through to Munich which was fine with us so we wouldn’t have to carry the bags through the Atlanta airport.

After everyone was boarded, the airplane taxied out and started down the runway gaining speed almost to liftoff when the pilot quickly decelerated and stopped on the runway. The captain came on the address system to inform us that an error light showed up regarding a door that wasn’t properly latching. He said that a maintenance crew was on the way to assess the problem. After sitting on the tarmac for over 90 minutes, the captain informed the passengers that we would return to the gate for the main maintenance team to assess. After another 30 minutes, we were informed that another aircraft would have to be brought in and that we would arrive in Atlanta much too late for our flight to Munich. The earliest we could arrive in Munich would be late on Monday.

Peter found Bob Ross's Little Trees mints

Shortly after we deplaned, we received a message from Delta that we could be transferred to a British Airways flight taking us to Heathrow in London then to Munich by midafternoon on Monday. We only had to accept this change. That was the problem. Since we didn’t have an account with British Airways, we couldn’t confirm the changes online. Mary had no success contacting customer support by telephone. Since British Airways has one flight each day out of CVG, their team only arrived three hours before the scheduled flight. Our flight was scheduled for 9 pm so we planned to meet the gate agent at 6 pm. Problem was that the agents were at the arrivals desk at that time which was outside of security. Mary left her things with Peter and I then left the secure area and walked to the only British Airways desk where she was able to not only confirm the flight but get seat assignments for us to Heathrow and on to Munich. The seats would not be together for the seven-hour flight to London but we had seats booked. Peter and I would need to take our passports to the agent at the gate before boarding. The agent at the gate told us that our checked bag and gate checked bags would be brought over to our flight through Heathrow.

We were relieved to have the flights worked out and went to dinner at Blaze Pizza in the airport. Each of us had a twelve-dollar meal voucher from Delta but the clerk at Blaze Pizza couldn’t figure out how to use more than one voucher so we paid part of the bill on our Visa card. Peter had a pizza with only sauce with no meat, vegetables, meat or even cheese. I had a four-meat pizza. Mary had some of each of our pizzas. Since we had two $12 vouchers left, we got ice cream from Graeter’s for Mary and I and a doughnut from Dunkin’ for Peter. We used leftover voucher money to buy bagged snacks for Peter from a newsstand.

Our flight to London boarded on time. Mary was seated in aisle 32 while Peter and I were in aisle 34 but a few seats apart. A student from Miami Ohio traded seats with me so Peter and I could sit together. A meal was served on the flight but neither of us was hungry. By 10:30 the crew had gathered the trash from the meal and the captain dimmed the lights. We got under the blankets and tried to sleep. Peter flopped a lot trying to get comfortable and eventually fell asleep.  It was a very long day of travel but Peter travels very well and never complained about the unplanned changes in flights and long periods in aircraft and in airports.

We didn't get a chance to celebrate Mary's birthday but she considered this trip with Peter a great birthday present.

Driving home from Florida

Since we knew that we had long drive back to Georgetown, we woke early and came down to have our morning beverages. Cindy made turkey sandwiches for our breakfast and lunch. We also packed fresh fruit and snacks for the nearly 13-hour drive. Kenny and Paul, his friend from Minnesota, came to the house around 5:30 to get started for the fishing tournament. We said our goodbyes and were on the road by 6:10.

Travel was very light through Florida to I-75. There was light rain from time to time in Southern Georgia. Traffic was slow around Macon, Georgia, as several oversize loads of cargo were taking up two lanes of the interstate. As expected, traffic got very heavy around McDonough, Georgia, and remained congested through Atlanta to north of Marietta. Traffic was busy in Chattanooga and Knoxville but not nearly as bad as the Atlanta area. We stopped at several rest areas to get our breakfast and lunch but ate them as we drove. 

When we drove south three weeks ago, Mary noted the exits with the best gas prices. Since the war with Iran started a week ago, gas prices spiked everywhere. The best gas prices that we saw on our trip north were in southern Georgia. As we approached Central Kentucky, Mary was able to use the new Wi-Fi enabled thermostat to start warming the house from the 50 degree setting we use while we are away in the winter.

We arrived home at 7 pm and hauled things into the house. We put the frozen fish away first, but left clothes and gear for tomorrow when we would be more rested. Since we had emptied the refrigerator before we left last month, there weren’t many choices for dinner so we opened a can of black beans and had them in a tortilla wrap.

We turned in early because we were tired from the drive and we weren’t looking forward to the spring change to Daylight Saving Time tonight.

Our last day in Homosassa

We had a breakfast of cold cereal as we wanted to finish the Wheat Chex and Great Grains that we brought from home. After eating, we took the dogs on a short walk on Standish Drive and Battle Creek Road then up to the stop sign before they were ready to get back to the house. We can really tell that both dogs are showing their age. In the past they enjoyed a long walk out around the neighborhood, but now they prefer a short loop.

