[Note - this was written a few days ago, but I haven't been able to get online recently... so I'm way past Munich already] :-)
Arriving in Munich, it occurred to me that I hadn't been in a big European city for quite some time. Since Paris, every place I've gone has been a relatively small place. At these smaller cities, the train comes up along side the station; stops; lets people out & in; and then keeps on going in the same direction.
Munich's train station is big - 30+ tracks, and each track ends inside the building. There's a sea of people coming & going everywhere. Some running to meet their train. A few walking back after missing their train, and everyone else going on their way. I was excited to be back in a big city, and thrilled to be in Germany (I had really been looking forward to this part of the trip)
I had not booked any place to stay, so I set out in search of lodging. The first place I went to was honest with me - they told me they were a party hostel. Not wanting to be kept up until the wee hours, I went to another place. They were full. But, the 3rd time was the charm - I found a place not too far away that had an open bed.
With only a few days, I set out right away. I headed to the city center - a place called Marienplatz. A lot's going on there - there's the New Town Hall, which has magnificant architecture. After checking that out for a while, it was time to head to Virtalienmarkt. Under the huge Maypole there is different vendors selling different produce & food, and most importantly - a beer garden. I grabbed my first liter, and an enormous pretzl & went to town.
After finishing that, I noticed someone reading a book written in English - so I decided to go over to talk. After she & I chatted for a while, we decided to head over to Hofbrauhaus. It's an enormous beer garden that has become quite a tourist destination. Everywhere people are hoisting huge glasses of beer, and eating things like pork knuckles, sausages, etc... It also has an important history - it's where Hitler gave one of his first public speaches.
The next morning was the somber portion of my Munich stay. I visited the concentration camp at Dachau. As I did with Normandy, I decided to go with a tour group in order to get the most details about the history. It was definitely worth it - I got much more out of the visit than if I had gone there & walked around alone. The stories of what happend there are unimaginable. We were able to visit a dormitory, a prision block, and administrative block, and finally the gas chamber & creamatorium. After that, I also visited 3 memorial structures that have also been built on the compound.
Later that afternoon, I visited the English Garden in Munich. This was a big change of pace from the morning. The garden is huge, and full of people having fun. There's a stream that flows through the park, and goes over a small waterfall. People were jumping in & swimming around. I desperately wanted to join, but didn't have a swimming suit & had my camera with me. So, the best I could do was to soak my feet - it was very cold! (Lake Superior cold, for the Minnesotans reading this)
I continued to wander through the park, and came across the beer garden. Hooray! And, I ran into a guy that was on the tour during the morning. So, we sat down & had a beer. The beer garden felt just like Oktoberfest (on a smaller scale). People in leiderhosen, an Um-pah band, lots of beer, and lots of fun. We even saw a Beer Bike - a moving bar, where 8 people sit around on stools & peddle. The peddling powers the thing, and those 8 people get driven around while they drink. Definitely have to try that some time!
Oh, and there's a 'clothing optional' portion of the park. As was explained on an episode of Seinfeld once, there's 'good naked', and 'bad naked'. Most of the park was populated by the latter. :-( I walked through that area quickly.
After the beer garden, we headed up to a restaurant that my friend Brian recommended (Weyprechthof). We ate way too much, and drank another liter there. It was really good.
Today was more fun. I headed to a modern art museum, where I got to see some works by Salvador Dali, and some exhibits on 'old' stuff from the 1970s. They had some old school computers, including some of the first laptops.
After the museum, it was back to the English Garden! I love that place. I made my way to the stream again. After sitting around for a while, I couldn't resist. I took my shirt off, and emptied my pockets & climbed in. It was refreshing for a few seconds, and then I lost my breath. It was really cold! I couldn't believe people were playing around in it - I could only handle a minute or so. (On a side note - I firmly believe that my time in Singapore has softened my tolerance to cold... I'll have to spend a lot of time outside this winter, to toughen myself back up)
Well, now I'm down in Fussen, Germany. I discovered on the way down that the train schedules can, indeed, change without notice. The connection that I was supposed to take (according to my rail schedule) doesn't exist. Oh well, I just had to take 2 other connections, which only delayed me by an hour. At least I didn't get stranded at some station. Tomorrow I see the castles of Howenschwangau and Neuschwanstein - I have reservations for the morning (since it's tourist season), so it's good that I made it here tonight. :-)
Monday, August 17, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Gimmelwald
Wow - I can't believe that it's been almost a month since I came over here... time is flying by!
