Whilst in Munich you must go to one if not many beer gardens. Whilst in said beer gardens you must drink beer. It was the most logical thing to do despite the understanding that we had a 4am wake up call for a 5am train out of Munich to Amsterdam. With our hangover to beer consumption ratio at an all time low, we went for it. We had to, anyway, it would be a sin to not, right? After all, it was Robin & Justin's first time to Europe, they are honey-mooning and it would be improper to not rise to the occasion. So many reasons to drink another liter of beer. After another, after another. Yes, it was a blast in Munich.
We arrived in Munich by train on …. hmmmm... see, this is the part that gets tricky when you're a professional traveler for a month – you forget what day it is … so let's say we arrived a few days ago by train from Heidelberg. Our hotel, small, but nice, gets five stars for water pressure and one star for pillow comfort. Too lumpy. The decision was made that we would go straight to the Hofbrauhaus for some food and drink. I am going to take credit for that decision because it was most definitely the best decision of the day. The Hofbrauhaus was founded in 1589 but did not open as a restaurant to the public until 1897. There's a lot of history here. On the night of April 25, 1944, the first airborne bombs struck the Hofbräuhaus. Three subsequent air raids almost completely destroyed the building. Despite the massive air raids during World War II that almost completely destroyed the Hofbrauhaus, several hundred beer steins remained undamaged in the cellars!! Today, it is the second largest beer tent at Oktoberfest. The Hofbrauhaus equation is this: combine traditional German food with frothy liters of beer. Add music from an oompa band, tourists and locals sitting closely at picnic-like tables, dancing and singing and PROSTing, too EQUALS one hell of an unforgettable time. We didn't care how many other places there were to go in Munich, we would be back for the brilliant food, the crazy scene but most of all, the beer. It was an early morning for us, full of travel, so we decided on an early night. After a few hours at the Hofbrau, we retired to our modest hotel room and watched the A-Team, in German. Erik says there's something un-American about watching the A-Team in German. Although it was funny for BA to “Pity the Fool” in German.
 |
|
Our second day would be a much more sober one. The town of Dachau is just outside of Munich's city limits and it houses the first ever concentration camp. Our tour guide asked our group, “Why are you here?” and various answers were heard but they echoed each other. “To honor them.” “To never forget.” “To learn so we shall not repeat.” The concentration camp has several of its original buildings but the entry way is a reproduction. It was torn down after liberation on April 29th 1945. This exact replica's door reads “Work Shall Set You Free” in German so, we were told, the prisoners would have a sense of hope that maybe if they worked hard, they would be released. This, of course, was not so. The gate is always open, symbolically saying “Never Again.” One original building, still standing and currently part of the memorial, was once used as the maintenance quarters. It was in this building that the prisoners would come to surrender all of their belongings as well as their identity. They were given numbers and it was illegal for them to go by anything but that number. We read about how Hitler came to power through intimidation, manipulation and propaganda.
I'll let the pictures tell the story ...
 |
| A portion of the train station platform remains. This is where the prisoners first arrived at Dachau in the very early years. |
 |
| Work Shall Set You Free |
 |
| Prisoners at Roll Call - held twice daily and could last for many hours. This photo was used for Nazi propaganda - although unhappy, the men look healthy. This was most definitely not the case inside the camp. |
 |
| Roll Call - a photo. Prisoners had to attend Roll Call dead or alive. It was up to the other prisoners to drag the dead out to Roll Call so they could be counted. If someone was missing, they would stay until everyone was accounted for - they stood for hours on end, often up to 18 hours with no bathroom, food or water. If a prisoner collapsed they would be beaten, most often to death. |
 |
| The gate to the camp - it is never closed. |
 |
| View from the maintenance building's window. A guard tower. There were 7 total. |
 |
| We visited just days after the anniversary of Liberation - April 29, 1945. |
 |
| Four to five men or women would share one space to sleep. |
 |
| Crematorium. Walking in and around was very difficult. I felt guilty breathing. |
 |
| The old Crematorium. 11,000 people lost their lives here. |
 |
| The Gas Chamber. I didn't want to walk in this room or even take a picture of it, but it's important for others to see. |
We saw pictures so horrific it is hard to believe they're real. It seems that no matter how many movies I see, how many memorials I go to – it never gets even a little bit easier.
