Visiting Berchtesgaden Salt Mine was cool and Going up to the Eagles Nest was cooler!

We left Arcotel Castellani early after breakfast around 8:00 AM in our bus. It takes just 30 or 40 minutes to reach Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, a mere 16.6 miles from Salzburg. This area is famous for its salt deposits and provided a rich commodity and a source of revenue for the people in ancient times. Because of this it was occupied by France, Austria(Salzburg) and Germany.

The visit to the salt mines was interesting. You need to purchase tickets to enter the Salt Mines and the shop. Shop alone is free where you can buy salt related products. You must wear the proper attire to the mines which you can wear over your clothes and store your other items in the lockers (2 Euros which will be returned). After wearing the special over clothes, you wait your turn to ride the rails. This was an interesting experience. However, there are also walk ways and staircases. After reaching the bottom of the rails you cross the subterranean salt lake in a boat with other visitors to visit the gallery in the museum. It is pretty well done with lots of stuff to see how salt was recovered and brought to surface for commercialization.

There appears to be a slat mine health resort, 'Heilstollen' where you can find relief for several kinds of ailments.

Berchtesgaden was also the holiday retreat for Hitler and his lieutenants. The Kehlesteinhaus (Eagle's Nest) atop the Kehlstein peak was a present to Hitler for his 50th birthday. We will visit the Eagle's Nest after visiting the salt mines

"Salt is the most valuable gemstone given to us by the earth." 

Justus von Liebig (known as the greatest chemistry teachers of all times)

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Justus-Freiherr-von-Liebig

Before embarking our journey to the Eagle's Nest, we had breakfast/brunch/beer/coffee at one of the smaller towns on the way. The bus to Eagles Nest takes you to an intermediate point after which you take a specially fitted bus to go another intermediate point. From here you take enter the tunnel to the elevator shaft. You then ride up to the disembarking area to walk to the Eagle's Nest. The view of Bavarian Alps from here is unforgettable. Cameras can only capture a fragment of this beauty.

Here is a slide show of this visit. Come back here later as I plan to upload at least one video.