Apologies for a few days with no updates. We are now in Paris and enjoying out time here. This has meant some late nights and early mornings. We added a few new blog posts so that you could track where we were, although we are about 4 days behind. So you know our current itinerary, we will be in Paris until Monday morning, then we have a Chunnel ride to London, where we will be until Wednesday. We will keep posting updates on safety and the overall trip as we are able. Love to you all.
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Deep Thinking Day in Dachau
We woke up slowly again. Our pace seems to lag the further into the trip we get. The cumulative impact of long hours and miles traveled takes a toll. But at last, we are on German time so at 9am sharp the doorbell to Renate's house rings and Marina is welcomed in, bringing in the freshly made bread and pastries for breakfast. Renate and Marina have spoiled us serving a huge breakfast with a variety of meats (including liverwurst), cheeses and breads (the olive bread being a favorite). And of course pastries and lots of coffee to start us moving. The pastries were great because they would have 4 or 5 cut them up in pieces so we could all try bites of each one. We had fun with "Quark" an ingredient we found in several breads, both sweet and savory. We think it's like ricotta but honestly that's just a guess as Google was unable to provide help.
After breakfast, we packed up with plans to head out for the day to Dachau Concentration Camp. Marina had joined Tim and Michelle on their first visit ten years ago. This time we all went including Renate. Entry to the museum is free and we paid a few euros each for the audio guide, which really added depth to the experience. We expected to stay a few hours, but the audio guide pulled us deeper into the sobering experience. It's still chilling to see the iron sign Arbeit macht frei - "work makes you free". We appreciate that the people of Germany allow this site to be preserved, a symbol and reminder of how the masses can be manipulated and a slippery slope becomes a steep slide.
We completely missed lunchtime during our walk through Dachau.
Leaving the concentration camp, we go into the historical part of the town of Dachau for dinner and desserts. The mood is still heavy and slowly lifts as we get further from the concentration camp. A walk through old town reveals another quaint European town. We come upon a restaurant that serves traditional Bavarian food and settle in on the patio with a round of beer. We enjoyed our meal and ordered one of every dessert on the menu. It was fun trying the cherry and the apple strudels, fried apples, and a simple scoop of vanilla ice cream that came with an awesome berry sauce. The desserts came with an option of vanilla sauce or ice cream, the waiter was kind enough to allow us to order them with ice cream and brought a small dish on the side of the vanilla sauce to taste it.
We enjoyed the short ride into Munich with Renate and Marina. We were seated mostly together, except there was a 40-something German woman seated in the middle of our group. As we chatted she tried to ignore our conversation and not appear to eavesdrop. But somehow the conversation turned to laundry and Renate mentioned the lack of covering of some of our groups "slips," then Renate compared it to Tim's "slips" at which time the German woman couldn't help but start laughing. She apologized profusely but joined in on the remaining part of our conversations until we reached Munich.
We have scheduled special transport for tonight on a Couchette on the night train to Cologne, Germany with the intent for a short stop before we continue onto Brussels. As the train pulls into the Munich Station, we find our car and Tim steps aboard...shortly thereafter he realizes he is alone in the couchette. While Michelle, Susanne and Christyn said their goodbyes to Marina and Renate on the platform and then entered the couchette, Tim had to do so in the cramped corridor of the sleeper car. We appreciated the warm greeting that they offered us and the time they spent showing us Bavaria and a surprise trip to Austria. It makes adventures like these enjoyable to have friends that are so welcoming.
As we pull away from the Munich station, we adjust to our new beds. A four bed couchette is a tight space and the the WC and washrooms are down the "hall." The space between the bunk beds is just wide enough for the ladder that is used to reach the top bunks. We are provided a very small pillow, a sewn up bed sheet that forms a "sleeping bag" of sorts and a light blanket. Too awake to fall asleep we chat for a few minutes before moving to our respective beds. It doesn't take much with the gentle rocking of the train to make us fall into a night of sleep.
