Guten Tag...

What a surprising culture shock here in Munich, Germany!  Coming from Dubai, where everywhere you go is spotless - inside and out - no graffiti, no mess of any kind, not even leaves on the ground! Spotless!

Then come to Munich - tiny old airport in need of cleaning staff. We took a grotty train into the centre of the city - and it was filthy.  I have never seen so many smokers - all dropping their butts on the ground inside the station and out. Papers, bottles, overflowing bins, and the streets themselves are in dire need of cleaning.  Such a shame. 

Further away from the station, though,we were happy to see all much cleaner and brighter.  There is a vibrant atmosphere here that is very appealing, that may have a lot to do with the Oktoberfest Beer Festival which has brought many visitors from all over the world....including us!

Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany

What we were expecting were a collection of tents touting their own beers. What we found was an enormous fairground (Bob said it was as big as Flemington and the Showgrounds put together) full of huge "tents" that were between 3 and 4 stories high in the middle, and elaborately decorated.

They looked like permanent structures to me - or it would take several weeks to put them up!

Inside one of the huge halls

Outside there were many rides, exhibition tents, all kinds of elaborate food outlets, all highly decorated and doing a roaring trade with the crowds.  Foods from all nations were there, (some of them a bit creepy) so no one could go hungry there.  They could be tired, however, as there was nowhere to sit and rest - except in the beer halls. Very clever! 

We got there early, and went from one to the other, but already people were drinking and having a great time. Each tent held about 2,000+ people, eating, drinking and singing to the bands which were playing traditional oommpahpa beer drinking songs.  It was very catchy and joyful, and the more we drank the more joyful it got! The beer here is not only in huge steins, but is very cold and delicious!  We both agreed that it was better than Aussie beer, lighter in flavour and strength.  Is that heresy?

This was our 40th Wedding Anniversary, and we celebrated with a simple Bavarian meal and, drank lovely beer with 2,000 other partygoers from all over the world!  If you can't have your own friends and family -then that's the next best thing.

Happy Anniversary - Cheers!!

This is a snack shop - talk about over the top decorating -
next to yet another beer tent.

I've got lots more photos and stories obviously, but suffice to say that our visit to the Oktoberfest was more than we expected, and definitely worth the trip. A wonderful day we will certainly remember!  We like to go on the Hop On-Hop Off buses in every place we go. They go to all the best sights and give you explanations of each one. Then you can decide if you want to see more of that place and hop off the bus. It's a great way to see a new place, and still have a choice of what to visit.  

Clock Tower

We hopped off at Marienplatz - a lovely old town square with wonderful centuries old buildings surrounding it on all sides. The clock tower there goes off twice a day - at 11am and 1pm - so of course all the tourists flock there at those times. At the stroke of 11am the church bells begin, and chime a story, complete with life size replicas of people and horses playing out a pantomime of the history of the square, to the tunes of multiple bells.  It goes for about 15 minutes, and is remarkable when you think that it has been doing this for so many years! I don't know if you can see, but the marrionettes are in two levels in the green area in the middle. They are so high up, it's hard to get a clear photo.

While we were in Munich, we took the train to Dachau Concentration Camp. As you know, Dachau was the first Concentration camp, and it was the model for all the others that the Gestapo built.

It was a very interesting, creepy and sombre experience. A sad reminder of man's inhumanity to man.

The statue says (in my clumsy translation)
"The Dead gave their Lives for Mankind"

We walked the entire camp, and saw all the exhibits, some quite harrowing.  In deference to all the people who lost their lives there, I won't publish photos in this post, as some are quite graphic.  Those of you who are interested in this part of history, ask me about it, and I'll be happy to share what we experienced with you. 

So that was Munich for us. We enjoyed our stay, and for me, watching Bob trying to chat up people who don't speak English, is a highlight! Especially after a few of those good beers! 

Now it's back on the train, and on to Switzerland - the furthest point of our trip!  We are going to the capital - Bern, which is said to be a lovely heritage town.  However, the beauty of travelling on our own, is that we can go wherever we want. There are so many places to see, it's great to have options!

Till next time...