Since we found them to be entertaining and a fantastic way to meet people as well as learn a lot, we decided to join Mike's Bike Tours once again in Munich for our final day. Mike's Bike Tours started in Munich 17 years ago and has expanded to other cities in Europe, including Amsterdam! Another four hour ride through the city with a lovely 45 minute break at the second largest beer garden in the world where we enjoyed a liter of beer and some lunch. Rob, our guide, was fantastic. A funny dude with love for the city so serious it was contagious.
 |
| The Hofbrauhaus was our first stop! |
 |
| rubbing the shield for good luck |
 |
| More good luck! |
 |
Dodgers Alley - this gold strip in the alley is a memorial for the route many Munich residents who took this route to avoid walking past the shrine where they were obliged by law to give the Nazi salute. |
 |
| Inside the Theatine Church. Quite possibly the most stunning we've seen on our trip. |
 |
| Rob, our tour guide was full of brilliant energy and history. Originally from White Plains, NY, Rob moved to Munich a year ago. |
 |
| Beer Garden next to the Chinese Tower - the second largest beer garden in the city. |
 |
| riding and picture-taking - not a great combo |
 |
| The Eisbach, a man-made river. |
 |
| Bavarian Flag |
 |
The Glockenspiel
|
We met Robin & Justin on the bike tour. They are honeymooning for three weeks in Europe!! Robin, originally from Pittsburgh, relocated to Seattle four years ago to be with Justin after deciding it was time to close the long distance chapter of their relationship. They were married last November and we were very excited to learn more about them! After the tour we decided to meet up and have dinner. What a great decision! They are fantastic and fun! We started at a beer garden close to the Marienplatz. It is a popular place for locals to go and decompress after the work day. It was absolutely packed! Luckily we found a table and squeezed in close next to the people already enjoying their cold brew. After one beer we decided to go to Hofbrauhaus for dinner. This was fine by Erik and I - we were already big fans of the place. Robin & Justin were leaving Munich the next day, like us, so it would be the perfect send off. With the oompah band playing and the sounds of glasses clinking, it was even more of what we wanted from Germany. Finally Erik could satisfy his craving for a pork knuckle! We got a table close to the band and next to three great people from Liverpool. Drinking, laughing, chatting, drinking, eating, story-telling and more drinking the night away, together, with our new west coast friends, the night carried on ... too fast. After two liters and some dinner we decided to start the walk back to the hotel. Not ten minutes into the walk we ran into another bar that served Augustiner beer - one that Justin really wanted to try. How could we deny this man a beer? So, we hopped right back off the wagon and got down to business. This meant more laughing, more drinking, more chatting and .. more drinking ... But, the night did have to come to an end ... it was late and Erik and I had a 4am wake up call ... we said goodbye and watched them walk toward their hotel.
Some of the fun ...
 |
| Meet Robin & Justin - fantastic fun from Seattle! |
 |
| Erik's last dinner in Munich - a pork knuckle. |
 |
| yes, more |
 |
| our Italian man friends |
 |
| on the walk home |
 |
She knows me so well already! Trying to prevent pirate eye!
I write this to you on a seven hour train ride from Munich to Amsterdam. Poor planning maybe? I guess we had no idea how far it really was but the ride has not been bad at all. First Class usually means empty seats and quiet time. Erik is taking a nap and I've just finished Water For Elephants. It took me over five days to finish the last chapter. I was sad to see it go .....
To Amsterdam!
Cheers,
Kate & Erik 5/10/2011 |