New connection box

Mark and I considered going out to fish in the kayaks but wanted to do a few things first. Mark and Kenny entered a fishing tournament tomorrow, and we wanted to make sure that everything was in order for that. The first thing that we did was to replace the defective connection box on the outside of the house that supplies electricity to the HVAC unit. Saltwater corroded the existing connection box. The new connection box is much smaller than the previous box, and the connections are pretty straightforward. We disconnected electricity at the breaker then removed the rusty old box. The knockouts on the new box were difficult to remove, so Mark had to use an angle grinder to score the spot welds. Although we would have preferred to mount the surge protector on the side of the box, a siding strip prevented attaching the small unit, so we had to mount it on the bottom of the box. A little touch-up paint is needed, but the disconnect box worked well.

At the boat, we attempted to learn why the starboard shallow water anchor wasn’t operating. The Power Pole would not respond to either the keychain remote or the dash mounted remote. Our first suspicion was that the remote batteries were failing or that they were no longer paired with the anchor motors by Bluetooth. We replaced the batteries and then tried operating the Power Poles with the hard-wired controls in the bilge. The port unit worked fine but there was no response from the starboard motor.

Mark called tech support at the manufacturer of the Power Poles for assistance with diagnosing the problem. After lengthy discussion and attempts at getting the shallow water anchors to go up or down, the technician concluded that the main circuit board was defective and was, unfortunately, out of warranty. Mark could order a replacement circuit board from the manufacturer and have it within a week since the manufacturer is in Tampa. However, since the tournament was first thing tomorrow morning, Mark called the local marine sales and service centers and found that Homosassa Marine had the circuit boards in stock.

The circuit board was easy to remove, so we swapped the port and starboard circuit boards to confirmed that the board was defective. We drove up to Homosassa Marine where Mark got the board for over $250. Back at the house, the board was installed quickly and allowed the Power Poles to operate using the manual switch on the motor, but neither remote responded to the detailed procedure in the owner’s manual. After multiple attempts by both of us, we concluded that the new board must have a defect in the ability to link with the remotes. Mark called the dealer who agreed to replace the new but presumably defective board.

Mary, Cindy & Mark at Marguerita Grill

While we were outside working on the electrical box and the boat anchors, Mary and Cindy were working on Ancestry. By working together and using some of the old family records that their parents and grandparents had accumulated, they were able to add a few ancestors and relatives to their tree.

It was near lunchtime, so we decided to go to Marguerita Grill which is a fun place to eat and drink. On the way, we stopped at Homosassa Marine where Mark exchanged the new Power Pole circuit board hoping that another board will work for us.

Cindy & Mark at Marguerita Grill

The seafood at Marguerita Grill is excellent and well prepared. The owners, Cuban immigrants, have a very pro-American atmosphere in the restaurant and celebrate veterans at every opportunity. We were fortunate to get a table on the back deck with a good view of the water. Mary had a whitefish basket which she reported to be very good. She especially likes the lightly seasoned French fries. I got Gavin’s Seafood Platter with her agreement to help me eat some of the shrimp, fish, scallops, crab cake and hush puppies. We bought a “medium” margarita which comes in a pitcher and serves four. Everything was very good as always, so we left the restaurant very full.

Mary at Marguerita Grill

We made a quick stop at Sportsman’s Wholesale. Kenny’s birthday is Sunday, and Mark wanted to get him a spool of woven fishing line. He also got a few crank baits that might work for redfish.

Once back at the house we quickly installed the newly exchanged Power Pole circuit board and once again attempted to pair the remotes to the hydraulic motor. After failing several times using the multi-step protocol in the owner's manual, Mark called tech support again. They gave him a very different and simpler procedure that paired the two remote controls easily.

By the time we finished, we were too tired to go kayak fishing. We came in to prepare for our departure tomorrow morning. While we were watching an episode of Clarkson’s Farm, Kenny and Jodie stopped by on their way back from their evening meal at Marguerita Grill.

Sign at Marguerita Grill

Earlier we decided to leave Homosassa in late morning on Saturday. We would get a room in the Atlanta area and drive the final half of the route on Sunday. This would allow us to leave at a time that wouldn’t disrupt Mark and Cindy’s Saturday schedule. However, since Mark would be leaving early for the fishing tournament, we decided to leave early and drive back on one day.

In anticipation of our early departure, we turned in early after we did a little late minute packing.

Fishing in Homosassa with no luck

We slept well and woke before 5 am. We did our morning language lessons and had morning beverages. Once Mark and Cindy were up, had cold cereal for breakfast then took the dogs on a walk on Standish Drive.

