Bavarian Holiday (ca 1950)

here prob this is the letter I've heard you so long I just got back from a little excursion to a place called turning day in the Bavarian Alps they used to call it a rest Center now they call it a recreation center when it comes to places to relax this is it I probably don't have to tell you the whole thing was on good ol uncle Samuel one of the extras they throw in I guess for us guys in eto [Music] we blow in and I gave the place the old one silver I want to tell you it seemed to have just about everything and we hadn't even begun to dig in [Music] you should have heard the GI desperately went to sign in just like paying get almost everything has been explained to you by the booth and board outside there other signs we have up around the Breast Center but there are a few things I'd like to have you know before you register the first thing we have a wake up system here defending a few men's desire to get out at a particular hour just move the name of the desk and the page ball will take care of you in the morning the next thing is a registration you each sign the register that'll be individually after you sign the Kumar my right will issue a coca-cola ticket advance ticket a package of cigarettes and it felt good explaining the chronic CRS Center so we registered like at the Ritz they showed us to our rule don't ever feel sorry for me get hot and cold running water you've got at home but how about valet sir the feds reminded me of the kind mother used to make we didn't have to make them either their chambermaids for that so I really went to town shower complete with my own whole cake of soap shine on the Brogan's and a shave and a haircut the work then came child call and darn if we didn't even get piano music with our meals not good but music in fact I heard our professor used to be considered good in the old Germany you'd go for the food there Bob almost anybody would I think the very ins are famous for good food good beer and good music you can check and double-check the first two the service was on the snappy side too in fact I would have left the good size tips if I'd been chopped enough to be there as a civilian [Applause] the next day we went sightseeing in Berchtesgaden the nearest town and that was really simple the stuff I saw was strictly out of guidebook I just took it easy and stroll around the town and took in whatever sights came along every once in a while I saw a gang made up like something out of a musical comedy just hanging around as though they were waiting for Nelson Eddy to come out and throw them a cue I kinda went for the shorts they wear it to look nice and comfortable understand the made a chamois skin and if you know your stuff you can tell where a guy comes from by the way his pants is stitched I saw a lot of other interesting stuff two trucks that ran on charcoal for example and shopping bag that ran on bicycles you imagine mom when I rig one up for I got to see scenery to mount Botsman no less the second highest mountain in Germany is my first doubt but I hope it won't be my last or you wouldn't believe all the things you could do in that joint when I ran out of ideas I looked over the bulletin board and they thought of everything there was fishing for them is like sit I suppose hang close be what I gone for that horses which as you know I can take a leave alone pitching horseshoes all sorts of outdoor he-man stuff which definitely ain't for me when I'm on vacation was a wonderful feeling none of it being compulsory but that athletic stuff was strictly for somebody else not me all of a sudden we saw something that was right down our alley a trip up the lake and we were just in time to make I wasn't too late to grab the best seat on the boat doll next to a cute little floor from the Red Cross by the way Tony day means Kings Lake but did you take German I forget anyway at some Lake 800 feet deep in spots and every place you looked along the shore was a picture I wish you could have seen that Red Cross yell he was definitely your type mine too for that letter I got along swell with it [Music] we had a tough time trying to keep up with all the sights in one place there was the sort of cross and the captain explained it was to commemorate the death of sixty pilgrims who were drowned there in 1688 then we hit echo point which is supposed to have the best echo in the world and the skipper Heath - and did his stuff hoist with a few go [Music] darn if I didn't like the echo better than the original writing that Electric Lodge is like going piggyback on a swan and for picture postcard settings I wish you could have seen Bart Alaba a little community we've had it looks like a toy village only too good to be true I saw tip of a waterfall too famous I understand but I forget the name of it then there were fishermen hauling their nets in their boats I was sure getting an eyeful when disaster that is I was giving misread force of light when she flashed a wedding ring under my nose you know how allergic I into that kind of stuff so naturally I was a little upset off the beam then on top of that darkness she didn't help and point out that her husband was the major in the paratroops knowledge which is my cue to sign off but fast well everything happens for me [Music] later we stopped off for a look around so I got in some hiking around the countryside in spite of myself and done nice country this too the only thing was that my dogs were barking of them after a while we came to a little cabin and bought some postcards which you'll be seeing one of these days then we dropped into a little church built way back in the 11th century later dedicated to those pilgrims who were drowned in the lake and there was a person woman at the altar and I got a kick out of realizing people like Terez and worshiping their for 900 years I ran into something else at this big something that would have handed you a laugh Bob a herd of X Nazi cows all duked up with flowers on their heads I thought I was seeing things at first but finally I got the lowdown it seems it's not unusual for these animated milk dispensers to wander off somewhere or even fall off a cliff so if a herd is still intact in the fall the owner celebrates by decking his cows out with flowers that night they put on a show for us which got off to a bad start so far as I was concerned the gal I met on the boat came in with another guy my buddy couldn't help calling my attention to oh well you can't have everything I always say [Music] [Applause] [Music] you would never be held over at the Rialto but we all got a terrific kick out of seeing it over here one of the numbers was in three languages I think French German and English at least part of it sounded like how do you do [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] and that was the end of another perfect day the next morning we took off for Hitler's hideout a short distance away in a place called over Salzburg next arch what is the stuff in the engineered foot up so this is the diagram that the Germans left known as over Salzburg or Hitler's mountain retreat this is the front of all hotel where you are now these are the German SS Bert Hitler kept to the best companies of SS troops here at all times he also has violent police force here's here's the old boys nob Patil there's a huge window on up front in front of it he gets an excellent fix you serious and back in the house itself to the system of 23 miles of tunnels they connect all these different places they have electricity down there you could add water around here you like a small on the ground is there anything else you'd like to know yeah say whose is forming here Foreman was a Nazi Party leader boy was that join a wreck I don't ever in ever getting such a kick out of seeing rules but if any plays ever asked for trouble this one and that sure did my heart good to see what we did to it [Music] you want to see the autograph collection on the wall there looks as though most of the guys in the eto been up there already some war correspondent was painting a picture the day we were there and he told us he was going to write a book about the place well it's something to write about all right that view oughtta Hitler's when they're released our face to you it's one of those things you have to see to believe [Music] by the way on the trip back we stopped at a native wood carvers Hut wood carving is one of those things the variants of famous for you know and one thing caught my eye particularly a beautiful Madonna with some of the finest workmanship I'd ever seen so I bought it and sent it home to Ethel he is hoping she gets it okay the old boy who made it was a genius from idle and speaking a dull I coughed up quite a bit for that Madonna the next day was Sunday and Dawn had barely cracked when I thought I heard singing I staggered out onto the balcony outside my window and Dawn defined didn't it turned out to be the girls who worked around the place on the way to church it sure was a swell heal from that balcony kind of spoiled me for anything less than a pet out there singing seemed to be well it seemed to be part of it all I sure didn't feel like tearing myself away but was my last day there and I had to do just that I can still hear that singing though I don't think I'll ever forget that trip to file in to be external and when we hit a sign saying you had a brother I kept thinking to myself you can sure say that again the only thing that could have made it better would have been to have you alone that's all for now Bob write soon give my regards to all the game [Music]