Over the mountains and through the woods....

These last two days have been full of wonderful views, roaming through the old city, and climbing up a mountain! Yesterday morning we went to the Court Church, which is where the tomb of Emperor Maximilian I was built, however he was never buried there because he died suddenly in another city.

Then we walked through the Folk Art Museum, which I found pretty boring and freaky, Ryan agrees. We weren't planning on going there, it was attached to the Court Church so we kind of just found ourselves in there. When we walked outside, we found that the weather had improved drastically and the sun was shining! We thought it was a perfect opportunity to go up the mountain because it was warm and we were wearing jeans and long sleeve shirts. We really didn't think it through because apparently the top of mountains are very cold and raining because they are in the clouds. We took threw separate cable cars that took us close to the top of a mountain. 

We realized we were really high up

As we were ascending, the weather got colder and it began to rain. Then it got so foggy we couldn't see anything outside of the cable car!

So foggy

After the last cable car, we walked the rest of the way to the peak of the mountain - we taped a little video as we walked up. It took a lot longer than we thought it would and we got tired pretty fast! Needless to say, the video is very shaky and kind of long, but you will get to see what it is like walking to the top of a mountain!

We walked up to Hafelekarspitze

At the peak of the mountain!

Who said Minnesotans are used to the cold?!

Today, we did took a sightseeing bus around the city that took us to a couple of places. Our first stop was Bergisel Skijumping Stadium, which was used in the  1953 and 1976 Winter Olympics. We were able to go to the top of the tower (50 m high) and see the great view of the city.

After, we went to a local castle, Schloss Ambras - It doesn't compare to the Neuschwanstein Castle or the Munich Residenz, but it was still fun to see some Austrian history. The castle contained a lot of pictures of the families as well as old armory. To finish off our long day, we did some last minute shopping! 

OK so some interesting things about Innsbruck, Austria:

- Breakfast consists of sausages, open face sandwiches, boiled eggs, and bread.

- All the stores here close around 6pm, and we found out that everything is closed on Sunday. A cashier in one of the souvenir stores told us that about two years ago, there was a big fight throughout the city because the town is very religious so many people thought there should be no working on Sunday. So now almost every store is closed on Sunday (although we aren't sure about restaurants, but we will find out tomorrow).

- There isn't much choices for beer, something Ryan was bummed about - but there is a schnapps store where you get free samples! See image to the left. 

- The locals are very friendly!

- Service however, sucks, as it did in Germany as well. If you go to a restaurant, you will wait about 10 min to get your order taken, they will bring your food, then when you are done eating you will wait another 10 - 15 to get your check. Tipping isn't as big here....

- The drinking age here is 18, versus Germany which is 16

Tomorrow, we check out at 11 and will leave our luggage in storage at the hotel because our train to Rome isn't until 11pm! (Because it is an overnight train) We are going to see the Swarovski Crystal World tomorrow and will roam around a local park. Possibly blog while sitting in the hotel lobby! Let us know if you have any questions about Innsbruck or Germany, we can try to answer! Thanks for reading!!

Panoramic of Innsbruck

Ryan and I went up to the top of a mountain today! I put together this panoramic image and we just had to post it right away for everyone to see. Will blog more later....

This isn't from the top, but the best view of Innsbruck :)

Click on it to view larger

Innsbruck, The Capital of the Alps :)

FYI we have changed the settings so anyone can comment, you do not need to have an account... so lets hear those comments!!


We started out this morning with a quick train ride to Innsbruck, about 2 hours. We couldn't keep our camera down the whole ride because of the beautiful mountains, then the train stopped right in the middle and we realized we were in Innsbruck, Austria! Within the small city, is the old city which consists of a cobble stone street with shops and cafes on both sides. While walking down the city I couldn't help but sing "The hills are alive, with the sound of music...."

Goldenes Dach, The Golden Roof built in 1500 for Emperor Maximilian I
as a balcony for hit to sit in and view events happening in the city square

While walking and exploring the city, we were walking in some back alleys behind the main square and started hearing beautiful music. We followed the music and found ourselves in the courtyard of the Imperial Palace where a concert band was holding a free concert. We found out that it is a tradition that during almost every day in July, of every year, bands and ensembles continue the longtime tradition of open air concerts that has occurred throughout history in Austria. The palace doesn't look so pretty because they are doing some renovations...

Ryan here...
        For those of you curios, like me, if Austrian's drink beer like the German's I have noticed a slight difference. I feel that Austrian's do not drink as much beer for the simple fact that I have not noticed as much beer drinking. In Germany everyone was seen with either a beer bottle in their hands or a stein full of foamy greatness. Also, here they have a drinking age of 18 and Germany is 16. I have only seen one beer that is brewed here in Austria called Kaiser bier. Germany had umpteen beers made in both Berlin and Munich. This is a sad discovery for me because my days of enjoying varieties of inexpensive German beers has come to an end. Alas I will shed no tears because I have found a new alcoholic drink in Austria. Schnapps! While walking around Innsbruck we found a place offering free samples of schnapps. This place makes its own unique flavors with around 50 to choose from. I tried a butter scotch flavor and liked it so much I bought some. Germany had its beer but Austria has a new drink to offer: schnapps.