Fishing near Homosassa

Mark has been hoping to learn some of the advanced capabilities of his Garmin chart plotter. We used the Garmin Active Captain app to connect Marks iPhone to his Garmin boat plotter and experimented with syncing waypoints, tracks and routes to his phone and computer. Mark was especially interested in bringing tracks to his computer for viewing on Google Earth.

Kenny with a small lizardfish

Kenny came over at 9 am to fish. We loaded the boat with our gear, including the reels that we cleaned last night. They seemed to work very smoothly after cleaning and lubricating. We fished the shallow water around Homosassa and up Battle Creek for 7 hours. In that time, we caught and released a lot of undersized redfish and a few ladyfish. Kenny even caught a small lizard fish that was hardly bigger than his lure. We caught no snook and no fish of edible size. We had to get out of the boat on several occasions to push the boat through shallow water. We also had to get out a few times to retrieve snagged lures but not in deep mud like yesterday. While fishing we saw three adult porpoises and two young.

We were out until nearly 5 pm without catching much to speak of. After we returned to the dock, we cleaned saltwater off gear and cleaned boat deck and seats. We ate a leftover dinner of shrimp from The Freezer, snook from Tuesday’s fish fry and salads. It was all good.

After dinner Mark and I went to Home Depot to get a disconnect box for the HVAC. We hoped to replace the exterior electrical box on Friday. Back at the house we tried searching online to figure out why the lower icemaker wasn’t working on the refrigerator.

We watched episodes 1 and 2 of season two of Clarkson’s Farm on Prime TV.

Fishing with Mark & Kenny

Steve with a small ladyfish

As usual, we were up early, so we did our language lessons and had morning beverages before going downstairs after Mark, Cindy and the dogs were up and moving around. We had a cold cereal breakfast working toward finishing the Chex and Great Grains boxes that we brought from Kentucky.

Kenny came over before 8 am, and we loaded Mark’s boat with fishing gear to try to catch some snook. We fished hard for over six hours catching and releasing 10 undersized snook, several redfish under the keeping limit, and many ladyfish. We had no keepers.

While retrieving a lure from the mangrove snags in two feet deep mud, I took a spill landing on my rear. Watching me trying to stand up provided great amusement for Mark and Kenny.

Steve in the mud retrieving a snagged lure

By the time we returned to around 2 pm, the temperature was in the upper 80s. We were all pretty hot and had been in the sun enough for the day. We washed salt from fishing gear and scrubbed the boat to remove the mud that I brought on board after my fall.

We planned to meet Jodie and Grant at Marguerita Grill. When we drove up Hall’s River Road, we saw that they were closed on Wednesday. After talking with Grant and Jody, we went to Crumps Landing a little over a mile west of Marguerita Grill. We had never been to Crump’s Landing before, but there was plenty of parking, despite being very busy. We were seated at an outside table by the dock across the water from MacRae’s.

Jodie & Grant at Crump's Landing

Mary had a Cuban sandwich; I had the clam basket with chips.  Several of us had margaritas, and Cindy had a mojito. The meal and service were good. We really like the atmosphere at Marguerita Grill, but Crumps’s Landing is a good alternative.

Before we drove back, we made a side trip to Monkey Island near MacRae’s. Monkey Island is built on a rock outcropping near Homosassa that was a frequent hazard to boaters. In the 1960s a developer had a crew add material to the rocky structure, forming a small island. The developer had a lighthouse and other structures built on the small island and planted trees and other plants. He also obtained a few spider monkeys and squirrel monkeys, placing them on the island. Today the island is inhabited by five spider monkeys living in very nice accommodations providing great amusement to Homosassa’s visitors.

Monkey Island

Back at the house, Grant and Jodie played Phase 10 with Mary, Mark and Cindy. I fell asleep upstairs for a short nap.

I awoke when Grant and Jodie were preparing to leave. Mark and I went out to his garage workshop to disassemble a fishing reel that wasn’t working. After cleaning, greasing and reassembly the reel seemed to work well.

We strained the peanut oil from the fish fry on Tuesday evening. We returned the used oil to the original plastic jugs. Mark keeps the oil in the chest freezer above the garage for the next fish fry.

While we were working on the fishing gear and straining the oil, Cindy came out and told us that the air conditioning in the house wasn’t working. After testing connections and attempting to locate the problem, we heard a snapping sound coming from the connection box on the side of the house. Mark worked with HVAC a good deal in their 40+ years of owning and operating McDonald’s Restaurants, so he knew that the connection box was the source of the problem. We found that the disconnect box was arcing and that made the air conditioning unit stop operating. The box had been immersed in saltwater several time during hurricanes and other tropical storms, so it was not surprising that the box needed replacing. We temporarily wired around the disconnect, and the unit worked well until we could replace the box.

By the time we finished it was getting dark, so we came in and watched the final episode of season 1 of Clarkson’s Farm on Prime TV. We all turned in by 10 pm.