We tried to see if we could stay in our room at the Hotel Adler another
day but were told we'd need to wait until the receiptionist arrived...
at 10am....
There were several employees onsite.
One poor staff member was responsible for feeding everyone at
breakfast, bussing tables, and also checking out guests.
Several people checking out had to wait for quite a while to get any
help.
One of the chefs was the only person on site that morning who spoke any
English - all he could do was reiterate that we'd need to wait for the
receptoinist.
While Paul went to meet our canoe rental dude, we dutifully waited...
and waited... and waited... for the receptionist to arrive.
She showed up well after 10am, and she was apparently the owner based
on how well she was dressed.
The room we were in was booked that evening, if we wanted to stay we'd
be in a much smaller room.
We decided to leave our bags but find another hotel for the night.
If the Hotel Adler paid a fraction of the attention to their hotel as
they paid to their restaurant they would be able to provide a
reasonable level of service...
Meanwhile the canoe rental dude showed up with kayaks instead of canoes.
He was going to give us two kayaks for the three of us.
When we asked if we could have a third kayak he quickly agreed that
would be ok, so we ended up with three kayaks, a much better outcome.
We had just purchased a significant number of frosty beverages and some
snacks for our journey.
The kayak rental dude warned us that the river is patrolled and it is
not allowed to drink on the river, but also said that people do it
anyway of course.
We took his warning seriously and started drinking before we boarded
our kayaks, then packed the rest of the beer away for later.
10:28
10:34
Jed's pic
Jed's pic
11:05
Paul spent more time reclined then sitting up as the pictures show...
11:08
11:10
The river wasn't really pointed down, I'm just too lazy to straighten
the picture.
11:50
We pulled over for a beer, food, and bathroom break.
The riverbank was covered in yummy blackberries! :)
11:51
12:11
12:19
12:29
12:30
12:42
13:04
We pulled over at a large park along the river and discovered that we
were in Germany since they required payment in euros.
Not only
that, but the prices were actually reasonable since we were no longer
in Switzerland!
The menu was of course entirely in German and the staff didn't seem to
speak much if any English.
Item number 1 on the very large menu was a doner box [lower right
corner of this picture] - a kabob with some sort of potatoes according
to
my very limited understanding of German, so I ordered that.
I was extremely pleased to discover that a donner box also comes with
delicious sauce, and the potatoes were a huge load of yummy french
fries.
I absolutely loved my doner box, and it only cost 4 euros - best fast
food discovery of the trip!
13:32
13:33
13:33
13:33
13:36
13:42
13:42
Jed's pic
13:44
13:52
14:10
Jed's pic
Jed's pic
Jed's pic
14:12
14:12
14:35
15:01
Schaffhausen is ahead - this is the railroad bridge.
Our takeout point is just before the bridge on the right.
15:01
We were exhausted from spending all day in the sun... I'm sure the
drinking had nothing to do with it...
Paul called the kayak dude to pick up the kayaks while Jed and I
checked the TI for a hotel.
We discovered that all the hotels in town were full or nearly full
since there was a bike race starting the next day.
The TI directed us to a hostel that had
plenty of character but was also sweltering and a bit smelly.
Having failed to locate a hotel, we boarded a train back to Stein am
Rhein to retrieve our luggage.
The kayak dude arrived quickly, leaving Paul free to find a hotel while
Jed and I retrieved the bags.
Paul quickly booked the Romantik Suite at the fantastic Hotel
Kronenhof, then he got to see the Munot while Jed and I were retrieving
luggage.
Paul then went up to the Munot, the nearby fortress built with slave
labor in the 16th century
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Unfortunately the Munot closed before Jed and I could visit
15:30
15:38
William Tell
Schaffhausen
15:38
Notice the oriel windows - there are 170 oriel windows in Schaffhausen.
15:40
Schaffhausen
15:40
Schaffhausen
15:41
Schaffhausen
16:59
Jed and I are back in Stein am Rhein to pick up the backpacks in the
sweltering heat.
16:59
Stein am Rhein
16:59
Stein am Rhein
Jed's pic
Now Jed and I are back in Schaffhausen
Jed was sad to learn that he was going to miss the Jimmy Cliff concert
by one day...we were leaving the morning of Jimmy's concert.
Jed's pic
Jed's pic
18:08
Paul's pic
After Paul returned from the Munot he discovered guys giving away FREE
BEER on the streets of
Schaffhausen!!!!
They couldn't even give away beer successfully, many people declined
the FREE BEER!
When Jed and I finally arrived back in Schaffhausen we quickly found
Paul and the FREE BEER!!
Turns out this was the restaurant for Falkon brewery.
They were giving away two styles of FREE BEER as well as an apple beer
similar to cider.
We stuck around until the FREE BEER was gone, drinking more than our
fair share.
We chatted up the three guys handing out FREE BEER, turns out one of
them was Falkon brewmaster.
I'm guessing that Falkon was trying to see if anyone liked the apple
beer - we tried it, it was ok, but we didn't finish them.
No one else did either - as the guys were picking up the empties, most
of the apple beer was still in the cans.
Paul's pic
18:16
and we are back in Schaffhausen so we can all enjoy FREE BEER!
18:16
18:19
FREE BEER!!!
The red cans have apple beer.
We were polite and tried it... but didn't finish it...
18:28
My favorite oriel window featured a pirate with a parrot
18:29
19:12
Willam Tell again
Schauffhausen had live music in the street, and even a gal selling
cheap sausages in the streets, just like the guy in Zermatt.
Free music, free beer, and cheap food!!!
Schauffhausen rules!
19:38
We took a 20 CHF taxi ride to see the Rheinfalls.... and a few minutes
later called the same guy back for a 20 CHF return trip.
Rheinfall seemed pretty overrated - the taxi driver assured us it is
prettier at night since it is well light.
The taxi driver practiced his English with us, asking us if The Donald
was going to be our next president.
19:38
21:39
We eventually returned to the Falkon restaurant and actually paid for
beer this time.
It rained very hard for a few minutes while we were searching for a
restaurant, which was nice because it cooled down the air
considerably.
We stayed out too late...
The oriel windows, the old fountains, and the painted facades made
Schauffhausen a great surprise find, and arguably my favorite Swiss
town, even without the FREE BEER
Stein am Rhein has painted facades... and nothing else.
The only reason you should spend a minute in Stein am Rhein is to
launch your kayak downstream toward Schauffhausen.
Meanwhile....
Kent spent the night in Geneva
Previous
Wednesday August 12, 2015
Tour de Monte Rosa
Macugnaga to Stein am Rhein
Thursday August 13, 2015
Stein am Rhein to
Schaffhausen
