Auf wiedersehen

Recovered (if possibile) we returned to the city center. A quick cup of McDonald's coffee and a Latte for me put us right in the middle of Munich again. I won a free milkshake so I found the next McDonald's and cashed that baby in. We checked out a bookstore and found an audio bible for kinder. Just what I needed to listen to in order to pick up a little German in my spare time, you know something simple that is familiar and repeatable. It was a beautiful day to walk along the streets. My desire to have a music experience was realized the more we walked around. There was music everywhere on the streets; accordian, violin, flute and one guy had rolled a grand piano out on the square and started playing one of Chopin's Impromptus. We decided to find a place to wait for the Glockenspiel even though we were an hour and 15 minutes early. I think this was the longest we stayed still in any one place since we arrived in Germany. Sherry, afraid there was more to see, took off on her own while I watched our stuff and listened to all the music and activity that was on the Marianplatz. Not only was there music but miming, acting, juggling, magic and all sorts of one acts going on all around that were so entertaining and enjoyable as seen in this picture of Sherry taken while waiting.

Later close to 5:00 pm as we were waiting for the Glockenspiel to play another grand piano appeared right by us with three other people on on the flute (amazing) and a violin and cello. Needless to say many of these people got some of my spare change. I gave partly because of the entertainment provided, partly because of the quality of talent and partly because I hope this profession (or what ever it is for them) continues for anyone who visits this city. It was simply authentic and culturally unique. And then there was the 5:00 performance of the Glockenspiel. It was worth seeing and I videoed the whole thing that lasted about 10 minutes. There were a lot of school groups that made it hard to hear but it was fun to watch and hear the crowds reaction. We had our last dinner there in the inner part of the city and what a way to end the trip...two order of Jaegerschnitzel bitte mit Breze. I think Sherry wanted to cry but held off until we got back to the room. The train back dropped us off about a 10 minute walk from the hotel which was a nice leisurly stroll at night. This basically marked the end of our stay in Germany for tomorrow we fly home.

Dachau

Our second day in Munich was ever so slightly just outside of the city center at a place called Dachau. I thought the crimalnal museum in Rothenburg was disturbing until I saw this. This is by far the most inhumane, evil thing I have ever seen. I took pictures but not enthusiastically and only to show my friends and family the terrible things that were done at this place and many other places like it all over Europe during the war. We spent a considerable amount of time here. Not that there was a lot to see but the audio tour we used captivated our curiosity and left us with a sense of responsibility to give respect to those who endured these conditions and to educate all those around us in a way that such a thing will never happen again.

To many question were raised in my mind here, too many whys and how comes...overwhelmed we decided it was enough. Sherry and I went to a small imbiss just outside of the memorial to have lunch (we could not eat there it just didn't seem right in a place where so many starved to death). We were quiet for sometime after.

A Home made Bavarian Dinner!

On our first night with the Martinis, Peter Martini did some quick research for coo-coo clock shops in the area that may be off the beaten path and thus not have the tourist mark-up. We went on a hunt for these and found one. The clerk spent a little time with us and after looking through their store and catalog decided on purchasing one and having them ship it to us. We left so excited for it was just the right one. We considered it our 25th anniversary gift (I know it was supposed to be a silver anniversary not wood). After seeing the city, we headed to the train to go out to the Martini's for a simply wonderful meal complete with labels of breads, spread and cheeses. We promised not to stay too late but it was hard to go. So much to learn about each other's family but the time must end until we see Jonas again in August. The trip to the hotel was pleasant. The Train dropped us off about 10 minute walk from the hotel which was a nice leisurly stroll for us at night through the city.

300 and I lost count.

We woke to a nice breakfast, a little expensive but worth it considering the options. The car was parked and if we had it to do over we probably would have gone straight to the airport and turned it in.

I know I didn't want to be driving in Munich anymore. We bought a 10 Euro pass that allowed both of us to go anywhere by any public transport anywhere in the city as many times as we wanted. This was great and gave us the freedom to travel about the city as we wanted on our own time schedule.

