Day 36: July 6, 2012

This morning we went to Dachau, the concentration camp. It was a very sobering experience, and I feel like you could literally feel the darkness in the air. It was worth going, but it was a difficult time. Afterwards, we managed to find some more positive experiences to spend our day on.


After getting back to Munich, we found the river where people surf. Here I am showing Megan a good spot to get in the water and start surfing. Unfortunately, she is not nearly as experienced a surfer as I am, so she seems less confident about getting in the water (which is ironic, because she almost fell in herself).




Here are some actual professional surfers giving it a go in the river. I really wanted to put my skills up to the test against these guys. These waves are rookie level.






Here I am showing everyone how easy it is to surf. Unfortunately, I did not have my surfboard or my wetsuit on me, so I just had to watch from above. Like a true mentor, I watched some of the amateurs in the business give it their best shot.






We weren't able to surf, but we did get to enjoy some more beers at an outdoor biergarten before we got rained on again. Goodbye Munich, we had a great time!

Day 35: July 5, 2012

Crossing the bridge to old-town Salzburg, where we went on a day tour. Salzburg was a really nice town and it was good to spend the day there. We were able to see some of the sites from Sound of Music (never seen it,mug apparently a really famous movie that makes people run and dance and sing around the streets of Salzburg), Mozart's birthplace, another castle/fort, and a 300-year-old cafe that had some great cakes and coffee.

The locks attached to the fence along the bridge over the river. Apparently people who get married/engaged/fall in love put their names on a lock, lock it, and throw the key in the river so that it is forever attached. Unless of course they are not sure, then they just use a combination lock so they can come back to take it off if things don't work out.


Coffee and cake at the 300-year-old cafe.


Guess who found the new mascot for the Lollipops and Unicorns (in an angry voice) 2013 dodgeball team!! That's right, we have an international following now.


More pictures from Salzburg: the town square (above) and the view from the fortress at the top of the hill (below).


Finished off the evening with a trip to the Hofbrauhaus for dinner. The service was really slow and the food wasn't too great, but the atmosphere was awesome and the beer was fantastic. Also, we sat next to an older man who saw Hitler when he was six years old, which was pretty cool.

Day 34: July 4, 2012

This morning we woke up really early to take a train to see the Neuschwanstein Castle, also known as the Disney castle, or the castle that inspired the one from Sleeping Beauty. The trip was definitely worth it, as it and everything around it were amazing to see. Set up in the alps overlooking the towns below, making the long walk up the mountain to see the castle was quite the hike.

The best view came from the walking bridge spanning two of the peaks. The plank bridge was ominous as it had a direct view into the valley below, and some of the boards would tilt or bend, but the view from the bridge was fantastic. Pictured below is a panorama of the view from the bridge.

Day 33: July 3, 2012

Goodbye London, welcome to Munich! Aside from the airport that smelled like a zoo, and the hour-long wait to take a bus, and the fact that customs asked if I was military before giving me my visa, Germany was pretty good because they sold beer on our Mercedes-Benz bus. The bus had a coffee maker, and hardwood floors. Also, I'm pretty sure I should have played football in Europe, because my hands have been Larry Fitzgerald-level this week. I caught Megan's paper boarding pass before it hit the ground, I caught a fork I accidentally knocked off my plate before it landed in Darcey's lap, and I just caught a beer sliding off the tray table on the bus when it started to drive and I wasn't looking because I was drafting this blog.


Bless you, double bless you, triple bless you, home run bless you! Megan finally hit the home run, my first home run call ever (this probably doesn't make sense to anybody, but it's worth a celebration!






Going to dinner at our local biergarten - awesome food and good beer (even for a lager!). Really great place, awesome atmosphere. Score huge points for Munich. Megan is still super excited even though she has a tiny beer compared to Tristin (but she is pretending like she has two beers).


Celebrating in the streets of Munich with our new beer glasses!