Day #199 - Berlin to Schrobenhausen, Germany

Wednesday, September 29th

Thanks to my aunt for a little encouragement. I was just low in spirits yesterday. I'm back in the game today.

Although I was postitioned for a bounce back day, it's going to have to wait until tomorrow - simply because I had to travel a long way today. I got out of Berlin late morning and headed south toward Munich. A five hour train ride brought me to the town of Ingolstadt, Germany. Here, I had to take another short train ride to the town of Schrobenhausen. I arrived about 7:30pm.

On check-in, I was presented with my final Eurail pass. OUTSTANDING! I can't tell you how relieved and happy I was to see this package. The cost of a 3 month Eurail pass is about $1,800. I felt like I could trust this small hotel. I talked with a number of management during my recent stay. They were 'all in' with allowing me to use their hotel as a postal address. I've been lucky. I had to get 3 passes for the 9+ months of my journey. One was sent to a hotel in Ireland (Irish are good people - trustworthy), I had 1 sent to my mom while I was in Peru (nobody in the world I would trust more), and this final one to a small hotel in Germany -- good stuff.

One thing I wanted to mention about my train travels, I continue to pass through the city of Nuremberg (German - "Nurnberg'). This city is famous for the Nuremberg trials. German leaders involved in the Holocaust and other war crimes were brought to trial here after the end of WWII. Nuremberg was selected because it was largely used by the Nazis for years as a main center for their rallies due to it's geographic position in Germany.

Also, train travel is not bad in Germany. You can pretty much get anywhere in 5 hours. That's a long time - but other countries can take substantially longer. We were going 250km/hr (155 miles/hr) for a long stretch today. I took most of the train trip to go through all my pictures. At the conclusion of my journey, I hope to put together a 30-minute video to music. Well, I have the music selected, and I'm currently going through the pictures. I think I need to widdle it down to about 500 pics. If you watched that 'Cool Change' video on YouTube - they used 70 pictures for a 5 minute song. I'm using this as a rough guide.

I bought an external hard-drive and have everything saved as a backup in case my computer officially crashes - I feel good about this. Today, my watch quit working. Did you ever hear of the quote: "Intelligence without ambition is like a bird without wings". Well, "Me without a watch is also like a bird without wings". It's like I'm paralyzed. It freaks me out. I can't guess how many days I've saved myself by double-timing it to trains or buses - reaching them just before the doors close. So - order of business tomorrow is: Train to Frankfurt, then buy watch, running shoes, and power gels - then I can move on with my life.

I've been meaning to due a "state of the union" address for the second third of my journey. Tomorrow marks the 200th day of my trip. I might try to get the finances lined out and get a summary together.

I was just thinking on the train trip today how much good stuff I have planned over the next 3 months. I'll be continuing my travels in the heart of Europe (Germany, Austria, Swtizerland) for the next couple weeks, then I make my way toward Athens via the countries which make up the former Yugoslavia, then I meet up with Greg/Liam/Kim + my brother Kurt to run the Athens Marathon, Greg stays over and we fly to Cairo, Egypt for a few days, then I go to Israel and visit with one of my sister Kelly's friends, then my other sister Kay comes over to tour Italy with me for 2 weeks over Thansgiving, and finally I bring it home with about 2-1/2 weeks of playtime.

Here's to a strong final 3 months of the journey.

Day #198 - Berlin, Germany

'Berliner Dom' - Berlin Cathedral

Lower left corner was Hitler's room in the Bunker

Memorial for those fallen in war - exposed to the elements via hole in ceiling

Jewish Memorial

Fancy guy in the green signal in former East Berlin

Tuesday, September 28th

Today I didn't do much site-seeing. I got up and ran a 30K (18.6 miles) in the hotel fitness center. It took all I had. I don't know - I'm not feeling the greatest lately with the long runs. I need to do 2 things right away - (1) I need to get new shoes. An average mileage for a pair of running shoes is roughly 300 miles - I think I have long exceeded this number. (2) I need to get proper nutrients to eat during my runs. Trying to get by on scrapes I find at a gas station is not going to work any longer.

I had intentions to go back into Berlin or maybe do a day trip to Hamburg - it just didn't happen. I ended up eating some dinner at the hotel and resting. Sorry for the lame report today.

Tomorrow I head back down toward Munich where I will revisit the hotel I stayed at in Schrobhausen. I ordered my final Eurail pass last week. I had them deliver it to this hotel. Once I grab this tomorrow with a quick overnight - I'll then be heading to the western side of the country to stay in Frankfurt, Germany for a few days. The Rhine River, the Black Forest, Cologne, Heidelburg -- these are all bogeys on the agenda for the next several days.

Here's to a better performance tomorrow. I'm including a few pictures from Berlin taken the past 2 days - I have endless pictures I could post.

Day #197 - Berlin, Germany

Brandenburg Gate - at night

Plaques honoring Jewish families

Reichstag - German Parliament

Picture at Checkpoint Charlie - showing new and old Brandenburg Gate

Sans Souci Palace

Monday, September 27th

Today I had another chance to walk around and experience the sites of Berlin. I did, however, need to take care of some business to start the day. Yesterday I did not mention that I wrote out the blog on the computer at the hotel. (The people may not have been pleased about my lengthy performance). The reason for this - my computer had some issues. It would not boot up for me on Sunday. Not sure why. Things were working OK on Saturday night.