Oh, we do have a schedule, the Glockenspiel only played at 11,12 and 5. We were going to meat our exchange student and his family around 5 and we wouldn't be able to make the 11 o'clock so 12 it must be. First a quick look at a palace that was close by. This was beautiful and considering the cost of real estate here, one can only imagine the tremendous value. We wanted to stay longer for there was much to see (probably 4 days of stuff) here but a exciting view of the swans and the garden out the back was all we really had time for if we were going to see the Glockenspiel at 12.

So we caught the street car and then the rail from there and watched our map closely for our stop. Our stop never came. Names of places passed where we wanted to go were being announced over the speaker time was running out... Ah what happened? We quickly got off at the next stop and re-oriented ourselves with the map and after some help from the locals we were back on the train going the opposite direction. There was no stop where we thought. We were 15 minutes passed were we need to be and it was 20 minutes til 12. We missed the Glockenspiel. Oh well there was always tomorrow and there was lots to see today. Although over whelmed with so much to see, we decided to take the advise of our hotel clerks suggestions. Open air market first. Here we ate and spent considerable time just walking around amazed at all the little shops, and signs, and food and lots and lots of people. Where did they all come from I kept asking. This wasn't even tourist season. Tired and sensless I ventured up the Alter Peter tower while Sherry did some shoppping. 298, 299, 300 whew. I really didn't count the steps but someone said there were 300+ steps to the top. for me it was a very authentic climb straight up the inside of a tower that over looked the city. Once again Sherry was patient and had correctly calculated the amount of time I would take; just me and my camera poking the lens out the iron grid on a 2' walk around the top to capture some amazing shots of Munich.

A Cook-coo Flute!

Glad to be here in Munich in our hotel, we freshened up a bit and headed out once more to visit the Martins (Jonas' family) and the Munich madness. Back in the car (thinking now we should have got rid of this and taken public transportation around Munich), we were confident (well sort of) of our way. We had printed direction from the hotel, double checked with the hotel clerk (Sebastian) and off we were. It only took one wrong turn and the Munich Madness returned. This time it was un-repairable, we were lost in a sea of intertwining major interstates.

Ah atlast my first Germany phone call; to the police? no; the hotel?...no; 911 (or what ever that is here)? no. But ever so awkward, no other than, guess who... the Martinis! They were waiting for our arrival when they recieved our call. After a few minutes determining our location (down by the soccor stadium, that was kind of cool now that I think of it), Peter (the father), Jonas and his two oldest daughters met us in the middle of Munich to show us the way. How funny we now think but memorable never-the-less. Their house was beautiful and full of warm hospitality. We felt like we had known them our whole lives. We quickly began to get to know each other as if we had to get caught up on a life time of being apart. Jonas played Fur Elise for me perfectly and his youngest daughter, Laura, gave me a coo-coo flute, which I love. Dinner was excellent. Before we left we carefully discussed and mapped our way back home. Uncertain that we were confident and sorry we got lost the first time, Peter drove us to a main intersection from where we should be able to find our way. Having made plans to return tomorrow we parted looking forward to our next visit and a homemade Bavarian dinner. It wasn't long until the Munich madness set in. This time I need not explain our pain, but it was night and all the streets looked the same. Somehow in the midst of the madness we saw our quaint hotel. We crashed, very much tired and no time to blog or share pictures.

Munich Madness

The autobaun to Munich was a great feeling. Open country side, speeding along, no longer lost, beautiful wife by my side and Jason Mraz playing on a Austrian radio station. Both hands on the wheel and shoulder reared back, imagine that.

But what's this traffic slowing on the autobaun? Sherry had fallen asleep for about 20 minutes when we came to a complete stop (like turn your car off stop) in the middle of nowhere on the autobaun. The sun was beaming in my window so I rolled the window down to let some cool air in and I noticed some beautiful scenery once again and made the best of the constuction stopping traffic and got some lovely mountain views right while on the autobaun (not a picture many people would have opportunity to take).

I always get a little nervous when coming into a big city and this was no exception. Munich is big! Remember we have no GPS and only some pre-saved google directions saved on my netbook from the night before. Exits were hard to distinguish and signs were hard to follow (just done ever so slightly from what we are use to). It was the next hour that I call the "Munich madness"...we were not in Rothenburg or Salzburg any more. Our goal, find our hotel. Sound simple? not so.

