Munich, Germany

Growing up, we spend years reading and studying about this great big world we live in. What I have discovered the past 10 days is that it's impossible to comprehend the magnitude and shear beauty of it until you see it up close and personal. I hope by sharing my pictures and stories, you all can enjoy, to an extent, what I have been been seeing, taking in and loving here in Europe. When Jess and i boarded the plan in Atlanta, we had high hopes of popping a sleeping pill or two in order to be able to hit the ground running once we arrived in Frankfurt. Well, due to some free in-flight movies, gossiping and two large glasses of wine, i managed to stay bright eyed and cheerful the entire 9 hour flight to Germany. Once we arrived, it hit me. I was tired, nauseous and cranky. Thankfully, Eric showed no mercy what so ever and we hit the ground running. We swung by his adorable hacienda here in Ramstein to shower and repack. Below are a few pictures of my room here....although still not complete. The pictures don't really do the room justice. It's huge and I will definitely need to check for an area rug as all noises echo pretty bad due to the high ceilings.

The gorgeous amoir Eric picked out. I have since added a nice shoe rack so my shoes are no longer sitting underneath.

The desk with the two flower pictures Eric had hanging. I of course and already covered my room in pictures to make it feel more like home.

My window by my bed. Sorry these are dark. I didn't set my camera on the correct setting.

Munich, Germany
8/27/2010 - 8/29/2010

Our first stop on our whirlwind trip was Munich, Germany. We arrived at hotel mark just in time to check into the hotel and hit the ground running. Our first stop was the main center of Munich where the world famous Glockenspiel is located. The city is very fast paced. There were a lot of beggers and Eric had to cut me off because i kept wanting to give them money. I have a thing for sad faces.....i don't like them and they always seemed to cheer up everytime i would throw .50 euro in their cup. :) Below is a picture of the Glockenspiel which is located in the center of the Marienplatz, the heart of Munich. 

 Our next stop was, of course, the Haufbrau House. It's probably the most touristy thing on our list of places to see but who cares. We had an absolute blast and it was really neat to see all the old men who still walk around in their lederhosen. The beers were BIG, the food was awesome but the people watching was the best party. A group of about 10 guys sat down at the booth next to us. It was a bachelor party and they had the groom to be dressed up as a bride, boobs and all. They were extremely entertaining as you can imagine.

For some unknown reason, a group of "tourists" came up and REALLY wanted their picture taken with Jessica. We still can't figure out why. There was probably 6 or 7 of them. We played along and took the pictures.

After a glorious couple of hours touring Munich and enjoying the Haufbrau House, we decided to make our way back towards the hotel and enjoy a few drinks at the hostels located across the street from our hotel. Below is probably one of my top 3 favorite pictures I have taken in Europe thus far.

Eric and Jordan enjoying a drink at a hostel :)

We spent a majority of the next day taking a tour around Munich with Mikes Bike Tours. It is run by an American and it is a must do if you are ever in Munich. The tour guides are from all over the world but speak phenomenal English and most importantly, they are VERY easy on the eyes. Enjoy the pictures below of our bike tour.

This is the Roman  Catholic Theatine Church. It was probably one of my favorite stops on the bike tour. It was built in the 1600's. Feel free to google it if you want to know more.

The pagoda located in the center of the beer garden. This is where we all enjoyed a full liter of beer and then attempted to ride the bike back in a straight line. Needless to say we had a flat tire and a few close calls.

This was the best part of the beer garden. The guys sitting along the sides of this "bar" had to pedal as they were served beer. They guy in the back would steer the bike.

This is known as river surfing. They put big blocks under the water so as the water current pushes the water down stream, the water hits these big blocks and has no where to go but over them producing descent waves. This is the Isar River.

After the bike tour, we found it appropriate to stop by the Haufbrau House for one more liter of beer. Then it was back to the hotel to shower and head back to the hostels for a few more bevies. Let's just say it was a REALLY long day and we ended grabbing a super late dinner at a pizza hut. Yes, you read that correctly and I am embarrassed to even write that but desperate times call for desperate measures. I will be back with a post on Salzburg and Prague. Let me just say that Munich has got nothing on these two places. The next post will probably be very few words because the pictures speak volumes. If you have stuck it out this far with me, THANK YOU!!! We are heading to Florence this weekend so if anyone has ever been, don't hesitate to leave a comment with a 'must do.' 

Oh, and by the way, despite all the pictures I have taken, I have YET to drop my new camera :) Aren't you proud mom and dad?