We spent the morning at the Deutsches Museum, a world-class science & technology museum. From here we walked to the Marienplatz for lunch with boys again getting to choose groups and choose their lunch spot. They always love that, but we don’t do it often.

 Returned to the hotel around mid-afternoon to rest and start packing. A couple of guys went with a couple of the leaders to a big park in Munich just to check it out. We had dinner at the famous Hofbrauhaus in their "Festival" room complete with German brass band and a couple of traditional dancers. And from here we walked back to the hotel. I’m not sure what kind of neighborhood we were walking through to get home, but the boys were definitely excited about all of the fancy cars. An interesting site along the way was a shrine to Michael Jackson.

Check the photos to see one just one side of the shrine looked like.

And so, it’s now late our time…still early for parents. We’re mostly packed up and will be leaving the hotel at 8:30 to start our journey home.


Check out photos from this summer's trip at: www.Flickr.com/photos/mindstretch.

Photos of our trip can be found at: www.Flickr.com/photos/mindstretch.

Another full day in Munich and we made the most of it. Started with a 9 AM start for a day trip to Regensburg, Germany. This small city, about ninety minutes away by train, had been suggested to me since the last Europe trip by several Germany families. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site with way fewer tourists than most of the places we’ve stayed or visited. We enjoyed walking around and doing a little souvenir shopping. We had intended to eat at the “world’s oldest restaurant,” but instead dined at a great place that dates back hundreds of years so maybe it was the second oldest restaurant in the world. That was old enough and the food was delicious. We continued on our walk through old town after lunch and crossed the Danube River. The Old Stone Bridge is currently under repair so we walked across on a temporary pedestrian bridge. Apparently the Old Stone Bridge is the oldest and first solid bridge over the Danube ever built. We looked in awe at the Cathedral of St. Peter. This cathedral has to be one of the most impressive I’ve ever seen.

After crossing the river the boys enjoyed some horseplay and just play along the river in a local park. On the way back towards the train station we stopped to take a look at the restaurant we missed, the “world’s oldest” just so we could say we’ve been there. It’s specialty is bratwurst and we’ve sure had that plenty of times in some great restaurants.

We returned to Munich and took a 20-minute breather for regrouping and then took the S-Bahn to Marienplatz, a lively square filled with shops, restaurants, tourists, and more. Its centerpiece is the Neues Rathaus, (New Town Hall) a twin-towered cathedral. It has a 43-bell clock (Glockenspiel), which comes to life with full-size characters a few times a day. Perhaps we’ll see it on our last full day in Munich. Boys divided into smaller groups and went to dinner on their own. They enjoyed this opportunity a lot. We will return to this area tomorrow evening for our last dinner of the trip.

It was another great day.

Please note that photos are now up on Flickr. Go to: www.Flickr.com/photos/mindstretch to check out all the photos from the summer.

We had a relatively early start today for our tour of Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial in Dachau, Germany (about 25 minutes by train from Munich). It so happened our tour-guide-to-be was on the same train with us and some of the kids/leaders struck up a conversation. That helped when we arrived at Dachau since we were a few minutes late. He invited all the boys to go on the tour. Originally, the rules were that boys 13 and under could only do the self-guiding audio tour and those 14 and over could take the guide-led tour. Our guide didn’t seem to worry about that and we all got to take the guided tour. We were late and he was because we walked to the camp along the “path of remembrance.” This was the path/road most of the prisoners walked on from the train station in Dachau to the concentration camp about 2 miles away. They walked by houses and businesses of the local Dachau citizens and most citizens just looked the other way. We learned that after the camp was liberated by the US Army, the people of Dachau were made to walk through the camp so they couldn’t deny its existence. (Today, all school children in Bavaria must tour the camp when they’re 14 years old.)

It was a somber experience as our guide (Tobias) explained how the process worked as prisoners arrived in the camp and were processed. We saw the prisoner holding cells, the barracks (originally meant to hold 200 but in reality held 2,000), the gas chambers, and the cremation rooms. We learned a lot about this sad part of history. It was an important lesson and a good visit.

We took the city bus from the memorial site back to Dachau and found a place to have lunch. Afterwards, we walked into the old part of town of Dachau to check it out. And of course, we found an ice-cream stand and enjoyed some scoops.

Boys and leaders were getting pretty tired now and the boys “said” they wanted to go back to the hotel and chill. (Chilling in our hotels isn’t something we often do because we usually go from morning to evening…but also because most of our hotels haven’t had air conditioning including this one in Munich.) But, we did give everyone about two hours just to relax and I think that was appreciated. It’s also the time when I got most of my photo posting and trip notes caught up to date online.

For dinner we walked to a nearby local institution called “Augustiner Keller.” We had reservations secured months ago so our table was waiting. The restaurant, a biergarten dating back over 500 years, seats over 1,000 people outdoors. It was a pleasant experience and another good day.