Once we manage our way through the bigger "autobaun" roads we came to the inner city type road, tiny, one way (both direction.. figure that out), squeezing through oldly named road that changed names often, always with someone right behind you thinking he was still on the autobaun. We passed several streets several times until we were sure we had seen most of Munich unitl almost miraclously we saw a familiar site a quaint looking house like building tucked in the middle of a neighborhood that we had seen many times on the internet when booking. And lovely it was, such a nice place with very friendly help who were passionate about their work. We got a beautiful room, we felt like royalty.

So Long, Farewell.... Salzburg

Time to leave Salzburg. Our stay here was unforgetable and as usual It was hard to go. Sherry had made amazing plans and if she says we did everything we planned (plus the fortress) then I know our stay would be no more complete than if we had stayed another week. Saturday, our first full day in Salzburg, and the day we did the Sound of Music tour, was our ONLY cloudy partially) day with a small bit of rain in the morning. Because of this we decided to return to the "Hills" that we saw during the tour to get a few extra pictures on an absolutely gorgeous day. I warned Sherry that she still had not twirled around on some hill in Austria like Maria. She had hoped I had forgotten but no, this had become my latest passion for a photo. Then there it was, a beautiful, green hill with a snow covered mountain in the backgroud exactly as I imagined it (also close to the filming of a portion of the Do-Re-Me song). We pulled over on the side of the road and if ever there was any hesitation from Sherry it was quickly overcome by my pure excitement of the perfect picture possibility. Got it! Then on our way to Munich and the Autobaun. Wait look check that view out! Oh just one more picture! I don't remember this on the tour we must stop its a great place for a panorama

(justification for bringing my tripod all the way to Germany). Sherry has been so patient, we stopped, and I took pictures for about 30 minutes. After appologizing (because I said I would be quick), she said I figured on 30 or 40 minutes. After getting a couples (Sherry and I) picture we were back on the road. But not so quick. We discovered why we didn't remember this spot. We were lost. It was beautiful country side finding our way back, 15 miles of beautiful country side.

Mozart

I've been looking forward to seeing Mozart's birth place for sometime. And no this wasn't just my idea, everyone coming to Salzburg goes to see where Mozart was born and raised. I was disappointed because we could not take pictures. They don't realize I take pictures because without it I forget. But the museums we nice and they did make them hard to forget so unitl next time and when they realize that it doesn't get them more visitors to ban cameras I'll have to rely on my own memeory. There were two places we got to go. The first was his birth place and the second not far away was where he grew up. The second was an audio tour that took you through his house. I think I liked it most of all. It brought back so many memories of some of Mozart's music that I haven't heard in a long time (come on Pandora keep up). I actually found myself wanting to go to an Opera by him. Probably the most interesting fact from the birth place was seeing his violin and the clavichord that he use to write some of his pieces. The most memerable fact about seeing where he grew up was the use of the audio tour. There was so much information that it would have been nice to be able to take a break and return. The first picture beliew is where he was born and the second is where he grew up.

The Splitter

Well I woke today a bit confused. We were trying to figure out what time it was and figured the time zone had jumped us forward an hour. Come to find out they actually move time forward an hour like we do just so happened it was today. We did not figure this out until after lunch. Both Sherry and I longed to be home and worshiping with family. There is not as many opportunities to worship in Austria as we are accustomed back home. We decided to go up to the fortress and have our own time. Sherry brought her iPod and I brought the two headsets and the splitter so we could both listen at the same time. It was absolutely an amazing experience. Me, Sherry and the world around us communing together and with God. I thought it funny that I had such an urge to bring the headset splitter with me. Now I understand why. I will never forget that moment Sherry and I had together... worshiping.

We must have spent an hour there listening to worship songs and reading the Bible. I think I could have sat there longer but it started to get cold. My body ached for we walked up instead of riding. We did not regret our decision to walk but it no doubt will be a memorable hike.

Up here were many things to see including a museum and a puppeteer gallery. This was not on our list to do but a site anyone coming here should plan to do.

