I get to the Frankfurt airport, grab my bags and then drop them off in a storage place. Thank god for that, because these bags are extremely heavy. I then look for the place to buy train tickets. The guy at the counter was quite helpful and let me know how the train system works. I have about 15 minutes to find out where to get on the train and I first go to the wrong level so I have to haul back up to the area and I find the train about 3 minutes before it leaves. I have no idea where to get on or where to sit. Turns out you just find an open seat and take it. The ride is pretty cool. The sound of walls and other trains whizzing by. Graffiti everywhere. I get to Munich in about 3 hours.
It's pretty damn chilly and light rain is coming down when I get there. The train stations are really impressive. It is so crowded with people walking in a hurry. The ceilings are very high and the place is huge. I am staying just across the main street and around the corner from the station. I get to the room and call Jonas (found out later it cost me 4.5 Euros for an outbound local call). He is about 30 minutes away so I take a quick shower and sleep for a few minutes.
I meet Jonas outside the hotel and we head for the underground. I am so glad he was there to show me around and help me get around on the public transportation. It is such a good way to get around. You could easily live there without a car. We come out in the main shopping area/square of Munich. The place is huge, so I don't know that they have a traditional "downtown" area. There are no tall buildings or anything like that. We head for the Hofbrauhaus to have a beer and pretzel.
Then we just walk around for a little while. There is interesting architecture around every corner.
Jonas recommends a local place that is about a 20 minute subway ride out of the main area. It's a small place in the bottom of a small hotel. It's very cozy, reminds you of Christmas on the inside. Everything looks old, there are thick wood beams crossing the ceiling and a group of older men are drinking beer and playing a local Bavarian card game. I have a huge cut of pork leg with the bone on it. The outside is crispy and it sits in a thin layer of sauce and comes with a ball of potatoes and bacon. It was great.
The next day we head out to the same area as the previous day and look for this massive church. It is the tallest building in Munich and by law, no other structure can be higher. There are two towers, but one is being working on. The place is huge. The inside is incredible. The ceilings must be about 4 stories high. The center isle leads to a huge statue of Jesus on the cross which is suspended in air. We turn around to see the giant pipes for the organ. The whole place is just breath taking.
Unfortunately, my camera battery died on me so I had to use my cell phone for these pictures, so I will have to load those later.
After the church, we went to a museum that had different areas like motors, electricity, metals, boats, planes, etc. It had a history of each category. It was a huge place and it was pretty interesting, but I think I would have preferred to do something else. The museum is right next to a river and other interesting buildings, so I still got to see a lot of cool buildings and statues still.
I then got back on a train and headed for Frankfurt. I stayed downtown and it reminded me of being in downtown Austin or something. It has some very cool modern buildings, but it just didn't have the charm of Munich. That evening I just walked around, ate some Chinese food (I know what your thinking.. I got tired of walking around looking for something good and I was starving) and then had some drinks at the hotel bar. That was about all I got out of Frankfurt.
