top of Germany to the depths of Augustiner

This was the Zugspitzbahn, which we rode almost to the top of the Zugpitze. Thanks to the transportation museum, I learned all about the technology that makes this possible. Not going to bore you with the details, but it is rather interesting that this train's been running like this since the early 20th Century.





This is Michael looking out at the summit of the Zugspitze. Although he was very impressed and kept talking about how much he enjoyed it for the next several days, it was a bit too cold and windy for him up there. We had to get back inside and quickly.







The border with Austria runs right across the top of the mountain, so here's Michael standing with my friend Jeff before they stroll into Austria. There's a restaurant from each country up there, but we'd had so much German food over the last few days. We decided to dine with the Austrians. It was a great choice. Not only was it delicious, but here was our view:


















Don't ever let it be said that Michael isn't willing to try new things. Especially when the new things include new varieties of Strudel. This is Mohnstrudel (poppy seed) and Topfenstrudel (a bit like a mix of batter and less-sweet cheesecake). He certainly prefers Applestrudel, but these were a nice change of pace.











He would've gone straight to the dessert, but ate a huge plate of a meat selection beforehand. Michael desperately wanted to order Apple Strudel again, but I convinced him to try something new. If you read the ingredients and how it's prepared (Dampfnudel), you'll understand immediately that Michael loved it.












This was the Augustiner Keller where we had a fantastic meal. Michael was thrilled to eat down there, and he informed me that this was definitely something he wouldn't have wanted to miss.

Tomorrow we catch the train to Cologne for Carnival. Although the title of this blog says I'm in Bavaria, this'll be an exception where I talk about another part of Germany.



Earlier in the day, we were at the concentration camp memorial in Dachau. There's an entire blogpost on that one, but I just don't know how to start talking about it. Another time. But after a very difficult several hours looking at and imagining the horrors that took place, we had a beautiful sunset. This was the nicest photo I could get of it.

monkeys and transport

Not only did we walk through the English Garden yesterday (Here's Michael in front of the Chinese Tower), but we walked along the Isar River all the way to the Munich Zoo (Tierpark Hellabrunn).











As much as we enjoyed the baboons, the dogs were completely entranced. Here's Ella having a moment. When Louis started to bark, we had to move along. Until then, this part was quite fun.






I'm sure if you ask nicely, Michael will show you many more photos that he took from the Verkehrsmuseum (transportation museum), but I decided to include a photo of him standing in front of a Munich streetcar. There were some streetcars from the early 70s there, but this shot looked better.






There was a time, when we were much smaller/younger, when pulling Michael away from playing in this truck would've been much, much more difficult. He certainly enjoyed the few moments he allowed himself to daydream.









So, he's been talking about Strudel since long before he even boarded the plane to come here. He showed fortitude in waiting as long as he did, so we made sure that this part was ticked off our list. He said it was quite good. The whipped cream had a hint of vanilla, but he admitted that it could've been a bit sweeter. The Strudel itself was worth the wait.







Outside the Jagd- und Fischermuseum (Hunting and Fishing museum)
is this very attractive wild boar statue. Can you tell which one is me?









And the last thing before we went home for the evening was a bit of Eastern European street music. Accordion, xylophone and a double bass...was really quite good. Michael couldn't help himself from donating to the cause.

Michael's return to Germany

People greeting arrivals are to wait behind the yellow line...

Here Michael is after passport control and an emotional moment when he realised he was fulfilling a wish he'd had since childhood: to return to his birth city. And now here he is.








Supposedly, Bavarians have a very traditional breakfast when they return to their homeland. It's made up of Weißwurst (lamb's meat sausages cooked with mild spices and fresh parsley in them), sweet mustard, soft pretzels, and Weißbier (a specialty Bavarian beer). We had all but the last part (Michael was drinking hot cocoa), and I was pleased that he enjoyed it. It really was a nice breakfast.








We brought the bags home and Ella and Louis greeted Michael very warmly. And then kept greeting him repeatedly. They were very curious about this very loud person who smelled like Nutter Butters and hot cocoa. Soon enough, it was obvious the dogs needed to go outside and we used that opportunity to show Michael the surroundings.









We walked to the castle (Nymphenburger Schloß), where Michael imagined jousting and ladies and gentlemen acting inappropriately at the ball. I assured him that this wasn't that sort of castle, and he asked me to leave him and his castle fantasies in peace.











The plan was to get Strudel (he'd been planning something strudelly since he booked the flight), but we happened upon a bakery that had delicious looking Krapfen. These are everywhere at carnival time, and we decided that Strudel could wait just a bit longer. This is a vanilla doughnut. There was discussion that maybe this was the highpoint of the day.






After taking the dogs home and a few minutes of recouping, we went into the old town of Munich, and did a quick overview of the most important landmarks. While we were at the Viktualienmarkt, I took this photo of Michael in front of the Maypole. The sun was disappearing quickly, so we packed up the camera and enjoyed some Currywurst before hurrying home for a skype call between the Big Bad Wolf and his girls. What a first day.





The secondary goal of the day was to make sure Michael didn't fall asleep before evening. Somehow we managed it, but when we tallied the 32 hours he'd been awake, he immediately headed under the duvet and hasn't been heard from since.