Castles of Germany - Closing out one EPIC Vacation

Day 12 - Hogwarts (Hohenschwangau/Neuschwanstein)

Due to the fact that we were staying at the COOLEST hotel of all time we were able to avoid waiting in hours of lines to get tickets to the castle. We had breakfast around 7:30 and had a 9:25am tour time which meant we needed to be making our way up the hill around 8:25. After much debate we decided to take the bus up rather than hike (my hiking shoes were RETIRED for this trip).  I'm fairly certain we were the only Americans on a bus full of Asian tourists.  Once up the hill we made our way to Marien's bridge - a very narrow suspension bridge that hold the very best pictures of the castle.  We were all getting a little on edge about being up close and personal with other tourists.  So this was a bit of a test on our patience on the narrow bridge.  We made it though, pictures in hand. 

The castle tour was great - it was about 1/3 finished with Ludwig died and was never fully finished like he had planned.  We were surprised at how modern it was for the times.  After the tour we made our way back to the town, got some pretzels to go (bc....of course and you never know when you are going to be stranded on a goat path in Germany) and we headed on our way to our very last stop of the trip - Waldeck. 

The drive to Waldeck was fairly uneventful.  We passed through some heavy traffic early on (traffic into Hohenschwangau was CRAZY) but that was pretty much it.  We stopped at a rest stop for lunch, paid for toillets, did hand signals to order our food and were then back on our way. JD drove pretty much the rest of the way.  We were all looking forward to two relaxing nights at our castle in Waldeck - and our spa day of course :)

Upon arriving at our castle in Waldeck we quickly found a place that we could have  beer, sit on the terrace and take in the view.  This was also the location of dinner - and was quite a fancy dinner at that. There was "free cucumber soup" that Bryce had to hold his nose to drink, a waitress who tried very hard to be a serious tough waitress but we knew she secretly loved us, a delicious 3 course meal of Pistachio Soup, beef, potato dumplings and chocolate mousse.   We had more wine/scotch to close out our night.  Late that night there was a very impressive storm that woke us all up but we all loved the location and had a great relaxing couple of days. 

On our last day we had big plans of massages and exploring the castle.  We had a slow start, late breakfast followed by each of us taking a turn for a massage.  We spent time out on the patio with beers and bratwurst and after everyone had gotten their massage we made our way to the castle museum to learn all about the torture techniques used onsite.  yikes!  To name just a few that we learned about....there was a public shaming cage that you could spin around to make the prisoner sick, whipping tools, some kind of a wheel and an actual beheading sword from the 1700s - yikes!  After our tour of the museum we went to find the cable car that took you down to the beach - because....no stone left unturned on this trip! This cable car was 50 years old and held 2 people per car - I'm fairly certain nothing has changed about this excursion in all of those 50 years!  We walked down to the Erdsee which was the largest manmade lake in Germany.  It was a Resevoir and dam that was made in the early 1900s. 

Upon coming back we (of course) found a place to have a few drinks and dinner.  During our last dinner we made a list of hashtags, or memories of the trip.  Not the things we saw....but the memories that the 4 of us created over the last two weeks.  We laughed so hard and reading over that list again I laughed all over again.  You won't find that list here.....come find our photobook and you can see it there and here all the stories behind those hashtags.  In the end, there are no 4 people better suited to 2 weeks of travel through Europe than the Woolards and Burkes.  YOu might think that you would get tired of being with someone for so long - we can truly and honestly say we had an absolute wonderful time with our dear dear friends.  To spend such a wonderful trip with two people that we don't see often enough was such a blessing.  Thank you Anne and JD for including us - we can't wait for our next adventure!  Love you! 

Gaining Perspective Through History and Bavarian Sausage

Days 10 & 11

Before we went on our trip we spent a lot of time researching the things we wanted to make sure that we saw.  I knew that when we went to Munich the others had not been to the Dachau Concentration Camp, but I had.  I wasn't particularly excited about seeing it again but insisted that we make the trip - it is important for everyone to see, feel and understand such a dark part to our history.  So this was the day, I knew it would be somber and we would need some lighthearted fun for later in the day.  We took off on the train and took the ~30 min trip out to the memorial site.  They have done a nice job of making a memorial at the site as well as historical representation for what life was like at the concentration camp.  You have the opportunity to see the private jail cells/offices for clergy and medical staff, an example of the barracks (original barrack buildings were taken down), and the crematorium.  All are very hard to walk through and read about.  The mood at the site is very somber (except for the approximately 1,589 students walking around...some of which were NOT being very respectful) and quiet.  The images from my first visit to this place were forever etched in my memory and I remember feeling very connected to my grandfather who was in some of the first American troops to liberate the camps in Germany.  While sad, I felt a great sense of pride for what he and his troop were faced with.  Those feelings were no different the second time.  The only difference was that I physically was not able to bring myself to enter the crematorium.  I remember this being particularly hard the first time and just couldn't bare to see it again.  I stayed outside while the others took a look.  We were all very grounded after visiting the site - it really sets perspective for what those people went through and makes you realize that it is up to every one of us to ensure it doesn't happen again.  Never Again. 

