We woke up in Augsburg this morning!  And it was still hot.

We showered and dressed.  The first task was get breakfast downstairs.  The breakfast room has a buffet of all types of luncheon meats, cheeses, hard boiled eggs, breads, and toasty things.  The coffee pots was a push button number that no one seemed to be able to work right.  I overran my cup and had to switch it out mid stream to capture all of the coffee. I saw others having the same problem.  I had no solution for tomorrow.

The ladies serving and keeping things stocked were very nice.  They didn’t seem to speak much English.  We managed though.  Rich got his favorite breakfast again.  He said he did miss the Air Force coffee with Uncle Max though.

First on the list of tourist sights was to find the Man in the Wall.  There is an ancient wall that surrounds the hilltop that old Augsburg is built on.  I believe it was built before the Romans, but fortified by them.  There is a status of a man on the outer wall.  I’m not sure of his purpose in old days, but he is an attraction for people to go and find.

We stopped at the front desk and the young man gave us really good directions to find the wall our first sighting.  He said to walk down the alleyway to the first walk street and turn left.  When this walk street ends, turn right and follow the road as it curves around the buildings.  The wall will be in front of you.  Walk along the outside of the wall to find the man.

Turns out the Man in the Wall was very close to the hotel.  This area is one of the oldest surviving parts of the city.  A hotel on this spot was first used in 1508 by the Cardinal for Dom Cathedral to house important visitors.  The building has been destroyed and rebuild several times to stay as a hotel for guests of the cathedral.  At some point, it became a hotel for outside guests.

Using the directions given, we found the man.  He was standing at attention in his alcove.  Over the years, his nose rubbed away and they have replaced it.  It looks rather shabby, but what can you do over the centuries.  I’d look tired also.

We wondered back to the hotel and on toward the administrative part of the old town.  We had seen the Rathaus last night.  We walked in that direction until we found the large, open market square.  Rich recognized the Augustus fountain there.  This fountain was erected in 1588 and still survives today and spills out water in unusual places on human anatomy.

The market square there is huge.  Rich says the Christkindlmarket takes place there in the Christmas season.  I could image a very large one out there.  I noticed the tourism building along the left side of the square.  We wonder in hoping for cool and some information.  There are plenty of pamphlets in English.

From here, we head down to the Fuggerei.  This is a large social neighborhood that was started back in 1516 as an experiment in trying to help people help themselves.  The neighborhood is still in use today.  People live in the simple apartments for very little in exchange for work and the commitment to pray three times a day.  Then the tourists help to support the neighborhood by paying to wandering around.

The neighborhood is very quiet, clean, and orderly.  Specific apartments are called out for you.  There is one where Mozart’s great-grandfather lived as he worked in the neighborhood.  There was the apartment of a lady first accused of witchcraft.  She was burned at the stake and then beheaded.  Not a nice way to go.

We left the Fuggerei and walked back up the hill to the market square.  On the other side of the square were smaller platz for Hans Fugger and Martin Luther.  We saw the permanent beer hall on the other side of Fugger Platz called the Zeughaus.  It was very ornate on the outside.  We followed the platz on along to St Anna Church.  Unfortunately, the church was closed for renovations.  It was all locked up.

Time to turn toward the Plarrerfest grounds and get some lunch.  Standing in front of St. Anna Church, we were trying to decide which direction to head.  To the left would take out to the main road quickly.  The road to our right would wind by the stadt market (city market) and on around to the main road.  We opted to go right and see the stadt market.  Unfortunately, it was closed and the gates were locked.  We peeked inside, but couldn’t see much.

At the main road, we turned toward the Plarrerfest grounds and ambled our way through town.  The trip was pretty uneventful, but hot.  There was hardly a breeze and only the traffic created a ripple of wind.  We went into one of the side gates instead of the front.  Rich thought it would be good for variety.  This is from the most major change agent I know.

We wondered through the fest.  At the Binswanger tent, a line of draft horses were delivering the kegs for the day of drinking.  I think it was more ceremonious than actual.  The lead horse on the right had its mane braided into very long pigtails all over its head.  I suspect this was a female horse.  Does that make the other lead horse a male?  I think there is Polish joke about this, but I’m not sure I can tell if here.

Rich had decided to have lunch at the Thor tent today.  This is the Thorbrau Bier tent hosted by the Held family.  Apparently, the Thor tent is where Rich used to go for his single day at the fest.  The fest hall was too hot to inside and eat.  We went around to the patio.  The heat here wasn’t so bad.  There might have been a breeze now and then.

The bar maid approached the table and welcomed us to the patio.  We let her know we spoke English and she quickly switched gears to answer us in English.  Rich ordered the Scheinaxen with potato salad.  I wanted something cool and went with the Wurstsalat.  This is a bologna-like sausage, but much tastier.  It was cut up with onions and pickles in a vinegar sauce.  It was delicious.  I believe Rich said his ham hocks was also delicious.

Everyone around us were sweating.  Guys were showing off their soaked shirts proudly.  The ladies were fanning themselves like crazy with menus and anything else that could create a breeze.  We ordered water and beers.  I forgot to order the correct water though.  Mineral water is very popular in Europe.  You have to say still or natural to get just regular water without the bubbles.  I haven’t gotten myself trained to do it yet.

After lunch, we decided to just head back toward the hotel.  We attempted to go down to the garden, but the doors were locked.  So we hung out in our room.  I wrote up blogs while Rich napped.  I got a lot of work done, but it was really too hot.  Will the weather ever break?

After napping and working, we decided to get something for dinner.  Since it was so hot, we decided to return to the Bayerishes Haus for more Bavarian cuisine.  Unfortunately, we couldn’t sit outside on the patio.  It was packed with everyone else looking to stay cool.  We sat inside, where it was very warm.  We had the advantage of not having too many people in their.  The food was so good.  We hung out as long as we could.  I felt sorry for the servers.  It must be unbearable to work in a kitchen and rushing around to customers.  No one here is used to this type of heat.

We wandered back to the hotel by way of the cathedral grounds.  It was after 8:00 PM and not much foot traffic.  It gave the place a kind of otherworldliness.  We looked at the archeological excavation and samples of what they dug up.  It was just a little cooler, but not by much.  We finally found our way back to the hotel and settled in for the night.  I finished my last blog and pictures and crawled into bed.  It was midnight at the hotel, but only 5:00 PM at home.  Time to call it a day.