I was more than a little nervous about this issue - as my computer is my lifeline at the present moment. I got up this morning and headed out for a computer store to see if they had a service department to take a look at my netbook. I was referenced to an area of town called Alexanderplatz. Very cool spot -many stores and restaurants. This is just off the main drag on the East Berlin side. Pretty much all the action happens on the former East Berlin side of town.

I got to the place. Found the service area. Tried to power my computer up - and - it started just fine. I still don't know what had happened. I tried to power it on/off 4-5 times on Sunday and it would not work. Anyway - the service guy let me hook up to their hard-line internet and run a comprehension scan. It came up with a few files at risk - but nothing substantial. I'm using this baby right now - living on a prayer.

Once I left the computer shop, I walked toward Tiergarten. This is a huge park that sits on the former West Berlin side of the Brandenburg Gate. This was the ending point of the marathon yesterday. The park is enormous. Paths are angled in all different directions. I'd imagine some of the finishers yesterday have spent some time here.

I walked back over to 'Checkpoint Charlie'. We were here yesterday - but I wanted to spend some more time. They have all these huge posters placed around the fence that give an in-depth time-line leading up to the construction of the wall - until its eventual fall in 1989. Really interesting stuff. Our guide had told us this - but the Cuban Missile Crisis was just about the end of the US. Also, it talked about JFK and some of his meetings around the time the wall was constructed.

I walked over to the building which houses the Berlin Philharmonic. This was pointed out in my book. Supposedly, the 2,400 seated auditorium is home to one of the world's most premier orchestras. I then found my way to the Reichstag. This is the place of the German parliament. In 1933, a fire was set to this building. This act helped the Nazis eventually rise to power. Our guide told us this lengthy story. But, I believe the skinny is - Nazis were far right and Communists were far left. Nazis were getting more and more votes. This fire was supposedly set by some radical Communist. This must not have set well with many Germans and the Nazis received the votes necessary to give Hitler full power over Germany in 1933.

Another interesting thing our guide said - the last time there was a great depression (1929) - a radical party took rule 4 years later (the Nazis). He told us about different countries in Europe that are now seeing a larger percentage of some new parties taking shape since the economic downturn in 2008. I don't begin to know much about world politics - but this guy didn't paint a pretty picture on the subject.

A couple other things I'm remembering from yeserday's tour. After Hitler's suicide, his appointed replacement (Goebbel I believe) also committed suicide 1 day later. In addition to himself, he took out his wife and all his kids. Humboldt University - a bigtime university just off the Unter den Linden Street (main street through the former East Berlin) was home to a number (25?) of nobel Prize winners. Albert Einstein taught here.

Late afternoon, I took a 30 minute train ride to the town of Potsdam. This is the place where between July 17 and August 2, 1945, Winston Churchill, Harry Truman, and Joseph Stalin hammered out the division of postwar Germany. This is now known as the Potsdam Conference. The city of Postdam is also famous for a large park in town called Sans Souci. In 1745, Prussian ruler King Friedrich II (known as Frederick the Great) constructed a royal palace here. Very impressive.

I'm back at the hotel. Tomorrow I'm going to try a long run and then I'm not sure. I have a couple options - we'll see how things turn out.

Day #196 - Berlin, Germany

Portion of the Berlin Wall

Brick marker indicating where the Berlin Walll once stood

40,000 runners in the Berlin Marathon

Hotel in background is the place Michael Jackson dangled his baby from balcony

Brandenburg Gate - runners on homestretch

Sunday, September 26th

Today was an extremely educational and inspiring day.

I started out by taking the 30 minute train into the central part of Berlin. I knew the marathon started at 9am - so I arrived into town just about that time. Only bummer today - it was wet and rainy. I was dressed the part, but by days end, it was wearing me down.

It took me a little while to figure out the logistics of the city. I finally found an information booth and bought a map. I didn't have the luxury of just roaming around - I had some specific places to be at certain times. I saw the marathon runners pass in a couple spots, but I wanted to make it to the finish to watch the winners come through.

Now, I've only watched 1 marathon in my life - the New York City Marathon when my brother ran. It was his first one post diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. My sister-in-law and I covered the entire city. It was an amazing day. We were able to see Kurt at about 5 different places, all the while seeing the city at the same time. I remember being so inspired and cheering my guts out for Kurt as he ran the last half mile to the finish.

Today was very inspiring as well. The runners ran through the Brandenburg Gate 1/2 mile before the finish (symbolic gate of the Berlin Wall. And the spot where Reagan famously stated: 'If you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall'). There were huge screens to watch the runners on the homestretch.

I made it to the finish line 3 minutes after the first place runner had come through - in just over 2:05. That's fast - the world record is 2:03:59. Today's winner was just a minute over the world record, which was also set in Berlin. I sat at the finish line mesmerized by these athletes. How can these guys run this fast? They're running 4:45 miles on average. Are you kidding me? I can't begin to run 1 mile at that pace. I think we'll see the world record fall below 2 hours in my lifetime - I think it's just a matter of time. I saw the awards ceremony for both the women and men. I was 15 feet away from the platform. They had their picture taken with this 2 foot tall beer. Awesome!