After breakfast, we packed up with plans to head out for the day to Dachau Concentration Camp. Marina had joined Tim and Michelle on their first visit ten years ago. This time we all went including Renate. Entry to the museum is free and we paid a few euros each for the audio guide, which really added depth to the experience. We expected to stay a few hours, but the audio guide pulled us deeper into the sobering experience. It's still chilling to see the iron sign Arbeit macht frei - "work makes you free". We appreciate that the people of Germany allow this site to be preserved, a symbol and reminder of how the masses can be manipulated and a slippery slope becomes a steep slide.
We completely missed lunchtime during our walk through Dachau.
Leaving the concentration camp, we go into the historical part of the town of Dachau for dinner and desserts. The mood is still heavy and slowly lifts as we get further from the concentration camp. A walk through old town reveals another quaint European town. We come upon a restaurant that serves traditional Bavarian food and settle in on the patio with a round of beer. We enjoyed our meal and ordered one of every dessert on the menu. It was fun trying the cherry and the apple strudels, fried apples, and a simple scoop of vanilla ice cream that came with an awesome berry sauce. The desserts came with an option of vanilla sauce or ice cream, the waiter was kind enough to allow us to order them with ice cream and brought a small dish on the side of the vanilla sauce to taste it.
The single girls happen to notice that our young waiter is handsome with ice blue eyes. They try to strategically capture him in a photo. When the time comes for the bill Tim follows him into the restaurant to use the credit card machine. After settling the bill, Tim asks the waiter for a favor...could I take a photo? The waiter offers to take one with all the women but Tim thinks it might be too embarrassing. Instead we settle on a good spot with nice lighting. After the picture the waiter wanted to see it and gives his approval. Tim and the waiter share a wide smile and laughs as they are viewing the photos. Shortly after Tim returns to the table, Marina leaves her phone behind as the girls use the restroom. We secretly turn on airdrop and plot a way to get Christyn's phone too. Michelle executes the plan, and as we walk toward the bus station Tim airdrops the photo to Marina and Christyn. Suddenly squeals and laughs erupt as the whole plan comes together...everyone laughs at the silly things Americans do. We hope the waiter could hear us and it brings a smile to his face.
We took the train back to Renate's house and began the process of packing up our bags to move on. Marina, learning from her prior experience with our ability to get ready on time, gave us a deadline that was a half an hour earlier than necessary. She was starting to understand that American and German timeframes needed some adjustment to prevent undue stress. It wasn't until we were hustling to the nearby train station that Marina told us, with a smirk on her face, that we had plenty of time so there was no need to rush.
We took the train back to Renate's house and began the process of packing up our bags to move on. Marina, learning from her prior experience with our ability to get ready on time, gave us a deadline that was a half an hour earlier than necessary. She was starting to understand that American and German timeframes needed some adjustment to prevent undue stress. It wasn't until we were hustling to the nearby train station that Marina told us, with a smirk on her face, that we had plenty of time so there was no need to rush.
We enjoyed the short ride into Munich with Renate and Marina. We were seated mostly together, except there was a 40-something German woman seated in the middle of our group. As we chatted she tried to ignore our conversation and not appear to eavesdrop. But somehow the conversation turned to laundry and Renate mentioned the lack of covering of some of our groups "slips," then Renate compared it to Tim's "slips" at which time the German woman couldn't help but start laughing. She apologized profusely but joined in on the remaining part of our conversations until we reached Munich.
We have scheduled special transport for tonight on a Couchette on the night train to Cologne, Germany with the intent for a short stop before we continue onto Brussels. As the train pulls into the Munich Station, we find our car and Tim steps aboard...shortly thereafter he realizes he is alone in the couchette. While Michelle, Susanne and Christyn said their goodbyes to Marina and Renate on the platform and then entered the couchette, Tim had to do so in the cramped corridor of the sleeper car. We appreciated the warm greeting that they offered us and the time they spent showing us Bavaria and a surprise trip to Austria. It makes adventures like these enjoyable to have friends that are so welcoming.
As we pull away from the Munich station, we adjust to our new beds. A four bed couchette is a tight space and the the WC and washrooms are down the "hall." The space between the bunk beds is just wide enough for the ladder that is used to reach the top bunks. We are provided a very small pillow, a sewn up bed sheet that forms a "sleeping bag" of sorts and a light blanket. Too awake to fall asleep we chat for a few minutes before moving to our respective beds. It doesn't take much with the gentle rocking of the train to make us fall into a night of sleep.