The Sound of Music

Today started off with a fantastic breakfast provided by the hotel and then, quicker than we were expecting, a shuttle was here to pick us up for the "Sound of Music" Tour. Very fun tour.

Lot's of information about the differences in the real story, the movie and where it was shot. Today also ended up being a bit overcast with a touch of rain now and again. Nothing to complain about but enough for Sherry and I to decide to try and return to some of the scenery spots on Monday as we are leaving to get better pictures.

After the tour we went to see the place from the movie where the "Do-Re-Mi" scene was taken. It was very nice and sort of exciting to be in the middle of Austria where a movie was made. I'll be honest, it seemed like I couldn't remember any of the details of the movie. I can't wait to watch it again and notice all the places and scenery. The tour guide also oriented us to the city a bit more so we feel ready to make the most of the day tomorrow and as we leave on Monday. We finished off the day at a nice restaurant suggested by one of the locals who worked at another resurgent and was closing for the evening. We walked in and asked if we had reservations. We started to get real disappointed because we were real hungry. We ended up getting the best seat in the house a cozy little nook. Very nice atmosphere and friendly waiter who took our picture.

And then a lovely stroll back to the hotel across the bridge used in the sound of Music as Maria and the kids were biking over the bridge. Well we did make one other stop at a five star hotel trying to go to the top to look over Salzburg at night and get a picture. We did this at the suggestion of our tour guide who said to walk right in there like you own the place and go up to the top and walk out on the roof and get a great night time view of the city. You can't go up there it was a fancy $100/person dinner place. We felt pretty silly trying. Oh well it was fun trying and to imagine the tour guide laughing at the thought.

Reflections on the way to Salzburg

Now that we are on the autobaun again, we had some time to bask in the sites we saw. So at a top speed of 150 km/hr (yes dad that's as fast as I'm going to go...and slowing down... just keeping up with traffic, really), we reflect on the day.

Man that was perfect weather. God has been good to us on this trip. Oh no Zach don't look back. Why? We'll never get out of here. I looked back... and immediately pulled over to capture this shot. See why it would be so hard to leave.

WiesKirsche was nice. Didn't need our coats at all. Do you think I'm too over the top with all my camera gear and the hat? Nah your fine... You just don't see churches like this in the States, well not around where we live anyway. Check these pictures out.

How nice it must be for some to go that far out in the country away from the hustle and bustle of life to worship. And then what about that monastary. I think it was nearly as fancy.

Boy Salzburg is going to be a change of scenery and theme... Mozart, Music and the City.

Our Hunger Satisfied at Panem

Ok that was pretty cool waking up rolling over and looking out the window at the Alps and seeing the King's Castle. We only planned one day here in Fussen and after a talk with the hotel owner decided not to tour the second castle but to move on to a couple sites just outside of Fussen toward Oberammergau. Again Sherry convinced me good things were coming. I'm so glad I have Sherry on this trip otherwise I would would get stuck at every spot. They are all so nice. A nice drive out in the country brought us to an amazing church building. Mass was just getting out and we went in well I took a deep breath in amazement (read the sign for anything that looked like photograph...making sure I could take some pictures of the inside) and then took a few shots of the designs. found a couple souvenirs just outside and then headed on to Oberammergau. It looked just like Gatlinburg and was a definitly a tourist shopping magnet. The nice thing is everything was open but there were only a few people there, how nice. In honor of all those that went to see "The Hunger Games" we decided to eat at Panem (see pic haha). Next stop, a monastery inside of a town called Ettle. This too was pretty amazing nothing like anything I had ever seen. Remember we are braving all this without a GPS. Before we left we got directions from google saved them and used that as our guide... so far so good we only stopped to ask directions twice. We drove through Garmisch-Paternkirsche considering going to the top of Zugspitze (highest point in Germany) but decided not to in the interest of time. We had to make it to Salzburg today. About two hours of driving brought us to our next little vacation spot for 3 nights. Sound of Music and Mozart here we come.

It Looked Like Mushrooms to Me.