OK - watching the elites come through was fantastic; however, my real inspiration was watching the age groupers battle the elements. If you've never seen a marathon - I don't care if you absolutely hate sports - go and witness the spectacle at least once. If I can spend an afternoon at an art museum - you can watch a marathon. It's not about sports on Hour #5 of a marathon - it's about raw passion and desire. Go to the largest one you can find. (Top 5 - New York, London, Berlin, Paris, Chicago) There were 40,000 runners today - constant people coming through for hours. The atmosphere was electric. Cheering, music, dancing - it's a big party for the fans. Get a spot about 1/2 mile from the finish, and just watch the faces. I found myself clapping and yelling inspirational words for hours. (Just don't go to Mile 20 and yell: "You're almost there" - that will just make people upset - because they are not 'almost there'). I am so glad I got to experience this today. I've been kind of going through the motions lately on my personal runs - not that motivated - maybe today gave me the edge needed to make it to Athens.

In between 9 and 2:30pm - I watched the race at a couple spots, taking a break for mass at 12noon. An cool catholic church right in the main museum area of the city. Keeping it going.

Around 2pm I left the runners, although I wish I could have stayed longer. I made my way to the spot where my walking tour would begin. I took a 4-1/2 hour tour called 'The Famous Walk'. Wow - I learned more on this tour than any other in my life.

We started out on Museum Island. We saw all the amazing buildings, supposedly Berlin has over 100 different museums. We walked over to the monument honoring all those who have fallen in war. It was a statue of a women holding a child, their was a hole in the ceiling - completely exposing the statue to the outside elements. Neat.

The tour was predominantly in what was once East Germany. I learned the ways you can tell the difference between East & West: (1) Most all the buildings on the East side are new (this area was completely wiped out by the Russians at the End of WWII) (2) The stop lights on the East side have this unique figure in the lights (Supposedly this was a design by a famous person who died in a car accident due to a mishap with the street lights) (3) There is a brick line on the ground throughout the city (The former location of the Berlin Wall).

So many things on the tour - I'll just talk about the 2 most interesting to me. We stood over the bunker where Adolf Hitler committed suicide. Our guide told us all about the final days of his life. There were 16 different assassination attempts on his life - all unsuccessful. The last one; however (a bomb); ended up damaging his eardrum. Supposedly the last year of his life, Hitler was losing his mind. He was taking cocaine for the pain and talking in irrational thoughts. On April 30, 1945, a day after he married his 12-year mistress, he killed himself and his wife in the bunker we stood over.

We got to see one of the last remaining portions of the Berlin Wall. We learned about the 8 checkpoints between the East & West. We saw 'Checkpoint Charlie' - 1 of the 8 and used extensively by the Western guards. We learned about the beginining of the wall in 1961 until the day it came down - November 9th, 1989. We learned of the 'death strip' that existed between the 2 sides - mostly filled with white sand so guards could clearly identify human forms trying to escape into West Germany.

The tour was really informative. Our guide pointed out things I never would have noticed without doing extensive reading. There are small plaques on the ground all over the city representing areas where former Jews lived who were imprisoned by the Nazis. We learned that there are 3.3 million people in Berlin - 500,000 of these being Turkish immigrants. Berlin currently has a 16% unemployment rate. Supposedly the city has spent crazy dollars rebuilding some of the buildings destroyed from the war. They've also spent money on monuments honoring the fallen Jews.

Things continue to change in Berlin. If you've been to the city (even in the past 5 years), it has certainly changed. Buildings have been erected while others have been torn down. Bullet holes were still visible in many parts of East Germany up until 10 years ago. So much has happened in the 20 years since the wall has fallen. It sounds like Berlin is still trying to figure out its true identity.

Tomorrow I'll see what else I can uncover about this city.

Day #195 - Munich to Berlin, Germany

Saturday, September 25th

Long travel day for me today. I headed out of Schrobenhausen around 8:30am and arrived in Berlin around 4:00pm after a couple train connections. No marathon for me tomorrow. I actually didn't even make it over to the expo. It was set to close at 6pm - I probably couldn't have gotten there in time. No worries - it was sold out and I need some rest.

I'm staying out by the Bradenburg Airport. The hotel is really nice. It's a new, 4-star place and I'm only paying about $60/night. It's a 30 minute train ride from the city center - but well worth it. Staying outside the main city centers has saved me tons of money on my journey.

I decided to just stay in tonight and go strong tomorrow. The city looks like it's set up very nicely for tourists. I picked up a couple pamphlets. I'm thinking about doing a city walking tour in the afternoon after watching some of the marathon in the morning.

Here's to a solid Sunday in the German capital.

Day #194 - Bamberg & Regensburg, Germany

Town Hall - Bamberg

Bamberg - interesting configuration

Lunch - Wiener Schnitzel

Regensburg - central cooridor

Regensburg - the Dom Cathedral

Friday, September 24th

Today I visited a couple cities north of Munich - Bamberg and Regensburg. Both places were unique and offered more southern German flavor.