Today we left Innsbruck for Munich, our last leg of the trip. It was really nice staying put for three nights in one city (Innsbruck) and I’m really excited about spending four nights in Germany.

Our train ride was smooth. We enjoyed riding in quiet private seating compartments and for a bonus our train car was adjacent to the restaurant car. We arrived in Munich about 12:30 PM. After getting our bearings straight, we walked over to our hotel and dropped our bags. The distance to the hotel from the station is about five minutes.

By 1:30 we were heading out for our first Munich adventures. We took two subways out to the BMW Werks & Museum where we had lunch and spent the next three hours. The people in the museum certainly knew of our South Carolina plant, the largest BMW manufacturing facility in the world. But it was special being in their world headquarters and the boys were fascinated with the exhibits. The museum featured the history of the Mini Cooper as well as the history of BMW from its earliest days of building aircraft engines, then motorcycles, and then cars. (I think I have that order right). The “Werks” part of the facility (which is massive) features more of the recent work from BMW. Each boy was “required” to learn at least four things from their tour and we “tested” them after our visit.

After BMW, we crossed the road to take a look at the Olympic Stadium, home of the 1972 Summer Olympics. We were lucky because there’s a weekend event happening and we got caught up in the middle of it. It was called Munich-Mash, or something like that and it featured a bunch of competitions including skateboard and dirt biking events, etc. There were plenty of exhibitors, plenty of food, plenty of hands-on activities, and plenty of people. It was like a big party and it was fun to be able to spend about an hour there.

We returned to our hotel to officially check in and 30 minutes later were heading to dinner at the Lowenbrau, a biergarten about ten minutes walk away. Everyone ordered something German because there were no other options on the menu. I’m pretty sure everyone enjoyed their meals because there was virtually nothing left on their plates.

It was after 10:30 when we got back to the hotel and we called it a night…and a good day.

Today was a day of kid and adult-sized adventure. It started after an early hotel breakfast with a bus ride up beyond the Olympic village to a community called Iglis and the Summer Bobsled Track. The owners arrived about the same time we did. Peter & Birgit Knauseder made our group very welcome. Peter gave the initial bobsled rules and instructions and boys and leaders soon loaded into the back of a panel truck for a quick ride up to the start of the bobsled run.

Boys and leaders came down in a five-person bobsled piloted by an expert driver in the front position. I don’t remember the exact specifics but you can read about them on the company’s website at: www.knauseder-event.at. I do remember that the sleds would reach speeds of somewhere around 66 miles per hour and would encounter something like 40 turns in this nearly mile long track. Each run lasted just a minute and a few seconds but these memories are going to last a lot longer. There wasn’t any (or much) screaming as boys were holding on and trying to keep their heads straight within the cage.

Peter and Birgit are supposed to post photos on their Facebook page at: www.Facebook.com/knauseder. Check them out.

After their run, many boys bought “I did It” t-shirts and were also presented with “congratulatory certificates” from Peter and Birgit. Our gracious hosts then gave us directions and hints for a major hike in the Alps and we were soon walking through an “enchanted” forest to a gondola station to take to the starting point for the hike. This was shaping up to be an incredible day of adventure.

From here, the guys hiked through a really neat forest to a gondola station for a ride up the mountains to start an amazing hike in the Alps high above Innsbruck. The hike of several miles took virtually the whole day. Elevations ran in the 6,000s to over 7,000 feet. To get off the trail, the group had to descend by a couple of ski lifts.

The group returned to the hotel around 6:15 and by 7:15 we were heading to the old part of Innsbruck for a final dinner here. It was a wild scene in the old town tonight. There were DJs, dancers on stilts, guys rolling around in large wooden treadmills, and more. Maybe this was a special celebration, or maybe this was just a Friday night, or maybe this was just Innsbruck.  From bobsledding to hiking to a night in Innsbruck…this has been some great day!

(And on a side note to our Innsbruck stay and this hotel, the staff offered to wash and dry clothes for 5 euros a load. Many boys took advantage of this.)

Tomorrow, we head to Munich (under two hours away) and the final stretch of our trip. 

Our big adventure of the day was exploring Schloss Ambras (Castle). This castle was built in the 1100s, burned down, and rebuilt. Impressive displays of armour, art, furniture, and more. There were peacocks walking around, a picturesque pond filled with fish and birds, and a great view of the surrounding Alps. It was an enjoyable walk through history.

We returned to Innsbruck like we had left, via bus, (the castle was just out in the suburbs) and found a place to eat. It was an Italian restaurant and the waitress/slash cook was alone holding down the fort. In addition to that, she spoke very little English and the menu was only in German. She called in reinforcements (one extra person) and all worked well.