My most recent stop was the quiet, quintessentially Swiss, town of Gimmelwald. Everyone that has been there raves about the place, and with good reason. The town is nestled in between mountain ranges, and the views are spectacular! It's beyond small-town... there's a hostel (the world-famous Mountain Hostel), a couple guest houses, and then some old-school Swiss houses on the hill. Cows & sheep are grazing everywhere, and there's nothing to do except hike around or, perhaps, throw yourself off a mountain (preferably with a parasail attached).
I arrived in late afternoon, as the day's hikers were making their way back to the hostel. Nothing to do but relax & have a pizza (the hostel makes fantastic pizzas).
The next day, I set out early on a hike to the Schilthorn. James Bond fans will recognize the peak of this mountain as the Villian's lair from On Her Magesty's Secret Service. Despite the fact that I am in reasonably good shape (at least I think I am), this was a difficult hike. I was winded within 20 minutes, and was taking frequent breaks. Fortunately, the breaks are all very scenic.
About halfway up, the clouds started rolling in. Not wanting to get caught in a rain on a mountain (again), and not really wanting to climb all the way up to look at clouds - I changed my route. I headed up to another peak, which offered a cloud-free view. It was breathtaking - I had never seen mountains like that before. Hiking down, I found myself behind a waterfall that emptied into a deep mountain gorge - with a mountain in the distance.
Today I woke up early & took the cable car up to the Shilthorn. Yeah, I cheated, but my legs & available time wouldn't allow me to hike. The view at the top was great for about 45 mins, and then the clouds rolled in again. It was cool to watch clouds racing up the sides of the mountain towards us.
The hostel may as well have been a US embassy - I couldn't believe the number of Americans there. I met a nice couple from Brooklyn, another couple from Austin, and a big group from Indiana. There were also a couple of families from Minnesota at the guest house next to the hostel... small world. There were also a number of Aussies there. I have always found Aussies to be very friendly & fun-loving people, and the people here definitely lived up to that reputation. It was a lot of fun at the hostel!
This afternoon, I took the cable car back down - sure that I would return to Gimmelwald again. I'm back in Interlaken now, getting ready to head up to Munich tomorrow morning. I'm looking forward to hoisting huge steins of beer!
~~~~~
Tons of Americans - several new friends
everyone has computers
My most recent stop was the quiet, quintessentially Swiss, town of Gimmelwald. Everyone that has been there raves about the place, and with good reason. The town is nestled in between mountain ranges, and the views are spectacular! It's beyond small-town... there's a hostel (the world-famous Mountain Hostel), a couple guest houses, and then some old-school Swiss houses on the hill. Cows & sheep are grazing everywhere, and there's nothing to do except hike around or, perhaps, throw yourself off a mountain (preferably with a parasail attached).
I arrived in late afternoon, as the day's hikers were making their way back to the hostel. Nothing to do but relax & have a pizza (the hostel makes fantastic pizzas).
The next day, I set out early on a hike to the Schilthorn. James Bond fans will recognize the peak of this mountain as the Villian's lair from On Her Magesty's Secret Service. Despite the fact that I am in reasonably good shape (at least I think I am), this was a difficult hike. I was winded within 20 minutes, and was taking frequent breaks. Fortunately, the breaks are all very scenic.
About halfway up, the clouds started rolling in. Not wanting to get caught in a rain on a mountain (again), and not really wanting to climb all the way up to look at clouds - I changed my route. I headed up to another peak, which offered a cloud-free view. It was breathtaking - I had never seen mountains like that before. Hiking down, I found myself behind a waterfall that emptied into a deep mountain gorge - with a mountain in the distance.
Today I woke up early & took the cable car up to the Shilthorn. Yeah, I cheated, but my legs & available time wouldn't allow me to hike. The view at the top was great for about 45 mins, and then the clouds rolled in again. It was cool to watch clouds racing up the sides of the mountain towards us.
The hostel may as well have been a US embassy - I couldn't believe the number of Americans there. I met a nice couple from Brooklyn, another couple from Austin, and a big group from Indiana. There were also a couple of families from Minnesota at the guest house next to the hostel... small world. There were also a number of Aussies there. I have always found Aussies to be very friendly & fun-loving people, and the people here definitely lived up to that reputation. It was a lot of fun at the hostel!
This afternoon, I took the cable car back down - sure that I would return to Gimmelwald again. I'm back in Interlaken now, getting ready to head up to Munich tomorrow morning. I'm looking forward to hoisting huge steins of beer!
~~~~~
Tons of Americans - several new friends
everyone has computers
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Paragliding!
I went paragliding today - my first time. It was awesome!
