The morning clouds were burning off as we drove east from Lenggries toward the far southeast corner of Bavaria. Stretches of the Autobahn were free of speed limits so we cruised in our Volkswagen (that was fun).

I’m a planner. With all the online options to research travel destinations, you can form a fairly clear idea of areas you want to visit. I pin places on Google Maps, read restaurant reviews on TripAdvisor and find lodging on Booking.com.

We’re positioned in the foothills of the Alps in the German town of Lenggries. Just south over the first range of snow-covered peaks is Austria. It’s a dramatic change in scenery and culture now that we’re this deep in Bavaria.

Toward the end of our stay in Feuchtwangen, we traveled to one of the most-visited towns in Germany: Rothenburg ob der Tauber. I braced for an overwhelming number of tourists compared to our more off-the-beaten-path destinations.

We drove west from our home base in Feuchtwangen across the border from Bavaria into the German state of Baden-Württemberg. Our first destination was the historic town of Schwäbisch Hall in the Kocher river valley.

With our rented Volkswagen, we’re free to explore a large swathe of western Bavaria. The landscape is marked by gently rolling hills and slow rivers. The stretches of green are interrupted here and there by the pointed roofs and spires of old, preserved towns.

Mom safely arrived in Munich Thursday morning after her flight over the Atlantic. I’d taken trains from Landsberg am Lech to the airport to meet her. We collected her bags and headed for the rental car counter.

I headed due south from Nuremberg and west of Munich to the town of Landsberg am Lech in southern Bavaria. It was an area that I’d been interested to explore but never had the chance. As I’ve mentioned before, some towns in Germany incorporate the name of the river they’re…

This Easter Sunday in Germany I rode trains northwest of Nuremberg and explored the small towns of Bad Windsheim and Marktbreit. “Bad” in German means bath so towns with that word in their name usually refer to a historical spa destination.