It was a sad day Monday, as we have reached the final page of our itinerary. Mondays company visit was to Hoerbiger with a trip later to the town of Oberammergau. I was well rested for Monday since I knew it would be a 12+ hour day. At the company tour we listened to presentations and walked around the facility. Hoerbiger makes pieces for manual car engines and although they are no more than a quarter inch think and have a diameter of about 6 inches, the production process is extensive. In fact, there seemed to be more steps in making these car pieces than Audi had in their car manufacturing process. The Hoerbiger factory had a good mix of manual and automated labor. Hoerbiger is in an interesting situation as they are losing business. One of the presenters said that at the plant, they are operating at 60% capacity compared to 5 years ago. 

After Hoerbiger, we journeyed to the alps in the quaint town of Oberammergau. The bus dropped us off at the base of a ski lift that went to the summit of a mountain with jaw dropping view from atop it. The cable car ride was stunning and a bit frightening when it would stop or wobble. But the view from the lookout deck at the top of the mountain is one of the greatest sights I have ever seen. On one side of the mountain you could see Germany and in the other you could see the snow capped Austrian Alps. As a group we took many pictures and I cannot express how breath taking the view was. At some point I would love to return to either Bavaria, Switzerland, or Austria during the wintertime to see the entire mountain range covered with snow. Only 3 more days left in Germany and I am gonna miss it!