I first took a 3-train connection to Bamberg (Pronounced 'Bambeeerg" - I was corrected by the lady at the station - she was having a liitle fun with me) This place is unique because it was one of the few cities untouched during the bombing of WWII because of its location near an artillery factory - which prevented planes from getting too close. Bamberg is also built on seven hills and was capital of the Holy Roman Empire under Heinrich II. The town is also known for its beer breweries - with one dating back to 1536.

When I first got off the train and started walking - I almost turned around to leave. The place just didn't have the 'feel'. I kept walking and crossed over a bridge. Now we're talking. All of a sudden, the streets turned to cobblestone, people were out in droves, the beer gardens were packed, and a festival atmosphere was taking place. Awesome. I grabbed a couple pieces of fruit and walked around. There were a bunch of different waterways connecting the city. The town hall (Altes Rathaus) is one of the most photographed places.

I decided to get some lunch. I found this place with a sign out front stating it has a prize-winning Wiener Schnitzel. This is an Austrian dish - but I thought I'd try it anyway. All good. I've included a picture. It was veal with potatoes with a special jam. I washed it down with a mug of their finest brew. I was sitting at this outdoor cafe and I was literally telling myself how lucky I am to be here right now.

I finished walking around town and then took the next train combination to Regensburg. I was delayed on one section for an hour - they made us get off the train. A girl sitting next to me said they made an announcement that there was an accident on the rails up ahead. She said it was probably a suicide - this happens occasionally. Woo - not so good.

I made it into Regensburg late in the afternoon. This town was largely kept from the destruction of WWII as well. It's known as the 'city of churches'. The Dom is one of the famous cathedrals in town and has two spiral steeples towering above it. There's also a large central corridor that filters throughout town. I walked the length of this and took in the scenery.

I didn't spend quite as much time in Regensburg - simply because I have alot to accomplish tonight. It's another example of a very interesting German town.

I just booked my hotel stay in Berlin. I'm really excited about this trip. I did a paper on the Berlin Wall when I was a senior in high school. We also had a German exchange student from Berlin that year. It's always interested me how the dynamics of the city could function under such separation. I also just found out that the Berlin Marathon will be held on Sunday. It's one of the biggest and best marathons in the world - with over 40,000 runners. I looked into registering long ago - but it was all sold out. The Berlin Marathon - along with the New York, Chicago, Boston, and London make up the Big 5 marathons. Maybe I'll go to the exhibit on Saturday afternoon and see if I can finagle my way into running it. Doubtful - these marathons are tough to get in. New York is a lottery and Boston you must be a superstar. I've done Chicago. Not sure about London. Who knows - maybe I'll get lucky. I need to do a long run over the weekend anyway - why not be the Berlin Marathon. At bare minimum - I'll get to watch some of it on Sunday.

Here's to a great trip north to see the 4th most populated city in Europe and the 15th most visited. I'm here to say that my 'most visited' list has some flaws in my eyes. I could live with the Top 10 (although I wouldn't put them in this order and I would exclude a few) -- London, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Dublin, Madrid, Amsterdam, Prague, Moscow, Vienna. But, #'s 11-20 - my list has Warsaw over Berlin, Munich, and Florence. I haven't even been to Florence or Berlin yet - and there's almost no chance I'll agree with this. Keep an open mind - I get it.

Here's to keeping it interesting.

Day #193 - Munich, Germany

New Town Hall - Marienplatz

Hofbrauhaus

English Garden

Deutsches museum - airplane engine

1972 Olympic Park

Thursday, September 23rd

Today was a full, jam-packed, stick-n-move, site-seeing tour of Munich. Hang with me - I'll hit the highlights.

I took my 2-train connection into the main rail station - Hauptbahnhof. The main metro systems in Munich are the S-bahn and the U-bahn. I would not use either today. I hit the streets on foot - completely mobile.

I first walked over to the center and heart of Munich - the Marienplatz. This place is a huge central square always filled with people. It's home to connections of both metro lines and houses the New City Hall. This building has a tower which has some figures that come out and circle around on each hour. Thousands of people were taking photos of this - see mine above.

I then headed to the eastern portion of the city. I came upon the Hofbrauhaus. Since 1589, this has been Munich's biggest and most beloved beerhouse, and the world's most famous. I was sort of surprised to see the place completely filled - as I would expect everyone to be on the Oktoberfest grounds. But, it's a major tourist draw - no question.

Next, I headed north and passed the National Theater. This sits next to the Residenz - the former Royal Palace of the Bavarian Monarchs. The Residenz is the largest city palace in Germany and is open today for viewing the architecture and room decorations.

I continued north and came upon the Odeonsplatz. This is another major square in Munich. It was named after the Odeon - a large Concert Hall that was built between 1826 and 1828. The most prominent structure on the Odeonsplatz is the Feldherrnhalle. The Feldherrnhalle consists of a covered hall with 3 arches. A staircase at the central arch leads to the entrance which is flanked by 2 Bayern lions.

I next walked west to the northwestern corner of the city. There I viewed the Alte Pinakothek. This is a major art museum famous for it's "Old Master" collection. Supposedly - this museum rivals the Louvre in Paris for it's high-style display. I walked in and checked out the pictures and gift shop -- but didn't do the whole tour.