Castles and Countries (a.k.a The Day We Decided to Add Austria to the Itinerary)
On Sunday, Marina drove us along the Auto Bahn to the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau Castles in Schwangau. It was a lovely drive past cows, country, and sheep, but the Jack Johnson that Marina played on the radio put us all to sleep.
Once we had arrived and purchased our tickets we enjoyed the pretty views as we hiked to the smaller of the two castles for our first tour. The tour of Hohenschwangau castle was fascinating and fun because we had such a knowledgeable and engaged tour guide that was more than willing to pause and answer questions or expand on his explanation. We learned some brief history of the royal family members (most of which were named Ludwig, declared crazy, or both) who resided there and some background information on the region and the real-life Swan Lake.
We had a four hour break before our next castle tour, so we enjoyed some Belgian chocolate that Marina had brought while resting on a bench with an incredible view of the vividly blue lake water. We also stopped for some traditional German food (and beer, of course) at a beer house before hiking up the mountain to the other castle. A few in our party were missing home a bit and ordered the sausage that came with French fries. :)
The Neuschwanstein castle is the true "Cinderella castle" that inspired Disney (an adorable little girl was actually dressed up as Cinderella for the tour) and it was the more popular destination for tourists. As a result, this tour was much faster paced with only general descriptions and did not allow us to stop in each room. The tour group was large and the guide was definitely not interested in answering questions. It was still a great castle with interesting decor and some neat quirks like the indoor cave that the king wanted to be included.
After leaving the castles, Marina took us on an impromptu trip to Austria just to add another country to our list. It was only a short drive away and a 2 minute visit where we stepped a toe into the country, but we can all officially say "I've been to Austria." When we got back to Renatta's house, we enjoyed a cold dinner that consisted of bread, pretzels, and various dips/spreads (and obviously beer) that was very good. It was a quick time to bed, as the next day was to be spent visiting the memorial site at Dachau.
Once we had arrived and purchased our tickets we enjoyed the pretty views as we hiked to the smaller of the two castles for our first tour. The tour of Hohenschwangau castle was fascinating and fun because we had such a knowledgeable and engaged tour guide that was more than willing to pause and answer questions or expand on his explanation. We learned some brief history of the royal family members (most of which were named Ludwig, declared crazy, or both) who resided there and some background information on the region and the real-life Swan Lake.
We had a four hour break before our next castle tour, so we enjoyed some Belgian chocolate that Marina had brought while resting on a bench with an incredible view of the vividly blue lake water. We also stopped for some traditional German food (and beer, of course) at a beer house before hiking up the mountain to the other castle. A few in our party were missing home a bit and ordered the sausage that came with French fries. :)
The Neuschwanstein castle is the true "Cinderella castle" that inspired Disney (an adorable little girl was actually dressed up as Cinderella for the tour) and it was the more popular destination for tourists. As a result, this tour was much faster paced with only general descriptions and did not allow us to stop in each room. The tour group was large and the guide was definitely not interested in answering questions. It was still a great castle with interesting decor and some neat quirks like the indoor cave that the king wanted to be included.
After leaving the castles, Marina took us on an impromptu trip to Austria just to add another country to our list. It was only a short drive away and a 2 minute visit where we stepped a toe into the country, but we can all officially say "I've been to Austria." When we got back to Renatta's house, we enjoyed a cold dinner that consisted of bread, pretzels, and various dips/spreads (and obviously beer) that was very good. It was a quick time to bed, as the next day was to be spent visiting the memorial site at Dachau.
Munich Tours and Folk Fest Frivolity
We made a plan to get together for breakfast at 8:30 so that we could be on the metro into town by 9:30. The only problem with that plan? Renata's beds are super comfortable and we were very tired! We were all down at breakfast by 9:45 and then we seemed quite content to take our time. Renata brought out a wonderful assortment of meats, breads, cheeses, fruit, coffee and tea. Marina stopped off at the bread store to buy some fresh pretzels and some sweet pastries. It was all so delicious. Renata let us know that this wasn't how typical Germans at breakfast. You could see the wheels in Michelle's head turning trying to see how we could fold this kind of spread into our normal breakfast routine.