Pictures speak louder than words, and video speaks louder than pictures (unless you have the sound turned off). :-)
The pilot also let me fly a little bit.
And, we did stunts (but, this isn't me flying the glider).
Pictures speak louder than words, and video speaks louder than pictures (unless you have the sound turned off). :-)
The pilot also let me fly a little bit.
And, we did stunts (but, this isn't me flying the glider).
Monday, August 10, 2009
Switzerland
I said Au Revoir to France on Saturday, and crossed into Switzerland. My first stop was Geneva. Geneva seems to be a very pleasant place - not too exciting to visit, but it looks like it would be a good place to live.
I arrived via bus, and had a long walk to the area where I'd be staying. I stopped to chat & get directions from a British woman, who explained that there was a huge festival going on & I might have trouble finding a place to stay. Fortunately, I was able to get a spot in the City Hostel. This was the first hostel that I'd stay at in Europe, and I was a little skeptical. But it turned out really great. It was very clean, very cheap (I'd heard Switzerland was expensive, but I was surprised to see how expensive everything is), and I was looking to meet people. I hadn't met many people so far, and I figured that it would be easier in a hostel. It worked out really well. I met a guy from New York City in my room. He's a high school teacher for at-risk youth, and was very nice to talk to.
The first night in the hostel was anything but quiet. There were fireworks being set off over Lake Geneva. They were the loudest fireworks I'd ever heard! The guy from NYC & I both thought it sounded like we were in a war zone.
The next day I got up & went for a walk down to Lake Geneva. There's a really cool display to promote astronomy down at the lake. There are several dozen huge posters on display, with incredible images from space (taken from Hubble or land-based telescopes). I spent some time admiring the images, and reading about the science behind them.
Then I walked around to the other side of the lake to see Jet de Eau. It's a huge water fountain that shoots water 140 meters in the air. The water exits the nozzle at 200km/hr (120mph). Of course I had to touch it - it was incredibly powerful!
After that, I grabbed a kebab for lunch & headed up to the United Nations. They offer free tours, so I joined & learned some really interesting stuff.
Geneva was enough for a day, but I was ready to move on. I took the train up to Interlaken, where I'm staying at another hostel. Again, this one is super clean & a great price. And, just like Geneva - I've met some really cool people here. The first night I went out with an Italian guy, and Danish guy, and an Austrian woman for some drinks.
Today I woke up & found that the weather was teetering on the brink of rain. I decided to go for a 'short' hike up one of the mountains nearby. Well, I kept going "a little further", and then decided to go to the top of the trail. My 'short' hike turned into 6 hours, and I came down the hill in a slight drizzle feeling very tired. But, it was a lot of fun & it gave me a great view of Interlaken.
Again tonight, the hostel did it's magic. I met another guy from NYC - a CSci professor. I had dinner w/ him & we might do stuff together tomorrow.
Weather permitting, I plan on going paragliding tomorrow. I hope I'm able to - it looks incredibly fun!
After that - it's off to the small mountain village of Gimmelwald... recommended strongly by everyone who's been there. I can't wait.
I arrived via bus, and had a long walk to the area where I'd be staying. I stopped to chat & get directions from a British woman, who explained that there was a huge festival going on & I might have trouble finding a place to stay. Fortunately, I was able to get a spot in the City Hostel. This was the first hostel that I'd stay at in Europe, and I was a little skeptical. But it turned out really great. It was very clean, very cheap (I'd heard Switzerland was expensive, but I was surprised to see how expensive everything is), and I was looking to meet people. I hadn't met many people so far, and I figured that it would be easier in a hostel. It worked out really well. I met a guy from New York City in my room. He's a high school teacher for at-risk youth, and was very nice to talk to.
The first night in the hostel was anything but quiet. There were fireworks being set off over Lake Geneva. They were the loudest fireworks I'd ever heard! The guy from NYC & I both thought it sounded like we were in a war zone.
The next day I got up & went for a walk down to Lake Geneva. There's a really cool display to promote astronomy down at the lake. There are several dozen huge posters on display, with incredible images from space (taken from Hubble or land-based telescopes). I spent some time admiring the images, and reading about the science behind them.
Then I walked around to the other side of the lake to see Jet de Eau. It's a huge water fountain that shoots water 140 meters in the air. The water exits the nozzle at 200km/hr (120mph). Of course I had to touch it - it was incredibly powerful!
After that, I grabbed a kebab for lunch & headed up to the United Nations. They offer free tours, so I joined & learned some really interesting stuff.