Looked around the old town part of Innsbruck for about 45 minutes and then returned to our hotel for a late afternoon rest. Leader Jesse Jorgensen scouted out some dinner suggestions for us and made a reservation, and then around 7 PM we hiked along the Inn River, crossed the bridge, found a park for some playtime, and then returned along the other side of the river to the old town. We still had a few minutes before the restaurant was ready for us, which was fortuitous as the town band was forming up and we got to see their entrance parade and the first of their outdoor concert. They were fully dressed in Austrian traditional costumes.

Dinner was fabulous. Boys were in control of their behavior (for the most part) and it was a nice way to end an enjoyable day. Boys have been eating well on this trip and we haven’t eaten in an American chain (or any chain that I know of) since starting this trip except perhaps a Cinnabon place in the Vienna train station.

Returned to the hotel around 10:30 for bedtime and a big day ahead.

Today was moving day from Vienna to Innsbruck. We had a plan. Plans go wrong. Wrong plans make for an adventure. And an adventure we had.

Here’s the story. We left our hotel as 8 AM for the main train station in Vienna. Our train was scheduled to leave at 9:30. We knew we should be able to make it to the station within 30 minutes via two different metro rides. So far, all was working and indeed arrived at the main station at 8:30 – an hour to spare. Usually the first order of business is to use the WC and check the train departure board to find our track. We didn’t see our exact train, which seemed a bit odd. And finally it dawned on me that perhaps (oh, please no) we were in the wrong station. I glanced at the reservation form and saw that we were to leave from the “West” station but we were in the “main” station. I took off for the ticket office at full speed. (Okay, that’s full speed for me, which would be a walk compared to these kids.) Indeed we were in the wrong station. My fault. I just assumed that we would be leaving out of the same station as we arrived a couple of days earlier.

The ticket agent could see the look of anxiety in my eyes, or perhaps he could smell two-day old socks; but in any case he knew I/we needed help. His English was good but there were a couple of misunderstandings causing his explanation to need some explaining. He said we could still make our train because it would actually come through this station before reaching the West station. It left at 8:48. Well, I thought he said 8:58 and that we could easily make this train. Wrong. We got the group together as fast as we could but that was not fast enough. We just missed it.

So, it was back to the ticket off for yet another suggestion since we missed our opportunity to take our reserved train. Now we had to get to the other station but the agent assured us we had time. Gave us directions and we took off. At this point we had to take a tram to the other station. We still had a bit of time left and we could catch our train. We found tram #18 and asked if this were going in the right direction. Nope. So we had to go up and around to get back to the other set of tracks and wait another three minutes for the tram to arrive that was heading toward the west train station. It arrived, we made it, we ran into the station, found the track, and got to the train with about one minute to spare. BUT, the doors were closed and even though an agent was standing right there they were not letting us on our train!

This adventure was getting interesting.

So now it was to the ticket office at the new station to see what they could do to help. The issue wasn’t finding a train heading to Innsbruck, but one with 21 vacant seats. It all worked. We left two hours later than planned. We even were invited to use the 1st Class Club Room for QBB (Austrian National Train Line) during our 90 minute or so wait which came with comfortable seating, free food and drink (unlimited), and a free WC.

And that was our little adventure for today. It’s also one of those things the boys will probably long remember from this trip.

Our ride to Innsbruck was on as RailJet train, but was not moving as fast as the name suggests. I think its top speed was around 137 mph. It did have a restaurant car and some boys took advantage of that.

Arrived in Innsbruck and found our way to our hotel. It’s across the Inn River and we have gorgeous views of the Alps from every angle. We had dinner in the old part of Innsbruck and walked around some to explore. Returned to the hotel for our usual organizational gathering and went to bed.

Another good day with plenty of adventures ahead.

We had a leisurely day in Vienna starting with letting the guys sleep in. We’ve been pushing it pretty hard and on the move a lot, so this was a great opportunity to get a late start. We left the hotel around 10 and made our way into the old part of Vienna about 1 ½ miles a way, crossing the Danube River in the process. We were heading for the area of the Imperial Palace, which is an incredible series of beautiful buildings. We were planning on visiting the Natural History Museum but as luck would have it, it’s closed on Tuesdays. So we visited the History Museum instead. The history museum ended up being an art museum, which isn’t exactly what boys want to do,…but they made the most of it and I think each person found something they enjoyed…at least a bit. The Imperial Palace is also the home of the Spanish Riding School (the famous Lipizzaner stallions) and while we didn’t get to see the horses, we did get to visit the gift shop. The stallions were rescued in WWII by General George C. Scott, himself a horseman.

We then made our way to a great place for lunch, which featured Austrian dishes and made a slow walk back to the hotel for some rest before dinner at yet another restaurant featuring Austrian food. I don’t think any boy will say he’s gone hungry on this trip.

