Thursday morning:

The weather is great now. I practiced on Tuesday at the one remaining court at the old tournament site…the other courts have been turned into a parking lot and junior size soccer field. After practice, I rode my bike a bit around Rottach-Egern on the Tegernsee. It was quite crowded with tourists.

Yesterday I practiced first with Julie Dybenthal and Aussie who lives in the USA at the courts in Rottach and then went to the Bachmaier court where I hit for a long time with Heide Orth. I feel ready for this tournament. The weather was spectacular, chilly in the morning but warming up quickly, perfect for tennis.

I biked back to the hotel and then to the grocery store here. It’s always fun to look at grocery stores in different countries. This one is not huge but has a little of everything. I also went to the DM store to pick up bug spray. I play at the Durnbach courts near Gmund today and apparently the biting flies are quite bothersome there as it’s in a rural area and there are lots of farm animals nearby. I also biked yesterday through town and to the lake (Tegernsee), which is big and lovely and more peaceful than the chaos of town. The flowers on all the buildings are really gorgeous right now too.

Today I had an early hit, then I play my first match not before 3pm, 5th match (though they count 9am as first match even if matches start at noon).

Here are some photos of the court at the Bachmaier, the parking lot, the tennis courts in Rottach and the Tegernsee.