Geneva was enough for a day, but I was ready to move on. I took the train up to Interlaken, where I'm staying at another hostel. Again, this one is super clean & a great price. And, just like Geneva - I've met some really cool people here. The first night I went out with an Italian guy, and Danish guy, and an Austrian woman for some drinks.
Today I woke up & found that the weather was teetering on the brink of rain. I decided to go for a 'short' hike up one of the mountains nearby. Well, I kept going "a little further", and then decided to go to the top of the trail. My 'short' hike turned into 6 hours, and I came down the hill in a slight drizzle feeling very tired. But, it was a lot of fun & it gave me a great view of Interlaken.
Again tonight, the hostel did it's magic. I met another guy from NYC - a CSci professor. I had dinner w/ him & we might do stuff together tomorrow.
Weather permitting, I plan on going paragliding tomorrow. I hope I'm able to - it looks incredibly fun!
After that - it's off to the small mountain village of Gimmelwald... recommended strongly by everyone who's been there. I can't wait.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Chamonix!
Chamonix, France is great! It's an outdoor sports mecca - I've seen tons of people with climbing gear (both rock & ice). People ride mountain bikes through the streets, and para-gliders circle above. The city has the feel of a ski resort, like Vail.
Chamonix is in a valley between 2 mountains. I've been to the top of both of them - one yesterday & one today. The views were spectacular! I rode cable cars to the top of both of them, and across a huge glacier today. At the end of the trip, I was in Italy. I stopped for a pizza, before heading back to France. Exhausted & a little sunburnt (despite lots of sunscreen), I'm very satisfied.
I considered staying longer, but I decided that I've been in France long enough. Off to Switzerland tomorrow, where I'm sure to see more mountains. I'll definitely be back here someday.
Chamonix is in a valley between 2 mountains. I've been to the top of both of them - one yesterday & one today. The views were spectacular! I rode cable cars to the top of both of them, and across a huge glacier today. At the end of the trip, I was in Italy. I stopped for a pizza, before heading back to France. Exhausted & a little sunburnt (despite lots of sunscreen), I'm very satisfied.
I considered staying longer, but I decided that I've been in France long enough. Off to Switzerland tomorrow, where I'm sure to see more mountains. I'll definitely be back here someday.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
More France
Since last writing, I've been through 2 cities in France. The first was Tours, in the Loire Valley. Tours was nice enough. But if I had to do it again, I'd go stay in one of the smaller cities - maybe Blois or Amboise. And, it would be more fun if I'd had a car... next time.
While in the Loire, I visited the final home of Leonardo da Vinci & an amazing Chateaux - Chenonceau.
Da Vinci's home was very interesting. He was brought there by a French King (I forget which one), because the king loved Da Vinci's work & wanted him to have a place to just create. When he moved there, da Vinci brought 3 of his paintings with him. One of them was the Mona Lisa. The king fell in love with the painting, and it's been famous ever since.
They also have several models of da Vinci's inventions, which are really cool to see in person. It's amazing to see all the things that da Vinci thought of, that are very similar to things that are in use today.
Next was Chateaux Chenonceau, which was really cool! I was getting kind of tired of museums & chateau, but this was definitely worth it. The grounds were amazing - the gardens were cool, and the Chateau extends across the river. I also found the kitchen & other areas used by the servants to be really cool.
My next stop was the city of Carcassonne, which is in Southern France - a little north of the Spanish Border. I went there to see the Midevil city - which is the largest midevil restoration that has been done in Europe. It was enormous - with 2 walls wrapping around the city, a Cathedral, and a fortefied castle within the walled city.
There were a number of restaurants & shops inside the midevil city - a little touristy. But, it was still cool to see a well-preserved midevil fortress.
Oh - and I learned an important lesson in Carcassonne: know where your hotel is. When I reached the train station, I had a general idea of where it was. I asked the information area, and they pointed me in sort-of the right direction. I say sort-of because it was a little bit off, which resulted in me hiking around residential neighborhoods for an hour with all of my stuff on my back (it was hot, and there were hills). I was looking for someone to ask, but all the shops were closed. Finally, I stumbled upon a hair salon - when I asked the lady where the hotel was, she pointed next door! :-)
Turns out, if you go the right way, it's only a 15 minute walk to the train station. Lesson learned.
After Carcassonne - I took the overnight train to Lyon. It was much more comfortable sleeping on a train than I expected. The bunks were actually long enough for me to stretch out, and there was plenty of space in there. I didn't get the best night's sleep, but I'll be able to make it through the day. :-)
Now I'm on another train - heading to Chamonix, a city in the Alps that is on the Italian border. I'm really excited to see the Alps.