Lots of good things today:

1.     One boy leaving his camera at the museum and our being able to find it in lost & found. Usually something like that doesn’t end this way.

2.     Having Gabriel choose a great lunch spot.

3.     Having the waiter at supper compliment our boys on their good behavior. I wasn’t quite sure if his standards were as high as mine…but we were pleased.

This day started with our waking up around 6:30 by the coach attendant on our overnight train from Venice, Italy to Vienna, Austria. It’s hard to describe the sleeping accommodations on these trains. They’re called “couchettes” and perhaps that means “small.” Each compartment has six beds; three on a side. The compartment is furnished with one bottle of water for each passenger along with a sheet sack, blanket, and a small pillow. Everyone chose their bed and then tried to figure out how to store a pack or suitcase and daypack and other stuff. After cramming all the luggage into every available space, the rest of the room was for us. We managed. I’ll say the boys went to bed quickly and slept through the night. Leaders managed to get by with a lot less. I doubt most leaders got more than two hours of decent sleep that night, but…it was an experience! Our coach attendant came by around 6:45 with two rolls, butter, jelly, and either hot chocolate or coffee for each of us. After enjoying our little breakfast, we packed up, handed over the dirty linen and breakfast trays, re-arranged the middle bunk to make it into seating again…and got ready to arrive in Vienna at around 8 AM.

Our first activity in Vienna, as it is in most train stations, is to find the WC. Yes, the trains all have them…but for a variety of reasons…someone always has to “go.” And I’m only mentioning this now because we have seen a first in Vienna. By now the boys are used to forking over ½ of an euro to use the facilities…but the ones in the train station in Vienna are more than worth it. In fact, if I have time and can remember…I’ll video what I’m about to tell you. The toilets in the Vienna station are self-cleaning. You push a button on the back of the tank labeled “service” and the seat completely turns around in this wand device that sprays and wipes clean the toilet seat. And after finishing your business, it repeats the process automatically. Now that’s an invention we could all use!

So after this excitement and some more food in the train station (which is more like a shopping mall complete with food court) we got together and made plans for the day. It was early in Vienna and our hotel rooms wouldn’t be ready until 3. We decided to store our luggage in lockers at the station and take an hour-long train ride using our Eurail passes to go to Bratislava, Slovakia. Why? Just because we could. Slovakia is a fairly new country, having been formed during the breakup of the Soviet Union. It is in the European Union (uses euro, etc.), but is definitely poorer than the countries in Western Europe. And definitely has a different “Cold War” feel. We found English-speaking people to help with directions, but it’s definitely not as wide-spoken as it has been.

We walked first to a World War II monument which was built in memory and honor of the Russian Army and their efforts to liberate several area cities. There are three hundred marked graves and unmarked mass graves of over 6,000 Soviet soldiers. We walked up to the monument itself and then toured the grounds. The monument sits high on a hill with great views of the city. It was a pretty tough hike up.

We hiked back down and found a market where we purchased food for lunch. Most boys have never really picked up lunch in a market before and enjoyed the shopping experience. Prices were amazingly low compared to the rest of Europe. After lunch we walked to the Bratislava Castle, which goes by several names. This castle itself was closed this day (souvenir shop was open, of course) but we got to walk around a bit and again see some incredible views of the city built along the Danube River. We descended into the old part of town which was wonderful. The boys and leaders all enjoy when we leave more modern parts of cities and enter the old city or city center parts of the places we’ve visited. We took a sit-down break to enjoy a soft drink before heading back to the train station for Vienna.

Seventy minutes later we were back in Vienna, collected our bags, took two subway lines, and found our hotel. Checked in and then went out looking for traditional Austrian food for dinner. We found a place and enjoyed trying to explain to our waitress what we wanted to eat. She spoke very little English. It was fun “and” tasty.

Back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep and in fact, a rare chance to get to sleep in late. It was another amazing day.

Second day in Venice and we started it by getting to sleep in late. We had the whole day ahead of us and the hotel let us leave our luggage behind as we went out for our day of exploration.

And before I forget, the hotel desk clerk gave us our first sincere compliment of the trip. She said she wished they had a 100 clients like that. When I asked her what she meant, she explained how we were the best group of kids she’s seen. That means the kids earn a treat.

We had the whole day here and filled it with a variety of activities including eating, shopping, and walking around. Our highlight activities included touring the Leonardo Da Vinci Museum that included models (some working) of many of his inventions. Many of them were hands-on so kids got to turn cranks, haul pulleys, and turn knobs. We also took our much-anticipated gondola ride which was something new for all of us. And finally, most of the boys went up the elevator to the top of the bell tower which provided views of the entire Venice landscape all the way out to the sea.

Next adventure: our all night sleeper train to Venice. What a life!