From there we headed back to the hotel.  It had started to rain so we decided that would be an EXCELLENT time for naps!  We met back up for cocktails at the happy hour our hotel hosted.  We decided another trip to the English Garden was in order - this time to find the surfers we had heard about and to MAYBE swim.  It was a fair bit cooler after the front moved through so we asked the front desk if the surfers would be doing their thing in the cold - they chuckled and said most definitely, they surf 365 days a year!  Off we went....train then bus and we found the surfing pretty easy.  They said you could see lots of people taking pictures on the bridge and they were right!  Like I said before the current running through this river in the park is very strong - this particular section was a man made part that made it possible to surf some intense stuff!  They were all geared up in wet suits and I'm telling you - you have to be a professional and know what you are doing to get out there!  They had a very organized approach to it and it was very cool to watch - different then anything I've seen!  From there we walked a little ways down and found a stand that sold beers - grabbed some and went to find a place by the river.  Bryce was determined to get in and float down the current (it really was like a strong lazy river!).  We all thought he was crazy (it really was much colder that day) but JD couldn't let Bryce do it alone and then Anne and I decided we couldn't let the boys do something we didn't do.  So we found a place behind a tree/bushes and changed into our swimsuits.  The water was cold, the floor rocky but we were doing it!  After finishing our beers we all took turns floating down the current - again, we couldn't let the boys do something that we passed on.  It was fun and a very unique part of our trip.  We had lots of good laughs particularly because there was a very naked man down the river from us- without a care or concern in the world. He even got a little cold and put a t-shirt on, but that was it :)   He is now forever known as "Bavarian Sausage" .

We ended our day with dinner at Augustine Keller - a big beer hall that was recommended to us by several people.  It had a huge beer garden with some of the best schnitzel we had on our trip.  After a few beers and pretzels (always pretzels!) we made our way back to our hotel - big day tomorrow with a drive to Eagles nest! My love for Munich runs deep - we all decided we must return, for me, I want to drink beer in Munich with my kids one day.  The people, atmosphere, food and drinks were all phenomenal and it just doesn't get much better!! 

Day 11 - Eagles Nest

Seeing the Eagles Nest was one of the things we were all MOST looking forward to.  I had not been on my previous trips and the history we were set to see we were all pumped for.  First we had to drive to the city of Burchtesgaden where we would meet our tour group.  This was the only thing we paid for a private tour and we were really glad we did!  We got lots of good history on the whole area around Eagles Nest and we really were glad to hear that!  We got on our bus and started up the mountain.  Our English speaking tour guide walked us through the WW2 history of the entire region.  Hitler didn't use Eagles Nest all that much once the war started but he did spend a lot of time at his summer home in the region.  Its where he wrote one of his books.  We stopped at the bunker museum and got to tour part of the bunker system.  It really is incredible how complex and vast the bunker system was and how it was built/etc.  Some of the proudest moments of our tour was hearing about and SEEING carvings in the bunker from both French and American troops when they took over the region from the Germans in May of 1945. 

We got to the top of the mountain and had arrived at the Eagles Nest!! The absolute coolest part was riding up in the same elevator that Hitler used at the location!  Up the elevator we saw the full building which is now not much more than a few rooms, dining room and deck area.  Walking outside of the Nest there are amazing views of both Germany and Austria.  Truly beautiful.  Before we left, JD and I did a fair bit of investigating in looking at the carvings on the marble fireplace in the sitting room.  You can see carvings from soldiers and tourists from the 40's to the 90s!  The Eagles Nest took 13- 18 months to build.  French soldiers took the bunkers on May 5, 1945 and American troops took the Eagles nest on the 6th of May.  So proud of our country for what they were able to do!

After we were done at the Eagles Nest it was 5pm and we knew we had a long drive to Hohenschwangau - aka Hogwarts aka Cinderella's castle.  This would end up being the MOST epic drive of the trip.  We hit 3 road closures not recognized by our car's GPS system, had to stop temporarily on the highway for a HAIL STORM (luckily no Mercedes 5 class's were harmed in this trip), enjoyed 4 schnitzels (that was all we could read on the menu in an off the beaten path town's only open restaurant), 3 beers and 1 cappuccino, saw 1 fox, 3-4 cats, cows, drove through many goat paths - it took 4 hours and 30 extra minutes and we even saw angry villagers carrying torches through one village we drove through.....BUT we MADE IT!  We though the night was all but done, ALMOST willing to admit that we shouldn't have made this leg of the trip at all.....but then we stumbled into our rooms at the Hotel Mueller in the town of Hohenschwangau and all was forgotten.  We each had private terraces with AMAZING views of Neuschwanstein (Burke's view) and the Hunting Lodge castle (Woolard Side) in the evening.  We had free wine waiting in our room, a private terrace with views of two of the most beautiful castles in Europe...Well....OK we can make this work then!  To make things even better.....our hotel got us signed up for tickets to see Neuschwanstein the next day - also something we were worried about that we hadn't gotten tickets ahead of time and would have to wait in line.  This hotel was worth every penny!! Amazing. 