While in the Loire, I visited the final home of Leonardo da Vinci & an amazing Chateaux - Chenonceau.
Da Vinci's home was very interesting. He was brought there by a French King (I forget which one), because the king loved Da Vinci's work & wanted him to have a place to just create. When he moved there, da Vinci brought 3 of his paintings with him. One of them was the Mona Lisa. The king fell in love with the painting, and it's been famous ever since.
They also have several models of da Vinci's inventions, which are really cool to see in person. It's amazing to see all the things that da Vinci thought of, that are very similar to things that are in use today.
Next was Chateaux Chenonceau, which was really cool! I was getting kind of tired of museums & chateau, but this was definitely worth it. The grounds were amazing - the gardens were cool, and the Chateau extends across the river. I also found the kitchen & other areas used by the servants to be really cool.
My next stop was the city of Carcassonne, which is in Southern France - a little north of the Spanish Border. I went there to see the Midevil city - which is the largest midevil restoration that has been done in Europe. It was enormous - with 2 walls wrapping around the city, a Cathedral, and a fortefied castle within the walled city.
There were a number of restaurants & shops inside the midevil city - a little touristy. But, it was still cool to see a well-preserved midevil fortress.
Oh - and I learned an important lesson in Carcassonne: know where your hotel is. When I reached the train station, I had a general idea of where it was. I asked the information area, and they pointed me in sort-of the right direction. I say sort-of because it was a little bit off, which resulted in me hiking around residential neighborhoods for an hour with all of my stuff on my back (it was hot, and there were hills). I was looking for someone to ask, but all the shops were closed. Finally, I stumbled upon a hair salon - when I asked the lady where the hotel was, she pointed next door! :-)
Turns out, if you go the right way, it's only a 15 minute walk to the train station. Lesson learned.
After Carcassonne - I took the overnight train to Lyon. It was much more comfortable sleeping on a train than I expected. The bunks were actually long enough for me to stretch out, and there was plenty of space in there. I didn't get the best night's sleep, but I'll be able to make it through the day. :-)
Now I'm on another train - heading to Chamonix, a city in the Alps that is on the Italian border. I'm really excited to see the Alps.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
An aside
First thing (nothing to do with travel).
I am proud to announce that I've had my 2nd photo published! Once again, someone found one of my pics on flickr, and asked to use it. It's in the Schmap!! guide - a free guide for cities. A photo I took on Lake Harriet was selected:
http://www.schmap.com/minneapolis/activities_outdoors/#p=255636&i=255636_44.jpg
Here's the original on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theycallmecb/3552770698/
BTW - if you're interested, here's the first pic of mine that got used (I got $50 for this photo) :-)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theycallmecb/1157461848/
Ok - back to travel stuff.
Mont St-Michel was nice. I spent the day there, and had a good time. I toured the Abby, went to a couple museums on the island (it's an island when the tide is in, which it wasn't), and walked around. But, one day was enough - definitely not enough stuff to spend more than one day there.
This morning I took the train back to Paris. Hoping to get an overnight train down to Carcassonne - that wasn't in the cards. So, I got a train to Tours France - right in the Loire Valley. I'll spend a day or 2 here, and then head to Carcassonne (trains permitting).
I haven't done anything in Tours yet. As I walked around this evening, I had several moments where I thought something was a sign for a tourism office. Then I realized it was just the town's name: Tours. :-)
I am proud to announce that I've had my 2nd photo published! Once again, someone found one of my pics on flickr, and asked to use it. It's in the Schmap!! guide - a free guide for cities. A photo I took on Lake Harriet was selected:
http://www.schmap.com/minneapolis/activities_outdoors/#p=255636&i=255636_44.jpg
Here's the original on flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theycallmecb/3552770698/
BTW - if you're interested, here's the first pic of mine that got used (I got $50 for this photo) :-)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theycallmecb/1157461848/
Ok - back to travel stuff.
Mont St-Michel was nice. I spent the day there, and had a good time. I toured the Abby, went to a couple museums on the island (it's an island when the tide is in, which it wasn't), and walked around. But, one day was enough - definitely not enough stuff to spend more than one day there.
This morning I took the train back to Paris. Hoping to get an overnight train down to Carcassonne - that wasn't in the cards. So, I got a train to Tours France - right in the Loire Valley. I'll spend a day or 2 here, and then head to Carcassonne (trains permitting).
I haven't done anything in Tours yet. As I walked around this evening, I had several moments where I thought something was a sign for a tourism office. Then I realized it was just the town's name: Tours. :-)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