Finally "tour guide Marina", as we are lovingly referring to her, kicked into action and got us moving towards the door with a shout, "Hey guys!" We made it to the metro station, not for the 9:45 train (oops!) But for the 10:15. A short ride and a jaunt over to the Marienplatz, Munich's main square, we met the other exchange student Tim and Michelle hosted many years ago, Pia . It was a sweet reunion for Tim and Michelle and also Marina since Pia has been studying and traveling.
As the greetings continued and while we waited for the glockenspiel show, Pia and Marina explained the scenes around us. We were standing in the middle of a protest with a high security presence. She mentioned how organized these events are with one day being those with right leaning political beliefs and the next day those leaning to the left, and back and forth they go. The problem, she said, was that they never really talk to each other. As for the buildings, in one direction was the New Town Hall buildings that have been restored since WWI and the other direction was St. Paul's church that was reconstructed from damage done during WWII. Then the marionette clock show began, demonstrating how they conquered their enemies. An exciting few minutes!
Marina and Pisa led us on a tour through Munich with many historical sites and cultural experiences. We walked through the Viktualien Market and enjoyed shops and booths of fresh vegetables, fruit, olives, decorations and our favorite, The Crazy Ice Cream Maker. We've been told he makes many great flavors of ice cream but always has a few weird ones he offers as well. Marina mentioned a german sausage ice cream she tried once, and Pisa said there was a salmon one once too. When you order your regular flavors you are then offered a taste of one of the weird flavors. This shop was a small one, so no weird flavors here. Instead we enjoyed lime&cherry, mango, white chocolate and a few other German named flavors. Delicious!!
Back to the tour, we walked past the large cubed Jewish Historical museum/monument. We stepped into the narrow Asam Church and awed at the beautiful dark baroque decor in such a small setting. Continuing on, we stopped at another church and learned of the legend that the builder made a pact with the Devil so that he could build the church higher. The deal was that the Devil would allow the tall height, but when he stepped into the church he didn't want to see any windows in the church except for the one at the alter area. The Devil ended up loosing, as the builder built the church so that there were no visible windows from the entrance, but once you stepped inside 5-6 steps you would see there were many tall windows covering the sanctuary. It is said that the Devil was so angry that he stamped his foot on the ground, leaving a permanent footprint in the floor of the church.
On the outside, along the bottom of the church walls were lined with headstones and relics. Around another corner was a car free shopping street which gave our group a moment to spread out and step into the Deutches Museum store of gadgets and innovations for all ages.
All this walking and shopping worked up our appetite for the famous Hofbrauhaus (HB). We sat outside and were entertained by college guys being guys and multiple groups of bachelor and bachelorette parties. As an appetizer we gobbled up the biggest pretzel we had ever seen with our pints of Belgium beer. With all this we still managed to have room for the traditional dishes of sausage, sauerkraut, purple cabbage salad, pork with potato and bread balls in a sauce.
Continuing through the shopping district, Pia showed us her favorite spice shop with three stories of global spices. Then next door we stopped at the tea shop and left with a few packages of tea to take home. Tim was rather patient as these two stores took quite some time for the ladies! (We are still hunting for more Marzipan tea for Michelle.)
The day continued with a walk through the Odeonsplatz (the square that links past and present Munich.) Here we saw the stage, Viscardigasse, where Hitler attempted his first coup and was later arrested. Also in this square was the church where sweet Pia lit a candle for our safe travels. Across from the church we strolled around the Residenz Munchen and through the royal court gardens (Hofgarten) and through the gazebo. We stopped at the Englischer Garten and watched surfers line the canal and alternate jumping in to do their tricks at the one wave. The strong current would sweep the fallen surfers quickly down the canal. We are thankful our active boys don't live near this extreme sporting site.
Nearby we stopped at the once broken down graffitied WC (water closet). Now the refurbished, Freulein's Grunier, offers a selection of beverages for those entering the beautiful park. Here we had iced coffee and our first Mezzo soda-a 50/50 mix of Coke and Fanta. Yum! Guess what European kid-friendly drink we will be making back home?