What a beautiful morning. I hated to leave Rothenburg but sherry promised good things were to come. And since I haven't seen a castle yet I gladly packed and load the car for the next stop - Neuschwanstein and the Kings Castles in Schwangau. It wasn't long on our 3 hour drive before we got hungry. Determined not to eat at a Mcdonald's we kept driving until we found a little country town. We stopped in at a local market and asked if there were any restaurants around. Now this was a little more authentic since we were off the beaten path and the town was not expecting American especially in March during an off season. We were directed to a local italian pizzaria. It was a very formal dining room with a very nice atmosphere. I was going to enjoy this besides they had pizza. I couldn't read the menu and they offered an English one but we were stubborn and said we were fine. I found one on there that had tomato, cheese and mushrooms (Sherry helped me a bit) and the title was Funghi. That sounded like a good mushroom pizza name to me so Funghi bitte it was for me. When I got it I gave it to Sherry thinking they handed me her's because her's had some mushrooms on it and mine didn't (besides it tasted funny). She took one bite and said that it was some kind of fish and gave it back to me. I then realized I had ordered a tuna pizza! Too embarrassed to say I made a mistake I ate practically the whole thing (and one piece of Sherry's to wash down the taste). When the waitress brought the check she apologized for making a mistake with my order... her husband read her handwriting wrong... I'm still laughing out loud about it.

Down the road a bit more and something breath taking happened. I was trying to catch my breath and Sherry kept saying "what, what". All I could do was point... and there is was our first view of the Alps. Snow capped and majestic. I nearly wrecked pulling over to the side to get a picture (which I realize now many more beautiful shots were coming). I just wanted to walk the rest of the way taking pictures. I think we stopped like three times. One time Sherry said I don't think you can stop like this on the side of the road. I overruled the objection pulled over backed up just a bit for one of my favorite shots (see below) right out of the window on the side of the road.

Anxious to see the castles, Sherry was glad I finally got satisfied with the next picture and we were able to continue on.

As we neared our destination, we got so excited we dropped all plans (and our map) and went stright to see the Neuschwanstein castle. When we got there we almost cried. The whole one side of the castle was covered in scaffolding where they were doing repairs. After carfully looking at some pictures I realized that the other side of the castle will be quite beautiful so we bought our ticket and proceed to the tour... not to be disappointed.

Looking forward to tomorrow we heading toward our hotel. Since we had abandon the map directions we had we were basically lost. A quick stop to talk to the locals cleared up the way only to find out we were just across the street with a view looking at the Alps and the Castle; not to mention on a beautiful day!

Bring on the Bratwurst

First I want to thank God for the beautiful weather he is giving us. We were thinking we would get rain on the weekend but now the forecast has cleared up. Sunny and upper 60's... unusually nice weather this time of year (so say the locals). Today started with a walk around the city. Yes that's right, because this was a medieval city, it was surrounded by a protective wall, one which now you can walk around. We thoroughly enjoyed this experience. Our senses were overwhelmed with the sites and authenticity of this city. Yes I'm sure this is something like our Gatlynburg but there is something distinctly different here that draws you in and gives you a feel of the old life and history of the country. Ok we worked up a sweat walking this lengthy path but wouldn't miss it for anything. As if that wasn't enough walking, we walked down outside this city to get a view of it from a little town looking up at it by a "double bridge". Beautiful picture spot. The walk around, down and back up were enough to work-off any size Bratwurst. It was actually fun to shop around afterward. The windows were all decorated up and just drew you inside. Oh and I found a souvenir penny machine... I'm so excited (except it was 1 ERUO and a 5 Cent piece - there's is copper). I can't end this blog without mentioning our visit to the criminal museum...a morbid reminder of what justice life use to be. It was rooms and rooms filled with objects of torture. If you were accused of something back then and wouldn't admit it then you were sentenced to torture until you did, at which point you would then be executed. It wasn't until the mid 1800s that they realized this process promoted inaccurate confessions... duh.

The "O" in Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber

O the beauty of Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber! I told Sherry we need not go any further. I've seen Germany right here (well no castles yet). I can't think of a more beautiful place right now. A photographers dream and a couples paradise. How fun, how beautiful, how romantic. Our first paid tour was the "Night's watchman tour". Packed with interesting facts about the city's history and survival through hundreds of years.