I then walked all the way across the northern portion of the city to the northeast corner - the Englischer Garten "English Garden". This is a huge park which actually covers more area than Central Park in New York City. It's name was derived from the style of gardening - popular in the UK from mid 18th century to early 19th century. This place was neat. There was a quick flowing canal going through the center of the park. There were surfers on this one portion working this standing wave - created by a water pumping mechanism. I walked further into the park and discovered that this is apparently a nudist garden. Who knew? I'm only surprised by the location - in the middle of Munich in the main city park is a nudist section. Does Central Park have this as well?

I then walked due south to the southeastern corner of the city. I came upon the Deutsches Museum. This place was cool. I went in and did the 2 hour walk through. Some of my buddies would have loved this place. It was filled with all these scientific and technological displays. There were planes completely taken apart. You could see the engines and the makeup of all kinds of fighter jets, helicoptors, planes, etc. There was a section on science and medicine. It was one of the best science museums I've ever seen.

I then walked all the way across the southern portion of the city to the southwest corner (I pretty much hit every single area in Munich today). I wanted to see the Oktoberfest grounds on a weekday. Recon. Yep - way fewer people today than on Saturday or Sunday. I can't quantify - but only say that I could walk at my own pace today; whereas, I was at a snail's pace over the weekend. I took in a couple beer halls - solid - party still going strong. One thing I wanted to mention - I can't get over how little security this place has to offer. You can pretty much just stroll onto the grounds from anywhere. No real gates, no metal detectors. There are guards next to each major beer hall - but the grounds themselves are pretty much fair game.

I then walked due north back to the main rail station. I had one spot I wanted to hit before calling it a day - the Olympic Park. I actually had to take a train to this area - it wasn't on my map - so it must have been pretty far away. The Olympics were held in Munich in 1972 - the year I was born. This was a huge venue. I did a walk around and called it a day.

I got back to my place about 10pm. I'm now in the lobby of the main hotel. This place is a little weird. There are 2 buildings with rooms - I'm in the one not connected to the office. The office completely shuts down at 10pm. Wi-Fi is only accessible from the lounge in the office. Therefore, I'm here all by myself in this little room. The lights are on motion detection - so I have to move my hat around every now and again to turn the light back on. Some lady just stopped by - no doubt thinking there was a burgler in the place. My answer - get Wi-Fi for the whole complex and have a night staff person.

Tomorrow I go day-tripping. Here's to a solid day in Munich.

Day #192 - Oberammergau to Schrobenhausen, Germany

Schrobenhausen, Germany

Small-town Germany

Outdoor cafes - Schrobenhausen, Germany

Wednesday, September 22

Today was a transition day for me. I took the 9:38am train out of Oberammergau back into Munich. I then took another series of trains to my overnight destination of Schrobenhausen - arriving at 4pm.

I was not efficient in my travel today at all. I kept missing the connections due to small delays. I'm staying in the town of Schrobenhausen because of the lack of hotels in/near Munich due to Oktoberfest. The place is only 30-40 miles north of Munich, but the connections are slow.

Schrobenhasuen is another awesome little town. It has cobblestone streets, outdoor cafes/bars, the smell of wood-buring stoves - it really has an autumn feel. I just got back from a bar where I had a great dinner.

My goal for the next couple days is to see Munich and then maybe take a day-trip. Come the weekend - I intend to head north toward Berlin.

I'm really enjoying Germany. It feels comfortable and is filled with English speaking people. The small town atmosphere is reminiscent of my home town.

Here's to a great day in Munich tomorrow.

Day #191 - Oberammergau, Germany

Night theater - 8pm-11pm

Day Theater - 2:30pm - 5:00pm

Passion Play 2010

Last Supper seen

Folks awaiting entrance into theater

Tuesday, September 21st

Alright, I tried to shake it up a little yesterday with a 'Jeopardy-type' approach to the blog. I'm currently in Oberammergau, Germany. Yesterday I attended the Passion Play that makes this place special.

My sister turned me on to this play many months ago - I believe when I was back in St. Louis during April. She had read about it in a travel magazine. My book also has this play included amongst its selections. Thanks for the recommendation.

Coming directly from the booklet provided to me with my tickets:

"The Oberammergau Passion Play dates back to a vow made in the year 1633. At that time the plaque raged in the entire region of southern Germany. Many people died. It was then that the people of Oberammergau vowed to portray the "Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ" every ten years. From that moment on, not one person succumbed to the Black Death.

Since then, once a decade, the people of Oberammergau have been performing a play commemorating the Passion of Jesus. Initially, for over two hundred years, the performance took place in the cemetary next to the village church. However, during the 19th Century, ever larger crowds came from all over the world, and the village community was compelled to move the performance to the site of today's spacious Passion Play Theater. "

So the experience yesterday was great. The play is held on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays throughut a 5-month period. There's just 9 performances left this year. The play started at 2:30pm - so I took the morning to walk around the village - fantastic. It's basically a small, ski village - with outdoor activities all around.

