September 21 – Day 69
Today we got the train to Munich, a clean, new looking Austrian train (a very welcome change). We got to our hotel, but had to wait a while before checking in. Once we had that out of our way, we headed off to Oktoberfest :) It is hard to describe. Most people there are wearing traditional costume, There are rides in the background, and there are huge, massive tents, bursting with people who are somewhere between tipsy and obliterated. After wandering around for a while, looking in tents (which were all full, as it was late in the afternoon). We eventually found some space on a table with a group of tourists, and settled in for the night. We had a lot of steins, which was good fun, then went back to the hotel.
September 22 – Day 70
We decided to do a city tour, which took us to a lot of the important sites in Munich. We got off at the palace, and had a look around there at the gardens before heading back in to the centre of town. We explored a bit more on foot, and eventually stumbled upon the Hofbrauhaus, where we stopped for a drink. After another beer over the road at Augustiner, we headed back to the hotel to get ready to go out to dinner with a family friend. She took us to an Asian restaurant a little bit out of town, which was a welcome change from the heavy meals we have been eating recently. Her daughter and grandchildren also came, which was nice. Simone and I both had a great night :)
September 23 – Day 71
We decided to do a trip to Dachau for the morning, and went on a tour, which I recommend. We had a great guide who showed us everything we needed to see. It is a haunting place, however much of what is there is reconstructed. Seeing the crematorium and the gas chamber (which was aparently never used) was disturbing. After the tour, we met up with our friend for an afternoon with her. We headed south from Munich on the highway, heading towards the Alps. It didn’t take long to reach them, as we were doing about 170km/h on the highway – not the autobahn! The police obviously have bigger things to worry about than a huge Merc flying down the road, piloted by a grandmother! Our destination was Tegernsee, a beautiful town on the edge of a lake (or it may be the name of the lake itself – I’m not sure). We drove up a hill to a restaurant called Freihaus, which had a wonderfull view over the town and lake, with mountains in the background. We had a late lunch and drinks in the sun. Next we headed back towards Munich, stopping at our friend’s house in Grunwald (a beautiful village outside Munich). After seeing her house and the area she lives in, we went back into town, had a few drinks at a pub near the town hall, and headed back to the hotel.
September 24 – Day 72
For our last day in Munich, We went to Oktoberfest. We got there at around midday, and stayed well into the night. I drank a lot of steins. We moved around a bit, chatting with people as we went. It is an amazing festival, but my wallet took a huge hit. This isn’t difficult when a stein is 8.60 Euro, and they go down so easily. One thing I hadn’t realised is that Oktoberfest beer is brewed to a higher alcohol than standard – around 6%. I think that means that every stein has around 4-5 standard drinks (by Australian standards). Oktoberfest is amazing.