Beers, Brats, and Brazen in Munich
Trip Start
Jan 21, 2005
1
7
16
Trip End
Aug 20, 2005
Munich,
Germany
Monday, February 21, 2005
We took an overnight train on Thursday night and slept six in a second class sleeper car. The car was roughly the size of a tiny closet and we had three person bunks on either side. I took a melatonin tablet and didn't wake up until 20 minutes from Munich. Nobody else in my car was as fortunate. They couldn't sleep in the cramped car and were continuously bothered by all of the late night stops. Steve and I watched as the train stopped in front cattle cars on a snowy railroad track and wondered that maybe Germany isn't the best place to go.
Our hostel was incredible, the building was so clean and amazing
Hofbrauhaus: Amy and a Musician
. The sad thing is that this was my first hostel and all of the other hostels will probably now be disappointing. The shower in our room (Grohe hardware)was the best shower I have had since leaving the US.We all took the subway to the Olympic grounds where we walked through where the 1972 Olympics were and visited the BMW museum. The museum was phenomenal and showed all of the models they made since the beginning. I got to see the first 5 series, 7 series, Z class, and M sport. We tried to get a factory tour, but the factory was off limits due to the production of the new 3 series. However, the museum and Olympic park was a great experience. After seeing Black September (about the Israeli athletes who were killed at the '72 games), it was very nice to see the grounds they walked on and the village they lived in. The museum was, of course, a great experience because I got to remember BMW before Chris Bangle started designing what I believe is shit.
We then walked to an art gallery and spent hours looking at Rembrandts. The gallery was very interesting but we were all so tired from the train ride. I was tempted to lay across the galleries ottomans and sleep.
The group split into people who need sleep and people who can go on just a few more hours
Hofbrauhaus: Dana and Me
. Amy, Dana and I crossed the street to the train station for lunch. This is very important to understand, the train station was the only quick and cheap place that I could find pretzels and bratwurst in Munich. All of Bavaria was eating Pizza Hut and Burger King, while I had to go to the train station for Bavarian fare. We got to see the beautiful Marienplatz (town hall plaza) which had amazing architecture and stores and a glockenspiel (annoying clock that moves). The area was filled with the United Colors of Beneton and various H&M's. Seriously, American Express should acquire the United Colors of Beneton solely based on combining their property in the four million locations they occupy. There are more Benetons than ATMs in Europe.Everybody met up for dinner at Munich's famous Hofbrauhaus where the beer is fresh, the sauerkraut is delicious, the bratwurst is unappetizing, and everyone sings German songs played by the band. We didn't know any songs and I believe all of these people attended a rehearsal before dinner. Each table would sway their large beer mugs and chant and dance around. I loved my beer and had a fantastic time.
The next day we went to the concentration camp Dachau (a log of its own) and learned that BMW used slave labor, Marienplatz was a Nazi administration building, and Hitler had many meetings of the revolution at Hofbrauhaus. My old times idea of Munich and its delicious pretzels and beer was once again replaced by the harsh reality that the third reich started here and spread from Munich to all of Germany.
After Dachau we had lunch at a Burger King and dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Enough said.