They gave each of us a copy of the full play with our tickets. I knew that the play was performed in German only - so I took a couple hours during the morning to read through it in English. Now, I basically know most of the details - but reading it again helped me pickup things I had forgotten (or didn't even know).

2:30pm - 4,700 people filtered into the theater. It had a dome-covered roof over the spectators, with an open stage. Performances are held regardless the weather conditions. It was impressive. You were looking out over the tree-filled mountains while watching the actors. I probably had the worst seat in the house (furthest left with a partial obstruction), but I could still see OK. I'd bring binoculars if ever attending again - just to be able to see the faces of the actors better.

Now - the one thing that will prohibit me from saying this play was unbelievable - the language barrier. Although I preread the lines, and had the book on my lap, it was still difficult to follow everything. It was OK though. Just seeing the actions unfold on stage - very special. I think I've mentioned in earlier blogs, when you can't understand the words, you become more aware of the acting abilities. I was highly impressed. If these folks were trully just members of the village, they were solid. The role of Jesus was particularly difficult. This guy had paragraphs upon paragraphs to recite. He did it flawlessly. The play lasted over 5 hours - there was alot of material.

The other thing I really noticed was the harsh, aggressive tone of the German language. I don't know if there is any language which sounds more hard-core or angry. Maybe its just me - maybe my experience with German is hearing old footage of Hitler and that's why I feel this way. Jesus was supposed to be saying a verse like: "Let peace and happiness fill the world". His tone reflected words: "I HATE EVERYONE, EVERYONE SHOULD DIE". Again, I'm certain this is not the way he had said it, but that's how I felt. No offense to the Germans - this is clearly a "me" problem.

Getting over the language gap and the nature of the language - all good. The evening performance was my favorite. The lights on, the coolness of the theatre from the night air, it was great. The play took in the time frame from Jesus entering Jerusalem to the Resurrection. I was particularly amazed at the realness of the crucifixion and the stations of the cross. I wish they had allowed pictures during the performance, the scene with the 3 crosses erected on stage - the take-home scene of the performance for me.

The play ended shy of 11pm and I called it a night. A really special experience - one which I'm glad to have witnessed.

Day #190 - Southern Germany

A river runs through it

Fancy

Awe-inspiring

Nice

My favorite

Monday, September 20th

Today I checked out of my place in Munich and headed to the central train station. I've been working on some plans for the next couple days - but things were still up in the air. Because I couldn't get the answers I needed via email, I chose to just go to the place and make things happen.

I took a 2-hour train south of Munich. I came to a small village surronded by the Alps - unbelievably, cool town. (still in Germany) I walked over to the tourist information center. They directed me to the main office of the place I was looking for. I scored big - I was able to get tickets, get 2 nights accommodation, 2 dinners, 2 breakfast, lunch, and museum access for $220 total. Very nice. (This place offers only package deals except on rare occasions)

Once I was settled into my hostal, I walked around town for a couple hours. Even if I wasn't here for a specific reason - this town is well worth the visit. A couple small rivers/canals, mountains towering on all sides, trees changing colors, an energetic stream of people touring the streets.

This town has put on a performance every 10 years since 1634 in the year ending in '0'. This is the 41st such performance. (There were a couple additional shows put on during anniversary years). The show runs from mid-May through early October. They are carrying out a vow made long ago. The town itself has about 5,000 inhabitants, over half of them participate and fully make up the cast. The show last over 5 hours in length, with a 3 hour dinner break (an all-day affair).

The event I'll attend tomorrow is about 180 degrees from the festivities in Munich I took part in the past 2 days. However, this place is very cool itself and brings back some memories of an area in southern France I visited early on in my journey.

It's all about experiences. The place/event I'll have a chance to witness tomorrow brings in 500,000 tourists every ten years to this small, sleepy village in southern Germany.

Where am I? And what makes this place so noteworthy?

Day #189 - Oktoberfest - Munich, Germany

A look down on the fairgrounds

Many people

Bands arbitrarily walk through the crowds

Big party

Huge tents

Sunday, September 19th

Today was a rest day. I probably drank about 4 of those liter mugs yesterday all total - that's probably about 2 more than I should have had.

About mid-day, I decided to go back downtown. I wanted to go back to the Oktoberfest grounds and just walk around and get pictures.

Tons of people again today; however, there didn't seem like as many in the big tents. Yesterday, I didn't even get to walk around inside because the capacity was full and guards were manning each entrance. Today, the doors were open.

Wow - these tents are amazing. I wish I had a big group or knew someone with reservations - it would be fun to hang in the tents for a day. The tables are in the middle of the tent and there is a large walkway around the outside. I went into about 4-5 tents and just took it all in. There was a band in each one - usually elevated - in the center of the floor.

Each tent has it's special calling card. The Hippodom (where I spent yesterday in the Beer Garden) is considered a popular place - a little smaller than the others - where celebrities can be spotted at times. The largest tent is Winzerer Fahndl. Possibly the best tent is Augustiner-Festhalle. This place attracts the locals because it serves their favorite brew - Augustiner - tapped from wooden kegs.

I guess the biggest thing I'll remember about Oktoberfest is the 'good-time spirit'. The guy from Finland was telling me about this on the busride to the fairgrounds yesterday. I wasn't so sure if I could believe it. But - after experiencing the day - I'd concur.

