Beyond The Hole
Alive in Munich
June 27, 2002 @ 02:09 AM
Hallo! I am alive and well sitting in a net cafe next to my traveling buddy Mike in downtown Munich.
My flight was mostly uneventful. I split my fourteen hours of flight time amongst friendly conversation with drunk Canadians, a selection of tasteless movies, and attempting to get precious sleep. I bought a sci-fi novel in PDX — William Gibson’s Neuromancer — but was too nervous to focus and read. The flight food wasn’t actually bad — by no means good, just not bad. Security made me open my pack, but they did such a lame job riffling through it, they wouldn’t have found anything malicious unless it was unwrapped and packed on top. Perhaps they were hoping I’d get nervous and make a run for it?
I got into Frankfurt at 10:30am, tired from lack of sleep and sore from sitting. Fuddled with the telephones trying to call Mike and Shannon at Peter’s. The phones use smart cards, but they aren’t keyed, so they fit in the phones upside down — not that I did this, mind you, just that you could. Got a hold of Shannon — what a relief — arranged to meet her and Mike at the train station in Munich at 4pm. Got my EuroPass validated and hopped on a fast ICE train to Munich (yes, it really was that easy)! Most people seem to speak English here, although they aren’t always quick to admit it, humble I suppose. The ride was nice: smooth, quiet and fast; I had trouble staying awake. One man across from me was sipping on a giant beer can with an elephant on the side. I found this very amusing.
Once off the train in Munich, I ran into Mike and Shannon as I neared the end of the platform. That evening Peter and Shannon took us out for German food. Heavy stuff that German food. Due to the limited amount of space at Peter’s, they had arranged for us to stay with their friends, Jenny and Ed.
The next day the four of us met at the train station and hopped on a southbound train to do some hiking in the Bavarian Alps. The scenery there was unbelievable. If I believed in God perhaps I’d feel close. I can hardly imagine anything more idyllic.
Some highlights include: enjoying a “refreshing” beer after a long hike (tip: this is a good way to get dehydrated), sleeping in a mountain hut, dangling my precious toes in a blue-green mountain lake where I was besieged by a small army of fish who — no doubt trying to eat me — only succeeded in tickling me relentlessly. I also managed to climb the summit of a peak, stomach a fresh glass of buttermilk (ugh), and spot a rather volumous German man hiking in a size-too-small speedo. The food and beer here are excellent, especially the confectionaries. I had a apfelstrudel the other morning which I can still taste.
My feet are holding out well, even after two days of hiking with only sandals.
Tomorrow is the first day Mike and I will be on our own. We’re both a bit apprehensive and unsure of what to do. We’ve done little planning and already feel rushed. However we did agree that we should head for Switzerland next. Thatīs all for now. More soon. Hope all of you are well.