Hofbrauhaus & Neuschwanstein Castle

Allie here, just got back to our hotel room a little while ago and we are exhausted! We had fun last night and today was busy, exciting and exhausting. I will let Ryan talk about last night and I will talk about today :)

The Hofbrauhaus, founded in 1589, was what I had envisioned I would see all over Germany. It reminded me of the Gasthaus in Stillwater but about five times the size. It was a typical German beer joint with ubiquitous picnic like tables filled with people and steins of beer. I must emphasize that the steins were very large, one liter to be exact. A mug of beer that size was pretty heavy which makes the waitstaff seem like a bunch of strong bodybuilders because they were often seen carrying more than four in each hand and stacking mugs on top of the four in their hands. (I hope that makes sense). The atmosphere at the Hofbrauhaus was superb. A table full of Canadians were singing aloud and holding up their half empty steins of beers. In addition to the singing Canadians, there was a band playing German style music in the center of the Hofbrauhaus. Allie and I even witnessed men wearing lederhosen. This was an exceptional place to eat and drink. The food was sublime, the beer was dark and delicious, and the atmosphere created a warming feeling of being surrounded by family and friends. I may have to use my persuasion skills to try and get Allison to eat another non-American meal in a wonderful restaurant like the Hofbrahhaus (wish me luck).

Now for Allison to describe our trip to Fussen and the Neuschwanstein schloss (castle):

Ok first of all i loved the Hofbrauhaus too so I would love to go back...in your face Ryan.

Anyways, I have been looking forward to visiting Neuschwanstein Castle for a long time and it did not disappoint. We took a day tour to the castle because we had no idea how to get there otherwise! We left at 8:45 this morning and took a coach bus to Fussen, Germany which is about 1.5 hours away from Munich. Then we headed out on a bike tour around the area and to Swan Lake. It was drizzling rain a little but we were actually happy it was raining rather than really hot. Then we grabbed lunch and our tour guide did a little magic show. He was AMAZING. We were all silent because we had no idea how he did all these tricks with a deck of cards - he is known internationally. Then we set out for a hike up to the castle! You can take a bus up the mountain also, but we hiked up next to a waterfall and it was one of the best experiences I have had. Everything was so beautiful. It took about 1 hour to get up to the castle and the steeps were pretty steep. Ryan was just in awe of how tall the trees were on the mountain. Higher up from the castle is a bridge called Marienbrucke, which provides a great view of the castle. Then we got to head into Neuschwanstein Castle! Ok so I better give you a quick history lesson of the castle...

Neuschwanstein Castle started being built for King Ludwig II in 1868. He planned to build it in Fussen, Germany, next to his childhood castle Hohenschwangau, where him and his brother grew up, isolated from everyone else. Ludwig II's father died in 1864 and he became King at the age of 19 (or 20?). His brother, Otto, was declared insane soon after Ludwig II became King. King Ludwig II was a very isolated man so many people thought he was insane also. He was also struggled with his sexual orientation, as he wrote in his diary, and supposedly had a relationship with Richard Wagner, a famous composer in Munich. Many of the rooms in Neuschwanstein Castle contain images from Wagner's operas. King Ludwig II lived in Neuschwanstein Castle for about 6 months before his "mysterious death." You can read all his death and the conspiracy stories online or in books. The castle was never finished, and only 16 of the 60 rooms have been completed. The government took over the castle after his death because he owed money, and 6 weeks after his death they began charging the public to view the inside.

So back to our experience. The tour was only 25 minutes long and the tour guides are completely scripted by the government. They will not talk about his death, which many believe the government killed him, and they will not admit that he was gay, although it is a well-known fact. The inside of the building was absolutely breathtaking, although there are only a couple completed rooms. We weren't allowed to take photos inside, so I pulled a Louis and turned off my flash while Ryan stood lookout :) We were both surprised because it was more beautiful than we could have imagined.

So here are pictures! The inside of the castle ones are blurry because the no flash :( Hope you enjoy, and read up on King Ludwig II if you like history because his life is a really interesting story!

Swan Lake

Hiking up to the castle!!

Marienbrucke (bridge)

Hohenschwangau Castle, where King Ludwig II and his brother grew up.

Neuschwanstein Castle, view from Marienbrucke (bridge)

Hallo Munchen!

Guten Tag!

We arrived in Munich after a six hour train ride from Berlin. It felt great to arrive at our hotel after a long day of travel. The hotel in Munich is a little smaller and less modern than our hotel in Berlin. However, we have a refridgerator now and they have mineralwasser, coca cola, and apfel saft (mineral water, coke, and apple juice) in our fridge for free! Furthermore, they refill it if you drink something from the fridge. Also, Internet is a lot more reasonable at 3 euro (about $4) for 24 hours.

