The Lake Constance (or Bodensee in German) lies on the border of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The lake area has one of the warmest summer microclimates in the country.
There are so many great places around the lake it is tough to decide which ones to hit. We picked Mainau known as the "Island of Flowers" as our destination with a bit of sightseeing along the way. Getting to Mainau is a bit of a journey. The first step is the train to Lindau, the nearest lakeside town to our resort.
Lindau is actually located on an island in the lake and is connected to the mainland by a road bridge and a causeway for walkers and trains. From the train station we walked down to the harbor. The harbor entrance is marked by the New Lighthouse and the Bavarian Lion.
The old lighthouse or Mangturm was erected in the 13th century. It stands on the promenade as a reminder of the heavy fortifications that once surrounded the city.
The view across the lake is simply breathtaking.
There is so much more to see in Lindau including the Old Town but we have to save it for another day if we want to make it to Mainau. From Lindau pier we could take a boat straight to Mainau. And while it would make for a very pleasant 3 hour lake cruise we decided to shorten it a little and took the train to Friedrichshafen where we would begin the boat portion of our journey. To get from the train station to the pier in Friedrichshafen we walked along the shore and through a part of the old town.
Friedrichshafen is known as "Zeppelin City". In 1900 first Zeppelin took off from here and until World War II the town produced giant airships bearing their inventor's name. Zeppelin museum is located next to the pier where we boarded the boat.
Once on the boat, we decided not to stop off at any of the other towns along the way, but rather stay on board all the way to Mainau and use the time to have lunch while enjoying the views of lakeside towns and the Swiss and Austrian alps on the other side of the lake.
With lunch, we enjoyed the best Pilsner beer we have ever tasted, an Oskar Farny Premium Pilsner. It was very smooth with no bitterness and plenty of flavor. Every beer that we tried was better than anything we tried at home, so the German reputation for beer is intact.
The island of Mainau is a huge flower garden established by the royal house of Sweden. It is so unusual to see this almost tropical island where palms and orange trees grow practically in the shadow of the snow-covered Alps. We were there in the height of the rhododendron blooming season. We entered the park via the harbor entrance and found ourselves on the Rhododendron Avenue. The variety of colors was simply unbelievable.
The rainbow of flowers runs thru entire park. There are terraces, fountains and various gardens including the huge Rose Gardens. In the center of this botanical oasis is a castle that was once a residence of the Knights of the Teutonic Order.
There is also an extraordinary butterfly house with lush tropical vegetation and countless rare butterflies. The area is beautifully designed with the cobbled path and bridges over the waterways and even a waterfall.
When we were ready to exit, a lady employee pointed to a butterfly that somehow everyone was overlooking. It must have been 8 or 10 inches across and was beautifully colored.
On the boat ride back to Friedrichshafen, we enjoy more views. Meesburg is another picturesque lakeside town with two castles. The old castle,Altes Schloss, dates back to 7th century.
We hoped to visit Meersburg and the castle, but alas, we ran out of time. That was a very full day.
