Canopy and hot oven

Wednesday, our 6th day: it rained last night. This morning at 6:26 am, we were rudely awakened by our smoke alarm. We also heard the smoke alarm from at least one other apartment, and since we now know our neighbors' radio alarm clock, we can immediately identify the sound without a doubt. Mario checks and sniffs in the stairwell to see if he can detect any fire - nothing! Since our apartment is on the ground floor and leads into the garden, we decide that in case of doubt, we can definitely escape and stay in bed for a while longer.

Usually, our bicycles are in the car, but last night we wanted to secure them with a lock on our terrace and avoid loading them into the car. It is important to always have a good lock to secure your belongings. It would be great if we could remember the combination of the lock. We tried 00000 and 12345, of course, birthdays... we tried everything, unfortunately without success. In the end, we simply put the bikes in the living room and hope for the enlightenment and realization of the correct numbers.

It is too cold and wet for outdoor sports today. Therefore, we opt for culture: The open-air museum in Finsterau is located near the border with the Czech Republic and only about 40 minutes by car from our vacation rental. We are early and today we are the 3rd at the ticket office. The houses and farms are arranged like in a village. It is truly impressive how meticulously the houses, all of which were somewhere in the vicinity, were dismantled, transported here, and rebuilt. If the facilities still exist, they were rebuilt exactly as they were in the original. Otherwise, facilities, ovens, and objects were reconstructed. The houses are equipped with furniture, clothing, household items, and tools, and often we feel transported back in time. The stories about the houses, which describe the history of the residents as text, images, and sometimes even in small films, are impressive. Apart from the houses and stories, we are also interested in the furniture. We inspect the tables and cabinets for craftsmanship wood joints and wood types. Dovetail joints and spline joints testify to the craftsmanship - we carpenters are delighted. In general, life was harsh and difficult, especially here in the Bavarian Forest. Speaking of a sparse life: our breakfast was a bit sparse today. A cup of coffee and a sausage roll from the gas station... it feels like a break. The museum café is not open yet. We go to the inn, which is housed in a rebuilt old house. At the entrance of the beer garden, there are signs indicating that we should wait there to be led to our table. On another sign, we read "the oven is hot and we are all in a good mood". Well, we wait there for some time, we see 2 ladies inside the restaurant through the window, and they see us too. However, we are not picked up. We go to the door and say a friendly "Hello" into the house. Now one of the ladies comes out and we ask if they are open and if they have a table for us. Wow - rather dry and laconically, we are offered a table. To make it short: the ordered snack including homemade, still warm bread was great. The two women apparently do not excel in dealing with guests, as they either ignored other guests or also dealt with them curtly. We pay, briefly wonder what it would be like if the two waitresses are not in a good mood, and continue our museum tour somewhat perplexed but strengthened.

After visiting the open-air museum, we are in a sightseeing mode, so we drive straight to the treetop walkway. There, we walk 1.3 km at a height of about 20 meters on wooden bridges and can enjoy the forest, trees, and the view from above. At the end of the route, we go up the 44-meter-high tower. I (Petra) admit that I don't feel completely comfortable up there, but I still walk all the way up. Just as we reached the top, it starts raining and we quickly go back down the switchbacks.

Fortunately, there is a café downstairs, and we indulge there while waiting for the rain to stop.

We use the late afternoon to rest and read in the apartment. In the early evening, the rain stops, and I (Petra) take another walk in the forest. When I return from this walk, I urgently need to shower, as all the creatures of the forest seem to have attacked me.

The weather will be nice tomorrow, and we want to go cycling again.