You might be thinking after all these events of the day and walking for hours that we would be exhausted and head home to sleep. Oh not at all! These traveling Hardley's & Jackson's have Folkfest to attend. This is small town version of Oktoberfest that travels from city to city in Munich throughout the year. Think Oktoberfest mixed with your local fair. One very large tent with all of the traditional Oktoberfest trappings (beer, food, a live band, lots of happy people and tables for them to dance on) and all of the carnival rides and games of your local fair. We were excited and happy that our visit coincided with the event.
It was a train ride out of the city, a pit stop at the house to grab a scarf (Tim's outfit does not change) and we were off. Thankfully Pia's boyfriend, Dominik and his friend Frank were willing to drive so we could all attend. Marina's mom Renata joined us as well. In all, we were a merry band of 9 that night.
Walking into the Folk Fest we were surprised to see so many people dressed I traditional Bavarian garb. Special dresses for the ladies and lederhosen for the men. It seemed like everyone, young and old, was wearing their traditional clothing for the occasion. Pia told us that you could tell if a woman was taken or single by the tie on the apron of her dress. If the tie was on the left she was single, if it was on the right she was taken and if it was on the back it meant she was a widow. She did admit that sometimes when ladies go to these events they will move the ties back and forth depending on if they want to encourage attention, and possibly have a beer purchased for them, or if they want to discourage attention, especially towards the end of a festive evening.
The food and company were great, and the band was a cover band playing a lot of popular German and American songs. We were all pretty excited when an American song came on, both because the Germans sang enthusiastically along with it and because we could join in as well. There was a bit of modern, but also some old classics (anyone remember AC/DC? They do!). We stayed into the wee hours of the evening in this surreal moment, standing on table seats with beer steins raised high singing at the top of our lungs and surrounded by thousands of new German friends. It was a memorable one for sure!
Finally "tour guide Marina", as we are lovingly referring to her, kicked into action and got us moving towards the door with a shout, "Hey guys!" We made it to the metro station, not for the 9:45 train (oops!) But for the 10:15. A short ride and a jaunt over to the Marienplatz, Munich's main square, we met the other exchange student Tim and Michelle hosted many years ago, Pia . It was a sweet reunion for Tim and Michelle and also Marina since Pia has been studying and traveling.
As the greetings continued and while we waited for the glockenspiel show, Pia and Marina explained the scenes around us. We were standing in the middle of a protest with a high security presence. She mentioned how organized these events are with one day being those with right leaning political beliefs and the next day those leaning to the left, and back and forth they go. The problem, she said, was that they never really talk to each other. As for the buildings, in one direction was the New Town Hall buildings that have been restored since WWI and the other direction was St. Paul's church that was reconstructed from damage done during WWII. Then the marionette clock show began, demonstrating how they conquered their enemies. An exciting few minutes!
Marina and Pisa led us on a tour through Munich with many historical sites and cultural experiences. We walked through the Viktualien Market and enjoyed shops and booths of fresh vegetables, fruit, olives, decorations and our favorite, The Crazy Ice Cream Maker. We've been told he makes many great flavors of ice cream but always has a few weird ones he offers as well. Marina mentioned a german sausage ice cream she tried once, and Pisa said there was a salmon one once too. When you order your regular flavors you are then offered a taste of one of the weird flavors. This shop was a small one, so no weird flavors here. Instead we enjoyed lime&cherry, mango, white chocolate and a few other German named flavors. Delicious!!
Back to the tour, we walked past the large cubed Jewish Historical museum/monument. We stepped into the narrow Asam Church and awed at the beautiful dark baroque decor in such a small setting. Continuing on, we stopped at another church and learned of the legend that the builder made a pact with the Devil so that he could build the church higher. The deal was that the Devil would allow the tall height, but when he stepped into the church he didn't want to see any windows in the church except for the one at the alter area. The Devil ended up loosing, as the builder built the church so that there were no visible windows from the entrance, but once you stepped inside 5-6 steps you would see there were many tall windows covering the sanctuary. It is said that the Devil was so angry that he stamped his foot on the ground, leaving a permanent footprint in the floor of the church.
