Munich & Salzburg

The next morning, a Monday, I began my long journey (12 hours) to Munich. First Marlies drove me to the station. From there I changed trains three times, then to a tram, and then a subway, before getting picked up from Susanne in Munich. Whew! I was exhausted. Needless to say I didn't do much the first couple of days. I had actually wanted to go out on Wednesday and look at the city, but the subway employees were on strike, so the trains weren't running that often. On Wednesday even I babysat for Susanne's kids, which was really fun, because I had missed them (I used to babysit for them a couple times a week when they lived in the states). On Thursday I finally went into downtown, where there were 4312341234 tourists because Oktoberfest was about to start. I bought a smoothie, walked around, and then went to a museum with exhibits about the Oktoberfest and the Nazis. Admission was only 2 Euro for students. That's the nice thing about Europe-travel, museums---cultural things--are all pretty affordable. On Friday I went to a memorial at the University of Munich for Sophie Scholl and the other members of the Nazi-Resistance group, the White Rose. I was in the building where she and the others had actually passed out the pamphlets speaking out against Hitler, back when they were students at the University. For those who don't know, she and the others were arrested, and eventually, beheaded for speaking out against the Third Reich.

That weekend involved me feeling not too great, so I didn't do a whole lot. On Saturday I did go with Susanne and her family to a Trachten outlet (an outlet for traditional Bavarian clothes) where I bought my pink Dirndl. On Sunday I was feeling better, so Susanne, her son, Frederic, and I went on a 10 km bike ride through the famous English Gardens. It was a beautiful day and it felt so good to exercise. We, of course, stopped somewhere in town and rewarded ourselves with ice cream.

To be continued tomorrow.

<3 Molly

UPDATE:

Wish I really had continued writing about this, because, although you always think you'll remember exactly what happened: you don't...

What I can tell you is the following:

That next week, on Thursday the 23rd, I ended up going to the Oktoberfest (200th Annual!) and meeting Kristen for the first time. She is another girl in my German Master's program. She and I starting talking on Facebook and then decided to get together after we bot found out we were in Munich at the same time. So we both put on our dirndls, and I added one of those gingerbread hearts to my outfit, and we met at the train station. We went to a beer tent first, where I ordered a beer and lemonade. It was so ridiculously expensive-about 15 Euros total-for my drinks. I couldn't even finish them because they were so large! After she and I got acquainted we decided to go on a few rides, including the ferris wheel, where we enjoyed a beautiful view of the city. When we were done with that we decided to go out for ice cream. Having lived in Munich she had friends who owned a shop, and they hooked us up with some delicious free sundaes :-). Another night that week Kristen and I went to visit her friends that she had met when she worked as a missionary in Munich, and on another night we went to the movies to see: Groupies Bleiben nicht zum Frühstück.

On Sunday the 26th Uwe took the kids and me to Schloss Nymphenburg, where we took a walk and enjoyed the scenery. It was a truly beautiful place to be. :-)

On Wednesday the 29th I went to the top of the Olympic Tower to see a view of the stadium and the rest of the city. I also enjoyed a crepe at a nearby crepe stand, an then went ahead and splurged on a Hop on Hop Off tour of the city.

On the 30th, my last day in Munich, Susanne and I organized a girls night that also included Christine and Nancy. Christine and I met up early for dinner and then met the others at the movies. There we had a few drinks before going in to see Eat Pray Love. The movie was okay but wasn't as good as we had hoped-and a bit too long for my taste. However, I enjoyed the evening very much and was happy to see everyone.

On October 1 Susanne kindly drove me to the train station, and I headed into what I felt like was the unknown. Luckily my friend Kerstin, who studies nearby, picked me up at the train station in Salzburg. She helped me check into my room and find the restaurant where I was to meet the rest of the group. I am forever grateful to her for that. I would've gotten so lost without her.