Posted in Vacations and Fieldtrips
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We were very apprehensive about taking the Euro-rail. We made sure we checked and double checked the track our train would depart from. We went ahead and waited camped out at that track with all of our luggage. At the last moment they changed the track and we had to run to catch our train. I'm sure we must have looked funny with 3 rolling bags, backpacks and a stroller! We finally got settled on the train. By the way, you have to load your luggage yourself and find a spot to store it. Next trip, we're all taking 1 backpack each and nothing else! The train was really nice. Much more roomy than an airplane. We had 4 seats-Emma sat in my lap. She fell asleep immediatly. One of the places we passed through was Dusseldorf-a place heavily bombed during the war. When we arrived in Frankfurt, we realized rather abruptly that we needed to exit the train (thanks to a German passenger that informed us that this train was headed to Switzerland!) All of a sudden we were grabbing shoes, bags, children, etc and throwing them off the train! Once we were all safely off the train, we just had to laugh! We had twenty minutes to wait. When we boarded the next train, it was extremely crowded! We managed to find seats next to a German woman who was traveling to Uhm and another German man. It was so hot on the train. More and more people boarded . Obviously they have no limit as to how many people could board. Several people were seated on the floor because no more seats were empty. After a while, the German man moved closer and introduced himself. He shared a wealth of information with us about Munich. His wife phoned and said their were electrical problems on the track ahead and that we'd probably have to change trains. Eddie was so very kind. He helped us unload all of our bags (Emma had fallen asleep again by this time) and carry them down the stairs and back up the stairs to the other track. Obviously they don't believe in elevators! When we boarded the next train we were packed in like sardines! Literally! There were no seats available and no standing room-yet the train kept stopping and more people squeezed on! We finally arrived at our hotel at 6:00pm. The first thing I did was take a bubble bath and order room service! My first impression of Germany was how nice the people were. First was Eddie, then several others on the train and at the train station helped us. The taxi drivers were awesome and so informative.
After a wonderful nights sleep in our beautiful hotel, we decided to get out and visit the Oktoberfest. They started this festival in 1810 as a celebration when the Bavarian prince, Ludwig I got married. They have it every year for 18 days. There were thousands of people there! People either sleeping or passed out everywhere! I've never seen anything like it. It didn't take us long to figure out this wasn't the place for us. Our next taxi driver told us we'd probably enjoy the schrebergarten near our hotel. She was right. Lots of tiny houses with gorgeous gardens-flowers, veges and fruits. These plots of land are rented out. You're allowed to build a small dwelling their, but you can't spend the night. There was a small place to eat nearby with picnic tables outside. The food was delicious! Emma even made a friend-a 2 year old boy named Tim.
The next day we visited the Munich Zoo. It was so nice-so lush and green. They even had a couple of little kid's parks for the girls to play in. Afterwards we walked to another schrebergarten and did some nature journaling.
On Monday, Oct 2 we left Germany. It was much easier to find our train and get loaded this time. We had our own private cabin (I'm sure that's not the correct term) with 6 seats. It was much nicer than before. We purchased sandwiches at the train station. The train ride was only about 2 hours-no stops. Next destination-Salzburg, Austria. |
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