On the outside, along the bottom of the church walls were lined with headstones and relics. Around another corner was a car free shopping street which gave our group a moment to spread out and step into the Deutches Museum store of gadgets and innovations for all ages.
All this walking and shopping worked up our appetite for the famous Hofbrauhaus (HB). We sat outside and were entertained by college guys being guys and multiple groups of bachelor and bachelorette parties. As an appetizer we gobbled up the biggest pretzel we had ever seen with our pints of Belgium beer. With all this we still managed to have room for the traditional dishes of sausage, sauerkraut, purple cabbage salad, pork with potato and bread balls in a sauce.
Continuing through the shopping district, Pia showed us her favorite spice shop with three stories of global spices. Then next door we stopped at the tea shop and left with a few packages of tea to take home. Tim was rather patient as these two stores took quite some time for the ladies! (We are still hunting for more Marzipan tea for Michelle.)
The day continued with a walk through the Odeonsplatz (the square that links past and present Munich.) Here we saw the stage, Viscardigasse, where Hitler attempted his first coup and was later arrested. Also in this square was the church where sweet Pia lit a candle for our safe travels. Across from the church we strolled around the Residenz Munchen and through the royal court gardens (Hofgarten) and through the gazebo. We stopped at the Englischer Garten and watched surfers line the canal and alternate jumping in to do their tricks at the one wave. The strong current would sweep the fallen surfers quickly down the canal. We are thankful our active boys don't live near this extreme sporting site.
Nearby we stopped at the once broken down graffitied WC (water closet). Now the refurbished, Freulein's Grunier, offers a selection of beverages for those entering the beautiful park. Here we had iced coffee and our first Mezzo soda-a 50/50 mix of Coke and Fanta. Yum! Guess what European kid-friendly drink we will be making back home?
You might be thinking after all these events of the day and walking for hours that we would be exhausted and head home to sleep. Oh not at all! These traveling Hardley's & Jackson's have Folkfest to attend. This is small town version of Oktoberfest that travels from city to city in Munich throughout the year. Think Oktoberfest mixed with your local fair. One very large tent with all of the traditional Oktoberfest trappings (beer, food, a live band, lots of happy people and tables for them to dance on) and all of the carnival rides and games of your local fair. We were excited and happy that our visit coincided with the event.
It was a train ride out of the city, a pit stop at the house to grab a scarf (Tim's outfit does not change) and we were off. Thankfully Pia's boyfriend, Dominik and his friend Frank were willing to drive so we could all attend. Marina's mom Renata joined us as well. In all, we were a merry band of 9 that night.
Walking into the Folk Fest we were surprised to see so many people dressed I traditional Bavarian garb. Special dresses for the ladies and lederhosen for the men. It seemed like everyone, young and old, was wearing their traditional clothing for the occasion. Pia told us that you could tell if a woman was taken or single by the tie on the apron of her dress. If the tie was on the left she was single, if it was on the right she was taken and if it was on the back it meant she was a widow. She did admit that sometimes when ladies go to these events they will move the ties back and forth depending on if they want to encourage attention, and possibly have a beer purchased for them, or if they want to discourage attention, especially towards the end of a festive evening.
The food and company were great, and the band was a cover band playing a lot of popular German and American songs. We were all pretty excited when an American song came on, both because the Germans sang enthusiastically along with it and because we could join in as well. There was a bit of modern, but also some old classics (anyone remember AC/DC? They do!). We stayed into the wee hours of the evening in this surreal moment, standing on table seats with beer steins raised high singing at the top of our lungs and surrounded by thousands of new German friends. It was a memorable one for sure!
Kicking Munich Off Right
Stepping off of the train we quickly spotted Marina at the end of the platform. The Hardley's had hosted Marina (and Pia who we would meet with the next day) for one month in 2005. They both attended a language school during the day and lived with the Hardley's at night. On the weekends the Hardley's would take them to various places in California so they could learn about American culture and language.
They Hardley's had not seen her in the last 10 years, and she grew so much. She is now done with college and had a job in the franchise department at McDonalds. McDonalds is huge in Germany with over 1400 locations around the country. Munich is the central corporate location and often will be the test kitchen for new promotions and new products. One time a year everyone in the corporate headquarters has to work in a store for a few days so that they continue to have the experience of the customer and the stores.
