Sunday, September 13, 2009

Munich....at last!

I am finally getting to our last post about our trip to Germany. :)

Our final destination was Munich. We took the train from Erlangen and it took about two hours. Once we arrived, we quickly headed downtown to start our sightseeing. To be honest, we were not overwhelmed. After visiting some amazing places, Munich let the wind out of our sails. I think the reason we were disappointed was that it was a lot like Toronto. It was full of shops and everything was quite new and up-to-date. We didn't end up sticking around downtown very long at all.


We heard about a famous beer garden in Munich that we wanted to visit (the Chinese Tower section of the English Beer Garden). It was amazing!! I have never seen anything like it in my life. There were hundreds upon hundreds of picnic tables and they were almost full to the brim with people....and it was a Wednesday evening! People were with friends and family enjoying the summer. There was a brass band playing and playgrounds for the children. It was truly a family event. There were 1 L beers for sale, as well as half chickens, ribs, pretzels, etc. People brought picnics, played cards, drank beer.....what a great way to relax! We all agreed that we wished they had gardens just like it in Canada.


The following day we joined a tour of Dachau, Germany's first concentration camp. Most of the camps were outside of Germany, but this one was very close to Munich and referred to as the 'Parent Camp.' Much of what was done at other camps was first thought of and tested at Dachau. The tour we took lead us on the same journey the prisoners would take as they were first brought to the camp. We learned a lot about the particular history of Dachau and the people who died there. We also learned about the survivors and the wonderful job they have done of ensuring that Dachau is now a place that teaches tolerance. I could go on and on about the strong and sorrowful feelings we all had as we were walking through the camp, but it is very hard to describe. We also didn't take many pictures as it just didn't feel appropriate. I am very glad that we were able to visit Dachau and that I was able to learn about such an important part of our history.


The next day we began our travel home. It was quite uneventful (although Paul has a wonderful story to tell about my inability to answer security questions properly and how I almost bought myself a stay in Amsterdam...ooops!). We were very happy to be home as we missed our family, friends, and our kitties.








A view of the tables at the English Beer Garden...



Yummy food and drink at the English Beer Garden in Munich. What a blast!



Musicians playing classical music on the streets of Munich.

The entrance to Dachau.

Roll call would be taken here every morning. It is now a symbol of all those whose lives were taken in that yard.




The actual barracks were torn down, but the foundations remain. There were rows and rows of them.

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