Munich and Bavaria!

Off to Munich!

This week we had visitors from home and even better Iowa!  Meredith, Jon and Bridget Smith came to Cologne on Sunday and went with us to Munich on Tuesday.  Chad worked with Meredith at PWC and it was so nice of them to include us in their Europe trip.  

After a few days in Cologne we all set off for the 4 and half hour train ride to Munich.  Will was very good on the train and thanks to Meredith was able to play with his new laptop!

The Glockenspiel

We had wonderful weather the entire time in Munich. It was in the 70s and lots of sun during the day.  It was great and a wonderful way to spend our holiday.  Once we found our hotel (we love Hiltons) we found our way to the city center and Marienplatz.  We were able to see the Glockenspiel and also walked around the area for about an hour before our wonderful dinner at the Hofbrauhaus.  

Dinner was traditional "German" food and some had large steins of beer which I swear weighed more than Will. :)  It was impressive to see the women carry 3 or 4 of these steins. Also we saw sausage and sauerkraut on the menu as well. We had good food in Munich and were able to eat several meals outdoors to enjoy the weather.

Will loved having Jon, Meredith and Bridget on the trip! 

Polka Anyone?

We also were entertained with the Polka band at dinner.  There were couples actually dancing in a small area in front of the band.  Will enjoyed them and danced every time they played.  I walked him over and the tuba player played a bit for him during a break and Will would laugh.  He also had an audience (a table of about 4 older couples) that kept pointing and giggling at him dancing. One woman came over when they left and pinched his cheeks.  Another man asked to take his picture.   He was a hit in this large beer hall!

Neuschwanstein Castle

We spent a day at Neuschwanstein Castle about 2 hours by train outside of Munich.  This was a castle that was only partially completed on the inside and built by King Ludwig of Bavaria.  It was the model castle that Walt Disney used.  It was located in the Alps and had a beautiful view.

It was about a 30 minute walk up to the castle and it was a steep incline. We all got our work out and  were thankful to reach the top.  Will was a trooper and slept in his pusher for the entire walk!  Rough life.  He also walked up and down the aisle on the train on the ride back to Munich and made some friends. We also ran into people in our tour group from Sheboygan. Funny!  

Another fun story:  On the train ride back to Munich, people fell asleep, but Will filled his pants and onesie.  The bathroom on this particular train wasn't the largest or cleanest, so our little guy got his diaper changed in the seat.  It was a messy one! Oh the memories, beautiful Alps and smelly pants.

Olympic Park

Public transportation in Munich was great!  We were impressed and able to all able to travel together to Olympic Park in Munich.  It was the site of the 1972 Summer Olympics.  The park was huge and most of the events were in one area.  It is now the site of a beautiful public park.

Here we are in the Stadium

Chad's Pick---BMW Museum

After our walk through Olympic Park we had to say good-bye to the Smiths!  We had a great time with them and were so glad to travel with them.  They were very patient with Will and we enjoyed seeing them

After the sad goodbye Chad was able to check off a big one on his list- the BMW Museum.  It was a beautiful, very modern museum.  I'm not a big car fan, but would recommend this museum if people make the trip to Munich and have the time.  We spent a few hours looking at cars and learning about the history of BMW. Chad and Will both enjoyed the time in the museum and Will fell asleep at the end.  He was a trooper!

Apples

The Hilton gave out apples at the front desk. Chad was kind enough to share his apples with Will. He LOVED them and Chad will never be able to eat an apple by himself again!  Will would grab his leg and want to try and use his 2 little teeth to take a bite.

Another thing to note about Hilton giveaways:  Will received 3 small rubber ducks from Hilton staff members and now has a whole family of ducks.  I didn't have the heart to tell them he already had one and because he would smile when they offered them to him.

Dachau Concentration Camp

Friday was a holiday so all the shops were closed in Germany, so we went out to the suburb of Dachau where the Concentration Camp.  We spent almost 5 hours touring the grounds, the museum, and buildings.  It was such a sad time in history and disappointing that such a thing could happen.  This was one of the first concentration camps and a model for other camps.  

We were amazed at the size of the grounds and it was a rather somber environment.   Will was very well behaved in the museum so we were thankful.

The main entry door to the camp.

"Work will set you Free"

Another Palace

We spent our last day in Munich on the grounds of Nymphenburg Palace. It was a large palace that is currently a public park.  The grounds were beautiful and Will was able to see some swans and other birds up close.  We couldn't beat the clear sky and sun!

Will also got to sit in the grass for the first time.  He froze when we put him  down.  It was weird to see him actually sit still.  Who knew he could do it?

Will's 1st Easter

We spent Easter Sunday on a train from Munich back to Cologne. We had a wonderful time in Munich and were glad we were able to spend several days there.  The weather and our company made the trip perfect!

Easter Monday

Chad had a holiday on Monday so we caught up on laundry and were able to spend the afternoon having coffee, cakes, and drinks with Dr. Hossmann, Hugo, and Claudia.  It is always nice to see them and catch up.

We traveled to Munich with the Smith family for Holy Week and returned to Koln on Easter Sunday.