She enjoys her job very much, though maybe not the few days in the store. She said that she always forgets what she should do and makes things harder for those who work there. :)
We bought tickets for the S Bahn metro to get out to Marinas moms house. They live just outside of the city center. Marina's mom Renata met us at the metro station to take our bags. She greeted us with a very large hug. As her car would only seat 5 people, Michelle and Marina walked the short distance to the house while the others drove.
At the house Renata had already begun a feast for dinner. Included were pork sausages, steaks, chicken and pork chops. As sides were an assortment of breads, a green salad and a homemade potatoe salad. Tim was an especially big fan of the potato salad, going back for 4-5 helpings of it. The new joke was that we were going to wake up in the middle of the night to find Tim eating a bowl of potato salad in the dark.
In addition to the food a variety of beers were brought out for us to sample. Marina had the variety so that we could find the kind that we liked before we went into any restaurants or beer halls. One of them, the radler, quickly became a favorite of the group. A radler is a mixture of beer and lemon aid. This helps to cut the percentage of alcohol in the overall drink and to sweeten the beer slightly. Michelle and Susanne also liked the darker beers.
It was all so delicious and we had a great time catching up and planning for the next few days of our visit. We finished the day off with strawberries and cream which was a deliciously simple way to end the evening.
Tomorrow we will get together with Pia and walk around the city center of Munich. Then we will see where else the day takes us.
Auf Wiedersehen!
They Hardley's had not seen her in the last 10 years, and she grew so much. She is now done with college and had a job in the franchise department at McDonalds. McDonalds is huge in Germany with over 1400 locations around the country. Munich is the central corporate location and often will be the test kitchen for new promotions and new products. One time a year everyone in the corporate headquarters has to work in a store for a few days so that they continue to have the experience of the customer and the stores.
She enjoys her job very much, though maybe not the few days in the store. She said that she always forgets what she should do and makes things harder for those who work there. :)
We bought tickets for the S Bahn metro to get out to Marinas moms house. They live just outside of the city center. Marina's mom Renata met us at the metro station to take our bags. She greeted us with a very large hug. As her car would only seat 5 people, Michelle and Marina walked the short distance to the house while the others drove.
At the house Renata had already begun a feast for dinner. Included were pork sausages, steaks, chicken and pork chops. As sides were an assortment of breads, a green salad and a homemade potatoe salad. Tim was an especially big fan of the potato salad, going back for 4-5 helpings of it. The new joke was that we were going to wake up in the middle of the night to find Tim eating a bowl of potato salad in the dark.
In addition to the food a variety of beers were brought out for us to sample. Marina had the variety so that we could find the kind that we liked before we went into any restaurants or beer halls. One of them, the radler, quickly became a favorite of the group. A radler is a mixture of beer and lemon aid. This helps to cut the percentage of alcohol in the overall drink and to sweeten the beer slightly. Michelle and Susanne also liked the darker beers.
It was all so delicious and we had a great time catching up and planning for the next few days of our visit. We finished the day off with strawberries and cream which was a deliciously simple way to end the evening.
Tomorrow we will get together with Pia and walk around the city center of Munich. Then we will see where else the day takes us.
Auf Wiedersehen!
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Personal Safety Update #3
Hi all,
A quick note to say we are all doing well. We had a great three day visit with some friends in Germany and a whirlwind day of travel and sight seeing in Brussels Belgium. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we are off to Bruges for two days. We hope to catch up on the more detailed blog posts in the next few days. It is 1 am here so I am off to bed. :)
Michelle
A quick note to say we are all doing well. We had a great three day visit with some friends in Germany and a whirlwind day of travel and sight seeing in Brussels Belgium. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we are off to Bruges for two days. We hope to catch up on the more detailed blog posts in the next few days. It is 1 am here so I am off to bed. :)
Michelle
Friday, June 9, 2017
Personal Safety Update #2
Hi all,
We are catching up on some delayed blog postings so you will find 4 new ones posted today. We are now caught up with our travels so far. We have now arrived in Munich and are in the home of our friend Marina and Renata. We will be in Munich through Monday. Blessings to you all!
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