Now, I'll say this - It's not for everybody. You totally have to come in with a good attitude. Crowds, noise, lines, etc - smile and move forward. If you can do that -- it's one of the most unique and fun places you could ever go. My recommendation - "Sign up - just do it"

Day #188 - Oktoberfest - Munich, Germany

Table-side at Oktoberfest

The food and beverage of choice

One of the Big Tents

The Ferris Wheel kept me oriented

Another Big Beer Tent

Saturday, September 18th

Ok - I've had a little time to recover. It's Sunday evening here in Munich - I'm back at my hotel. Yesterday was a whole lot of fun - I'll try to hit the high points.

I first started the day with a 3 hour run through the streets and riverfront area in/near Solln, Germany. It was a perfect morning. I basically got lost for a while, found this river to follow, bought some water along the way, and made it back to the hotel about 16 miles later. No records broken. A long slow run with a few walking breaks.

I ate a couple peanut butter sandwiches and drank some powerade - I was ready to head downtown.

A little background on Octoberfest ---------

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the event. The first Oktoberfest was held on October 12th, 1810. Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Theresa of Saxe-Hildberghausen organized a public celebration 5 days after their wedding -- a great horse race. It was so popular, it was renewed in 1811.

Since this time, the horse race aspect ended (1960), a festival atmosphere was added, a parade was introduced, drinks and food tents multiplied, and the celebration has now become the largest fair in the world - attracting 6 million people.

I mentioned yesterday it's a 16-day celebration. That's true for most years. If the first Sunday in October falls on the 1st or 2nd - the event is extended until October 3rd (a public holiday - German Unity Day). Therefore, the celebration can be 16-18 days in length. Since this year is the 200th celebration, they are extending the festivities an extra day in honor of the date.

The celebration gets started at 12 noon on Saturday with a 12 gun salute and the tapping of the first keg by the incumbent mayor of Munich with the cry "O' zapft is!" (It's tapped!). The mayor then gives the first beer to the Minister-President of the state of Bavaria.

There are 14 main beer tents on the grounds. Some of these can hold up to 8,000 people - with a 5,000-6,000 person average. The beer is served in 1-liter mugs - with cost around 8.50 euro ($10-11).

Continuing with my day ------------

Today I was very fortunate to meet up with some great people. I knew it was critical to have an open attitude - whatever happens - would be a good thing.

I walked to the bus stop near my hotel. There, I met this guy from Helsinki, Finland. He was a business guy that flew in for the weekend with some friends. He was staying in a different hotel than his buddies and needed to get to the fairgrounds - so he pulled the "Does anyone speak English" move. I perked up and responded. I gave him the low-down on the bus schedule and the pick-up points. He was very appreciative. He would be my wing-man today.

Although this guy was a business type, it was clear within the first 10 minutes of the bus ride - he was a hard-core partier. He was 50+ pounds heavier than me and had already drank about 6 beers in the airports and plane ride from Helisinki. Now, I'm a light weight currently when it comes to drinking. I'm good with that. I rarely drink - if I do - it's not much. However, I do have expereince in this area - I would need to draw on this today.

We got to the bus stop - and just followed the crowd about 1/2 mile to the fairgrounds. First impression - 'There's ALOT of people here". Second impression - "The dresses worn in Oktoberfest are very nice". The area holding the festival was massive. It reminded me exactly of a carnaval. There were rides, game booths, and endless food and drink stands.

The guy from Helsinki (Marko) - had been to Oktoberfest 2 years ago. He gave me the quick lowdown. I was really surprised by a few things. The main one - it's not that easy to get a beer. Really. You cannot just walk up to a booth and buy a drink. You either have to be at a table in one of the major tents or in a beer garden area outside these tents (seated). Because this was Day #1 and a Saturday, the crowds were enormous. Most of the major tents had all the inner tables reserved. All the beer gardens had a queu. We decided to wait in line for the beer garden outside the Hippodrom Tent.

About 20 minutes later, we were at our table. I was just here for the experience today - I'd say that my goal was accomplished. We spent the next 7 hours drinking beers, singing, dancing, talking to the swing-door of people that joined us at the table --- a really, unbelievable day. Marko's friends from Finland came over to our beer garden. We shared a table with some girls from Germany, then a couple from Ohio (US), then 4 others from Germany, and ended with 4 business guys from Copenhagen.

I can't remember how many times we toasted during the day. I think I must have cracked mugs over 100 times. It was the most "feel-good" atmosphere I may have ever been apart of. They would play all these songs and everyone would sing and dance. People would get up on the benches and tables. We were making jokes - "Who was gonna be the next table to enter the dark side (dance and sing uncontrollably)". Little did I know - it was going to be us. About 10 minutes later - the German couple from our table were up and dancing. Then - we were all swaying back and forth to the song: "Heeey, Heey, baby, I want to knooooow, if you'll be my girl". Brought back some memories of Faurot Field or Hearnes Center at MU. Side note - each tent serves their own beer. So, when the server comes, it's "How many?" - not, "What would you like?"

