Last year we joined the dreaded “second-home” brigade and bought a holiday / potential retirement apartment in a village called Seeg at the foot of the Bavarian Alps. Seeg was the first place I lived when I moved to Germany in 1991 and worked for the local paragliding manufacturer, Firebird Sky Sports. As a wide-eyed, paragliding-obsessed young chap in my early 20s I immersed myself in the local scene and quickly fell in love with the area. The mountains, the people, the amiable beer culture and the general warm welcome I was given, made it easy. My wife, Ariane, grew up just down the road in a similar landscape so it made sense for us to set up our weekend retreat here over 30 years later.