Munich is a smaller city with more historic looking buildings. Munich is also a very expensive city because the city and people here are very rich. For example, they have stores like Dolce & Gabbana, Rolex, and Tiffany Co.Yesterday we walked to the Glockenspiel which is about a two minute walk from our hotel. This is a great big clock in the Neues Rathaus (New City Hall). It is similar to a cuckoo clock with statues of people that move around the clock at certain times. After little sightseeing, we walked around to find a restaurant. We eventually found a place that was not too expensive. Eventually, Allie and I sat down at an empty table. I, however, forgot to mention to Allie that it is a norm in Germany to have people sit at your table. Shortly after we sat down an older couple came and sat with us. They spoke some english and said they were visiting from Dusseldorf. It was very nice to not be completely ostracized with a language barrier. Allie and I split a plate of wiener schnitzel, which was lecker (delicious). I had a beer called Andechs DoppelBock Dunkel. It is a dark bock beer with about 7.1% alcohol by volume which makes it much stronger than any American beers. After having one half liter I was rather happy and enjoyed using Allie as a shoulder to lean on when walking back to our hotel. I love Germany!

Today
Allie and I walked over to a church called the St. Paul Kirche. It was a very pretty church. Luckily, a door was open so we were able to walk inside. Something miraculous had happend to me upon walking into the church. For the first time ever, I had felt calm and like a weight had been instantly lifted off of my shoulders. The church was very quiet and pretty empty. It was certainly an experience I will never forget.

I must also admit how much I love the beer options here. I can get a half liter of beer from the grocery store for less than one euro. Furthermore, beer is cheaper than juice in most cases. When Allie and I were walking around Munich this morning we say countless people drinking beer before noon; I love it!

Museum Island in Berlin



Ryan on the train ride to Munich

St. Paul Kirche

Sendlinger Tor, the gate to the old munich city, built in 1318.

Glockenspiel

Interesting things we have noticed in Germany...

Our hotel has a Burger King connected to it and they have a few special for a limited time. They are selling something called a California burger and California wrap. Also they have a Texican wrap. furthermore they charge you for ketchup and mustard. Europeans like to use mayo on their french fries.
American films have different titles in German for example Saving Private Ryan is called Den Soldat James Ryan.
Allie and I enjoyed our last day in Berlin. We are watching South Park in German now.

Auf Wiedersehen Berlin, wilkommen sie Munich.

This was arduously typed on a kindle, so it is short.

Rainy day in Berlin

This morning started out great because we were able to sleep all night!! yay!! We started out by having crepes, which comes in many different flavors. I had Nutella and Banana and Ryan had Baileys, yes the alcoholic beverage was a flavor. Then we went shopping a little and relaxed because it was a gloomy day.

Around 4 o'clock we went on a bike tour around Berlin and had an AWESOME time. Our tour leader is from Seattle so she spoke English the whole time and we saw many of the sites we haven't seen yet. It was a group of about 20 people and they were from all over the world. There were some students from Texas who are studying in Innsbruck, Austria, so we got their contact info so they can give us some tips on where to go when we are there. We also had a nice talk with a family from Holland. It was so great to answer questions they had about America and also here about Holland. They get about 25 days for work holiday and were surprised when we said we get about 1-2 weeks. The daughter who is about 19 is a fan of the TV show Gossip Girl and 90210 and thought that was what America was light, so she was a little disappointed when I told her America wasn't like those shows at all! They were also surprised when we told them our schools serve burgers, fries and pizza. The son, who is about 15, smiled really big when we said that because he was jealous.

Something interesting that we both found out is that in Berlin, everything is literally been torn down and rebuilt multiple times. So you think you are seeing something old, but really its not. Throughout all the power struggles, the new leaders would destroy anything that the previous leaders built and build something over it. Now, Berlin is trying to rebuild a lot of the old buildings, except they will be new...weird?

Ok I will hand the blog off to Ryan!

The memorial had a melancholy, gloomy feel to it. The overall feeling from walking among this memorial was a sad feeling of knowing what this represents. Many of the history in Germany is actually surrounded around war and other sad events. Alas, this is an example of a long history of war.

Fun Fact: When Hitler came into power, he randomly started taking down all the statues in the city in the parks and on tops of buildings. He wrapped them and had them sunk into the rivers. He didn't explain why, but they now know it was because he was preparing for the war he would start 3 years, he knew the city would be destroyed and wanted to save the statues.

A funny thing that happened at the Tiergarten (Bier Garden) was Allie ordered in German for the first time. Unfortunately, she needs a little practice. She attempted to order wiener schnitzel and ended up getting a beer with sprite and spezi ( a German drink with coca-cola and fanta).

Allie with her two drinks

Our delicious weiner schnitzel

Our tour leader drew this to explain the Berlin wall and where Charlie Checkpoint was located. Fun fact, it is called "Charlie" because it is one of the US army codes, Alpha, Beta and Charlie. The two other checkpoints are called Alpha and Beta.

The Memorial of the Murdered Jews - see the video below

Reichstag, the parliament house