The other people were outdrinking me 2 to 1 at least. Each beer is 1 liter - almost 3 US beers. Plus, the alcohol content was about 7-8% compared to the 3.5 to 5.5% in the states. Like I said, good thing I've drank in the past. About 2 beers in - I'm feeling 'very" good. I go into "control mode". My intake of alcohol was almost nonexistant for a long while. I can't say how many beers were bought for me or shots for that matter. I'm way beyond peer pressure effecting my moves - If I don't want to drink something, it's not going to happen. If I drank what was put in front of me yesterday, I may still be past out on the hill with the other 1000 people. (Actually, to be honest, I'm surprised by the lack of people who were over the edge.)

Anyway - the day was great. I made some new friends. I was invited to a family's house in Copenhagen for Christmas, was given "women" advice by a couple from Ohio, and have an ally from Helsinki if I'm ever in those parts again.

About 9pm - I was getting a headache. I needed water and food. I could barely talk anymore - both tired and 1/2 intoxicated. I said my farewells - and decided to walk around the grounds before heading home. I drank 2 huge waters, ate a large pretzel (double the size of any large pretzel in the states), ate a 1-1/2 foot long brat -- I was all good about 10:30pm.

I luckily found the bus station and got back to the hotel around 11pm. Good stuff in Munich.

Day #187 - Prague to Munich, Germany

Friday, September 17th

Today I left Prague via train at 9am and arrived into Munich about 3:30pm. Just about everyone on the train was going to Octoberfest.

I'm staying in the town of Solin, Germany - a southern suburb of Munich. I found this great bed & breakfast that wasn't priced too badly. The leaves are changing colors, the temperatures are mid 60's -- it's just like I had always pictured it in my mind. I plan to spend several days in Germany and will be using Munich as my initial home base. I definitely have many day trips in store - but I have business in the city first.

I'll get more into details tomorrow, but Octoberfest is primarily held in the month of September. It's a 16 day celebration in Munich, which starts on a Saturday in mid/late September and ends on the first Sunday in October.

Tomorrow is the first day. As my cab driver told me: "You won't be alone. You and 5 million of your closest friends will be there to help celebrate". Now, I'm going into this fully aware that I'm 10+ years older than the average person who will be at this event. I'll be going it alone as well. This is all OK - I have my expectations properly set. As I equally enjoy big cities and small towns, I can also enjoy major crowds or time to myself. I've been in Times Square on New Years Eve, Bourbon Street on Fat Tuesday and Pamplona during Running of the Bulls - I'm ready.

Getting off the train, a group of 10 people I'd say, all busted out a 12-pack of beer. They popped the top and toasted each other. A classic move. If anything else, tomorrow should be a great people-watching day.

I'm calling it an early night. I plan to get up early and do my long run before heading into town. "Work hard, play hard"

Day #186 - Prague, Czech Republic

Charles Bridge

Looking north from Charles Bridge

Looking into Old Town Square

A "Pivo" in 2010

A 'Pivo" in 2004

Thursday, September 16th

Happy B-day to my brother Kurt! Thanks for always believing in me and for your continued support.

I REALLY like Prague. I'm not ready to sign-off on my Top 5 cities in Europe list just yet (as I have some great spots upcoming) - but it's going to take some magic to remove Paris and Prague from that list. I'm keeping an open mind - we'll see how it goes.

Today was an extremely relaxing day for me. I spent another 6-7 hours walking around the streets of Prague. I started at the Charles Bridge again. I like to see it at various times of the day because the sun offers different photo opportunities. I'm including a video to help paint the picture. From there, I walked south to the city's oldest and most famous beer hall -- U Fleku. Records show that a license to make beer on this spot dates back to 1499, and the original Budweiser was a Czech beer. This place was filled with long wooden tables and beers were served in large steins. I'm preparing myself for Oktoberfest. Just like training for a marathon - one must train for Oktoberfest as well.

I then walked over to the central rail station and got my ticket to Munich for tomorrow. All is well on that front - I'll be departing at 9:04am on Friday AM. I walked around the Old Town area for quite a while. I came across the Estates Theatre. I didn't realize how many theatres and musical venues are in Prague. My book states that a local proverb asserts: "Whoever is Czech, is a musician".

To my aunt and uncle --- I went by our restaurant spot. I actually passed it yesterday and recognized it immediately. Today, I sat at the same outside table we sat 6 years ago. I'm including a picture from today and a picture from July 2004. The backdrop color has changed - but I think it's the exact spot. The lady couldn't backup because there were cars parked in the way. (wish you were here).

Another interesting thing in Prague is the Infant of Prague statue located in the Church of Our Lady Victorious. It's earliest history can be traced back to 1628 when an exquisite 48 centimeter in height statue of the Infant Jesus was brought into Bohemia. We toured the church back in 04 - it's really an interesting setting.

I continued strolling around the streets. The reason I like this place is simple - the atmosphere, the energy, the historic feel, the ease of getting around, the clean streets, the diversity. I think I like the place better in the fall verses the summer - it's cooler and a little less traffic.

I got back to the hotel, got a quick run in, went downtown for dinner, and am now wrapping up the night in the hotel lobby.

Onward to Germany tomorrow. Bavaria in the fall -- I've always wanted to be there.