Spring Travel Journal Part 2 - Three Countries in One Day

Mountain Sunset, Schenna, watercolour, 5.5" x 8.5"

Blog 24

After a family reunion with my maternal family, we left my small hometown early on Sunday, June 7, for our trip to Schenna. Even though Nauheim has only about 11,000 citizens, it has a train station. We took the train to Munich, where we stopped for the family reunion of my husband’s paternal family, including my father-in-law, who had already arrived a couple of days earlier. We started with a traditional coffee klatsch (Kaffeeklatsch) with various cakes, coffee and tea.

 

If you haven’t noticed by now, most of the visits are as much about reconnecting and exploring the area as about food and local beverages – at least for the others because I don’t drink alcohol. The afternoon coffee time went smoothly into an evening at the Gasthof zum Wildpark, a traditional Bavarian restaurant, where our son, Dominic, also joined us after a trip to Iceland.

I always have a sketchbook with me. While we waited for our meal, I started drawing the centrepiece, which I finished after my return home. I was not the only one drawing. Ingo's cousin had brought his young daughter, who also started drawing and received suggestions from an extended relative. When she moved closer to our side of the table, I learned that she was also an artist. Thera von Huene specializes in dogs (and the occasional cat). We immediately had a strong connection through our love for animals.

The next day, we drove the scenic route through the Vinschgau region to Schenna. For Canadians and Americans, it must sound unbelievable that we started in Germany, crossed Austria, and finally entered Italy within a couple of hours. The first stop was the parking spot in Austria with a fantastic view of the German Zugspitze, Germany’s highest mountain.

The next stop was Curon Venosta or Graun im Vinschgau at Lake Reschen. Almost everyone speaks German and Italian in South Tyrol in Northern Italy. Therefore, most towns have an Italian and a German name.

Alt Graun refers to the old village of Graun im Vinschgau, known for the picturesque Reschensee (Lake Reschen). During the 1950s, the original town was submerged due to the construction of a dam for hydroelectric power generation. All residents had to leave their homes behind when the water rose. A reminder is the bell tower from the Alt Graun church that still stands - now in the lake. Most original citizens moved to the new village of Graun built nearby.

Then, we stopped at the St. Benediktkirche (St. Benedikt Church) in Mals. The church shows architectural Romanesque elements and features beautiful interior frescoes. They are among the earliest murals in central Europe and depict various religious scenes. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos of the frescos.

We could also see a rock in the churchyard that had carved indentations left by the many wagons that crossed it.

 

Because we were running late, we only drove through Glurns (also known as Glorenza), a small town renowned for its well-preserved medieval city walls and historic charm. Inside the walls, Glurns features narrow, winding streets lined with colourful historical buildings.

We also made a quick detour through Laas (Lasa), the marble city of Italy. The high-quality marble from Laas is used in architecture, sculpture, and design worldwide. In the picturesque town, you see marble everywhere - even the sidewalks and pedestrian crossings are out of marble.

sketch of a gerbra from the garden, watercolour pencils

When we finally arrived in the late afternoon at Haus Peters in Schenna (Scena), the mountains were breathtaking despite the rain. We enjoyed the next family reunion with South Tirol specialties, laughter and many trips down memory lane for Ingo and his family.

 

 

Next week, I will tell you about our adventures in Schenna and Meran (Merano).