Jet Lag Virus

Once we landed a little grumpiness set in... seriously we were hungry, tired, and frustrated. Once we found out we had not got a GPS we started to move toward panic. Imagine me in another country without a GPS. We exchanged some money and further panicked (though we were somewhat prepared for the terrible exchange rate $.66 for $1). After we got oriented and got in the car we definitely felt the jet lag. Being in a car in Germany on the autobaun was not a good idea. They drive fast and I mean fast. I was going 140 km/hr and they passed me like I was setting still. I mean the car shook as they went past!

First stop the Gutenberg Bible Museum. This is a must see. Just to see the old books and Bibles was quite interesting. I was sad I could not take pictures. They were pretty strict too. They were guarding the exhibits like anyone at any moment would run off with them (or take a picture as I thought). The actual Gutenberg Bible was basically in a vault, like bank style, with a guard.

We about died getting to Rothenburg. Between jeg lag tiredness and driving in the Indianapolis 500, its a wonder we made it. I did stop at a rest area and close my eyes. Once we made it to Rothenburg, Germany started to come alive for me. Rothenburg is absolutely amazing. Although very tired we found our hotel (right in the middle of old Rothenburg), and went to eat. A nap was now a necessity for Sherry looked up at me once, started laughing and said "Zach your eyes are crossed".

Dah your right

"Ok Sherry let's head towards our flight gate, A26". "Which one?" asks Sherry. "A26" I said... "Wow were going to get our excersize walking there", Sherry said. "That's perfect before a long flight", I said. "Are you sure it was gate A26? I thought I saw A21" Sherry questioned. "I'm positive, A26" I said with confidence. Look this spot is perfect. Not crowded at all. And we can lay down and put our feet up a bit... An hour later. "I'm going to read a bit" Sherry said. " ok I'm going to see if I can get on the internet to blog a bit"...an hour later. "I need to go to the bathroom", Sherry said (that's vasa closet... My only German lesson so far). "let's take turns so we don't have to take our stuff with us. This flight is going to be great. Not many people on this flight. I bet I can get a window seat." "Now boarding flight 356 to orlanda... I hear off in the distance. 30 min later. Sherry asked for some chocholate. We feasted on some m&ms and realized we were pretty much alone. 30 min now before boarding and we are alone? I check the bording pass again... "a Sherry your right it's A21".

We had plenty of time to get to the correct gate and this gate was much more crowded and a lot less hispanics. They loaded by zones. We were the last zone (5). The plane was nice and we had an empty seat next too us but no window seat. That's ok I planned to sleep. A nice pasta meal for me and a chicken dinner for Sherry and we were off trying to sleep. About 5 hours later we were woken with a hot danish. Sherry watched an episode of the mentalist. Now we are about an hour from landing and we start the real adventure. Flight stats are: distance 3990 miles, 7 1/2 hours, ground speed 529 mph and one time I saw the outside temp to be -99 deg F!

Thanks Nanny and Papaw

We got off to great start thanks to a visit from my parents. My parents came down to see our home school play (Wizard of Oz) in which Graeme was the Lion (and a great one at that). They said they would stay a couple of days to help us get use to the idea of idea of leaving our kids while we fly to Europe. I woke up at 2am and before I could convience myself to go back to sleep I was up doing last minute things. After about an hour of being up and trying to decide if I should go back to bed I realized that it was 8am in Germany so I decided to beging my acclimation to the time difference an just stayed up. As I write this we are in Phillidelpjia waiting for our flight. The trip was uneventful except for the security guard asking me what the bag of green stuff was in my bag and explaining to me how it looked to them. After a funny conversation about barley green and my unmarked can of shaving cream (which I ended up throwing away), we were on the plane and begining or 25th anniversary trip.

Hats and Hair

Packing has definitely not been the norm for this trip. Our minds have been consumed with our home school Spring musical (Wizard of Oz) and my Nephew Isaac (fighting cancer in Houston). As it stands right now, we may have a couple hours Sunday afternoon to complete our packing adventure. I thought it was funny that we were out shopping one day and I found a hat and thought it would be perfect for the trip. A Hat of all things! I hope I remember more than a hat for my trip :)

--praying that Isaac's body responds well to these next series of chemo...