My wife and I visited The Eagle’s Nest (Hitler’s alpine headquarters near the Austrian border), which has been preserved as a museum and tourist attraction.  We purchased tickets the evening before at a tourist information office next to the central Hauptbahnhof train station.  We assembled in front of the Karstadt shopping emporium at 8:30 this morning, just a short walk from our Hotel Monaco.  The large, comfortable bus provided a pleasant and detailed description of the journey and destination by our guide, who spoke generally exellent English.  We were fortunate that the entire load of tourists (about 30 in all) spoke English, and so we did not require multiple translations.  The excursion features a ride up some narrow mountain roads with spectacular scenery, and takes about 3 hrs. to get there and somewhat less time to return to Munich.  For those interested in World War II and, especially, 20th century German history, this visit is a must.  The Eagle’s Nest itself (Kehlstein) is mostly a bland restaurant atop a mountain peak, and there are separate fees for the bus from Munich, the ride in a smaller bus up the narrow road to the base of the mountain, a short walk through a cool and damp tunnel and then an elevator ride from the base to the top.  The elevator is quite large and lined in mirrored brass.  The mediocre food at Kehlstein contrasts quite sharply with the delightful and fresh variety of fruits, meats, cheeses, cereals and baked goods we were served at our hotel’s breakfast bouffet.  The most interesting part of this visit, besides the incredible views, is the history display of the Nazis’ rise to power and how that power was used to inflict untold terror and misery, and surviving bunker system of Kehlstein at the Documentary center where the tour buses park.  The pictorial displays, featuring photos, letters, official (and often signed) documents by various Nazi officials, and some original artifacts from the 1930′s and early 1940′s are all described only in German (a deficiency that really demands correction), but a recorded translation, item by numbered item, can be rented for only €2.  These give a remarkably chilling narrative on one of the bleakest chapters in human history.

Robert Apfelzweig
Foster City, California