Tuesday, I went on the free walking tour of Munich offered by the same company as the Neuschwanstein tour I went with. It was definitely worth the time. Not only did you get an overview of the city center, but you also heard lots of explanations of the places, anecdotes, and historical facts...it was like an interesting history lesson. haha! It was a three-hour tour. (Three-hour tour...do do do do do do do do do do do do do...yes, I'm obsessed with Gilligan's Island!)
The tour began at the Glockenspiel, noted the second most disappointing travel wonders. We were observing the "excitement," and a couple of American college boys (very gay, too) and I decided one of those groups that stages the big song and dance coos should set on eup in Marienplatz. How hysterical would that be? Instead of the bells that everyone is standing around waiting for, it chimes and then huge speakers just start blasting Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" and people just come out from all around in the funky outfits and do the whole routhine like on Glee. haha! That would be fantastic!
After the tour, I grabbed myself a Kaesebreze (cheese pretzel) and found my way via die U-Bahn to the Asamkirche, a church that every Munich guidebook I have seen goes on and on about. It was gorgeous! So ornate! Much smaller than I imagined it would be...it was along a row of shops and didn't stand alone.
Mailed some postcards, too. However, I have no idea if anyone will get them...I had a battle with the stamp machine in the German post office...if not, I tried, and we'll blame the German post! ;)
I got all prettied up and headed to the Bayerische Staatsoper and waited around for 45 minutes to snag a student discount ticket to the production of Mozart's Don Giovanni. I got a 100-some Euro ticket for only 10 Euros!! Nuts!
At first, I wasn't sure about thsingers or the staging, but as the evening went on, I changed my mind about the singers. The Leporello was fantastic! And the Donna Anna beasted the terrifyingly difficult Act 2 aria! Gotta love Mozart! Simple and easy on the ears, technically and physically a great challenge for the voice. (I saw a quote by Diana Damrau on a window in Salzburg that said, "Mozart is medicine for the voice." I like it!)
The staging of the opera was whacked, though! Whoever designed that had to have been tripping out on something! I had no idea what was going on. One girl in camping gear, a guy in a tux, Giovanni in a shiny gold suit, pole dancers, people practically stripping on stage, some psycho man that kept showing up in weird outfits doing stupid stuff like walking funny dresses as a bird (he reminded me of that weirdo from Notting Hill), hanging dead cows...all weird and not sure how most of it had anything to do with the music. Also, the German way is very odd...they made us leave the theatre during intermission and wouldn't let us back in until it was time to start again. Strange.
Wednesday morning, I was up early to catch a morning train to Vienna for my dinner plans with Katrin and Martin. That day turned into a slight disaster. I was supposed to be in Vienna at 1:30pm, and instead, I arrived at 5:15pm. My 4-hour train ride turned into 8 hours when the train decided to come to a complete standstill in the middle of nowhere...for THREE HOURS!! Ugh. The first hour: Okay. This is fine...just as long as we start moving soon so I can get to Vienna in time Two hours later: Is this for real?! I was bored, restless, and getting frustrated. The one day of my trip that I have a specific time set for something, and it becomes a bit of a mess. When we finally started moving, they took us backwards to catch another train to Vienna. Beautiful. A kind girl let me borrow her cell phone to call Katrin, so I could let her know I'd be late. It wasn't really a terrible day, but it sucked up nearly my entire day.
Gratitude 243
I am very thankful that the German trains say everything in German and then in English. I get as much as I can in the German, and then hearing it in English fills in the missing pieces of info, so I not entirely wandering aimlessly! ;)
When I finally made it to Vienna, the mess wasn't over quite yet. I found my hostel fairly easily but then had to wait about 20 minutes to check in because a huge tour group had just arrived there. Ugh. I was on the verge of tears because I was just so frustrated. Threw my stuff in the locker, quickly changed, and rushed through the U-Bahn, making my way to the Museum Quarter. (Thankfully, I had at least a slight familiarity with the city to navigate it without too much difficulty.) I was only an hour and half late for dinner, and honestly, I just have to laugh at the ridiculousness of that train endeavor.
It was so wonderful to see Katrin and Martin again, and I also met Katrin's family and Martin's brother. Her parents are so sweet...her mom is the most adorable little Austrian lady I've ever met! :) After dinner and drinks, we went to T.G.I. Fridays (yes, the American restaurant! haha!) to watch the Fussball game of Spain vs Germany. The game was actually fairly interesting. Spain won 1-0. They were happy; the Germans were crying. (Glad I wasn't still in Germany during that!) When I didn't understand something, Katirn would explain it to me with the salt and pepper, mustard and ketchup, and an empty beer glass. Oh, Katrin! I even learned a new German sentence: "Ich habe die Aschkarte gezorgen." Literally, It translates to "I pulled the ass card" and refers to the red penalty card, which is kept in the back pocket of the referee. It is now also a colloquial phrase meaning one had bad luck.
After a few hours, we got the bill and headed out. Katrin was feeling ill, so she went home, and I went out with "the boys" for a bit (Martin and his brother Thomas). hehe! We went to an Irish pub for a beer and chatted for awhile. It was a lovely night! And the weather was cool as well! :)
This morning, I arose early to soak in as much Vienna as I could before my train in the early afternoon. Ah! I love that city! With total seriousness, I could spend forever there. I would be in total bliss if I lived there...someday, somehow, someway... :) I roamed around Karlsplatz, the opera, Stephansplatz, Stadtpark, Michaelerplatz and had lunch in the MQ. Time actually somehow plassed slowly, so I could breathe in the beauty.
Now, I am in beautiful Magyarorszag (Hungary). How I've missed this place! My friend Levi's boyfriend Gabor picked me up from the train station and took me over to Levi's flat. I got the quick overview of the place and a set of keys, and then Levi and Gabor had to leave right away for Balaton and won't be back till Saturday. No worries. Lots of things to do in this wonderful city!
Once I figured out exactly where I was in relation to the rest of the city, everything started coming back to me. It is almost as if I never left...except for my greatly suffering Hungarian! haha! A lovely glass of Hungarian white wine and a much-needed, hearty Hungarian meal of beef tips and gnocchi. :) Walked around a bit, chatted with a Cambridge professor on Liszt Ferenc ter, and then stopped into the grocery store for a Milka bar and some muesli for breakfast. :)
Hard to believe I am in the last portion of my trip already. I am thankful for the two weeks that I have been given here in Europe, though. I have realized, though, that my favorite way to experience other places is living there for at least a short bit. Then, you learn about the culture and truly experience it.
To bed...and more Hungarian adventures in the morning! :)
(Also...this post took a very long time! Getting behind during travels is costly! haha!)
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