Well. After some unexpected travel issues (flight delay and transfer), I have safely arrived in Munich, Germany! And it is so cool.
We took the train from the airport to the main city, then walked to our hostel. The names seem slightly misleading to me, as the train was more like a subway and the hostel closely resembles a hotel (it's a nice hostel).
We checked in, freshened up, then walked to the historic part of town for dinner. We went into the restaurant and my friend almost immediately remarked, "So the German stereotypes are all true!" There were waiters in leiderhousen, and women in the stereotypical German dresses, a man walking around selling huge pretzels and of course-- the largest beer glasses I have ever seen accompanied everyone's dinner.
It was so lovely sitting with a small group of friends, some old and new, all absorbing this new culture together. Some have been to Europe before and others have not. Some speak a little German and others not a word. Overall everyone in my group seems extremely flexible, nonjudgemental, and open. Not to mention friendly! I think these next 5 weeks will be a lovely experience.
After dinner we walked back to the hostel, and we noticed that we had dined for three hours! A new friend mentioned that he had heard dining for longer periods of time was part of the German culture to which I responded, "Hey, I don't have any problem with that!" (I love food..)
We had noticed some storm clouds and were expecting some rain, but all of a sudden small hail starting raining down on us! I don't think some people in our group had ever seen hail before haha. But almost as soon as it started, it had ended, and we were fine to lower our umbrellas.
After our meal and German beer, everyone was feeling the jet lag. We were determined to stay awake until at least 8-8:30pm, so our circadian rhythms could successfully align again. A different group of us got together to go our for coffee/dessert. We found a small cafe and chatted for about an hour, then went shopping for various things that people needed. By then it was around 8 o'clock, and everyone was ready for bed.
Today is a new day, we are all rising and getting ready for breakfast, which will be followed by a walking tour of the city. I opened my laptop to check the weather before dressing, and I'm glad I did because it's supposed to be colder than it was yesterday! All 40s this morning with a 50% chance of rain.
I have no idea what we are doing after the walking tour because I forgot my Munich itinerary at home. Normally I would freak out a little bit about that but it's kind of nice, just going with the flow and truly living in the moment. I woke up this morning feeling so strange, remembering that I was in another country...on another continent! This is the farthest I have ever been away from home, and without anybody I know very well. I immediately felt so strongly though that this is something will be so glad I did in my twenties. These are the years to travel and explore.
Thanks for tuning in, I'll update whenever I can. :)
Thank God the "Post" button is orange otherwise I would have no idea what to press... everything on this webpage is in German!
Yours from Munich,
Princess Samantha
So glad you're having a nice time so far! Yes, you can go to many beer halls and see the traditional cultural clothing. Dom went round Germany and Austria on a euro rail trip a couple years ago and enjoyed everything. And long dinners can be part of Western European culture in general. It's a time to sit back, enjoy good conversation, and relish several courses of good food, not just stuff the face and get on with work.
ReplyDeleteAnd Dom said the same thing about the hostels, you can find a lot of hostels on the continent which are as nice as hotels just a lot cheaper. Dom stayed in these all throughout his travels and some of them he said were remarkably nice (like 3-star hotels). Keep us updated! And don't be afraid to use some free time to jump on a train and travel a bit for the day or a weekend!