Day of JD!

Day of JD! 

What's better than spending your 35th birthday with your wife and two best friends?  NOT MUCH!  This day we would be celebrating JD!  JD chose his Keystone Light shirt to wear on this special vacation - what says European vacation better than a Keystone Light shirt straight out of Macomb, IL.  We started our day of JD with breakfast at the hotel around 8:30.  Our first stop planned was at St. Peters Church which is right in the heart of Munich.  We got there a little after 9 and the Wednesday morning mass was in session.  We were shushed by a church worker and quietly walked around the back of the church during mass.  This was after I got in trouble for walking up the side of the church.  With that we decided to come back after church was out.  During our wait we did a little light shopping.  I found 4 small paintings from a painter that had set up an outdoor shop right outside of the church.  The painter was a nice guy who had spent several years in Key West. 

We made our way to the town center to watch the Glockenspiel chimes and after the show was over we made our way back to the church.  We toured the church and found some very interesting sites including the skeleton of a woman in a glass case from 310 AD - we were all pretty amazed by this. 

From here we would go to the only logical place for lunch and a beer - Hofbrau House!! The last time I had been at this place was when I was 16 years old with my high school German Club.  I loved it even more the second time!  We had our lunch - sausage and spaetzel and a liter of beer! While we waited for our food I even was able to re-create some classic pictures of my friend Tara from the first time we were at the Hofbrau Hause.  From our epic lunch we headed back to our hotel for naps - a MUST on JDs birthday!

After naps we made our way to the English Garden.  This is a big park similar to the size of New York's Central Park.  This happen to be the warmest day of our trip - in the mid 80's.  The English Garden has a really cool river that runs through it.  The water is crystal clear, cool and the current is FAST!  We didn't see it on this particular day but there is even a spot where they can SURF!  Given the warm weather the park was PACKED with people.  Students, families and everything in between.  People were wading and floating in the river - it really was something that we had never seen before!  We found our way to the Chinese Tower Beer garden - a huge beer garden in the heart of the English Garden. This would be by far the largest beer garden we saw and had beers in - people everywhere!  On the way back to the train we stopped to put our feet in the water and enjoy the sunshine - it really was an incredible day!

Once back by our hotel we decided to have a low key dinner at a little Italian restaurant and each had pizza - the boys had a VERY hot chilli sauce that left everyone sweating after trying a little!  After dinner we decided we hadn't had enough Hofbrau House so we headed back for one last beer - and shut the place down!  It closes fairly early - around 11pm.  We ended our night once again at Little London with several scotch drinks to close out JD's birthday celebration.  It was an amazing day - perfect weather, perfect city and perfect company!

Munich Bound

Day 8

It was time to take our travel team south - headed to Munich! Driving on the Autobahn was one of the things Bryce was most looking forward to - that said, it was a long drive to Munich.  We had a minimum of 5 hours ahead of us!  Luckily for Anne and I, we had two VERY comfortable captains chairs awaiting us while the boys drove/navigated from the front. 

Now like I said the boys were really looking forward to this drive - no speed limit?  Fast car?  They were pumped.  They learned pretty quickly that really all it meant was that they could drive as fast as they wanted but that was only possible as traffic allowed.  That said, Bryce hit 126 mph and JD hit 118.  Typical driving speed was probably more like 95 or so. 

We started our day at Dunkin Donuts with some disappointing day old donuts and cold eggs for Anne.  From there we drove and drove and drove.  we stopped for lunch at a Subway which, surprisingly was like it was straight out of the States....it REALLY  hit the spot! As we got closer to Munich we decided that we should definitely try to hit up a brewery before landing in Munich.  After googling "Worlds Oldest Brewery" we ended up at Weihenstephan Abbey in Freising.  After about 45 minutes of circling the city we finally found it and quickly got to drinking to shake off the drive anxieties.  The brewery had a fabulous beer garden that did just the trick.  After we were there for a few minutes I noticed a group of 3 women sitting next to us that seemed to be American - after a few minutes they struck up a conversation with us also noticing that we seemed to be talking just like them :)   Come to find out they were from Wisconsin and Chicago - Midwesterners even!!  Sometimes you meet people on vacation and it just feels like you could have been friends for life - we were so lucky to meet you girls!!

Moving on from our lovey visit we headed towards Munich - it was a short 30 minute drive to the city.  After checking into our accomodations - Hotel Trobrau, we headed a few blocks away into the heart of Munich at the plaza.  The love that I have for this city can not be expressed in words.  All of those feelings I had for this place over 15 years ago came flooding back - I could come back a million times and love it even more each time!  We got a table outside at Schneider Brauhaus and had some more wonderful traditional German food.  After dinner we strolled around the Rathaus and ended our night with a night cap at a place called Little London - lots of whiskey/bourbon options and super close to our hotel - perfect.  It was a simple day filled with little surprises that made the 5 hour drive so much better!