Guten Tag! My neighbor asked me yesterday how I choose my vacation spots. Honestly? It could be anything from an episode of the Amazing Race to a picture I saw in a magazine. There’s really no rhyme or reason, and no “bucket list” I’m trying to check off. Germany and Austria have been on my travel “to do” list for a few years now, inspired mostly by the pictures I’ve seen and stories I’ve heard of my parents’ trip to Austria many years ago. Of course, both countries are pretty big, so narrowing down my itinerary took some thought and research. I finally settled on Munich and southern Bavaria along with the Salzburg region. I’d much rather stay in one place for a few days than pack up and move around constantly just to see more. My only source of apprehension for this trip comes from it being my first time driving a car in a non-English speaking country. But I have a couple of days in Munich before I need to worry about that.
Travel was long and exhausting, but I made it to Munich around 10:45AM. I first went to my hotel and (miracle of miracles) my room was actually ready. A shower and a change of clothes gave me enough of a second wind that for a little while I was able to forget that I haven’t slept in over 30 hours. Yes, you read that right. Not even a wink on the plane. In my defense, we landed in Dublin before midnight east coast time, so the timing wasn’t really conducive to sleep. By the time they served and cleaned up dinner, it was almost time for breakfast.
Anyway, I had no plans for today, so I just wandered around the Marienplatz (the central square in Munich) and then hit the Hofbräuhaus for a snack. Sadly, my dislike for beer continues… I gamely ordered a Radler (beer mixed with lemonade/Sprite), which came in an enormous glass mug that I knew I’d never finish. I just don’t like the taste of beer. And I’m not going to force myself to drink it for the next two weeks; I’ll just need to find another drink of choice to keep me going. I also got an enormous pretzel which always sounds good until I remember I don’t really like pretzels. The Oompah band, however, was a lot of fun, as was chatting with a woman and her daughter from Massachusetts. Seating is at communal tables, so you have to get friendly with your neighbors!
After that, the only thing I wanted to see was my bed. I am dead tired and it’s only 5:15PM. I’d like to make it until 7 o’clock tonight, but something tells me that may not happen…
Traveling with Laura 