Leaving Dachau, we drove to the hospital in the suburbs of Munich where Hanna's Aunt Beate works. In the parking lot I took photos of the typical cars we saw on the streets and autobahns in Europe. Most cars in Europe are much smaller than ours in the US, mainly because their gas costs three to four times what ours does and gasoline conservation is a necessity. After we met Beate we had lunch in the hospital cafeteria, then walked to the train station to catch the S-Bahn to Munich.
Arriving at the train station in Munich, we found ourselves in Marienplatz, the main square and center of Munich. Beate and Sabine identified all the building in and around the square, then took us for a walk through the side streets, where we saw lots and lots of street vendor stands. We stopped at a favorite shop, where we sat at street side tables and had some great hot chocolate.
We then went to the Frauenkirche (Dom zu unserer lieben Frau - Cathedral of Our Dear Lady), which is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Munich and Freisling, and is considered a symbol of the Bavarian State Capital. The twin towers are very distinctive. While we were in the cathedral, Hanna's uncle Reinhold caught up with us. I stood in the "devil's footprint" while Reinhold told us of the story behind it (see the Teufelsschritt description in the Frauenkirche link above). After leaving the cathedral we walked back to Marienplatz, as it was almost 5 PM and we wanted to see the famous Rathaus -Glockenspiel high up on the Rathaus (Town Hall) in Marienplatz that chimes and tells two stories at 11 AM and 5 PM.
After watching the Glockenspiel, we walked to the Stiftskirche St Kajetan, a church and monestary for the Theatiner Catholic Men's Order. On the way, we were caught in a sudden rain squall, which required us to run for shelter across the street from the church for about 15 minutes. Once the rain passed, we checked out the church, then walked through street after street to where we were going to have dinner. Reinhold told us we were going to a great place called Hofbräuhaus for dinner. I had no idea that this was THE world famous Hofbrähaus München . Once in the Hofbräuhaus we were surrounded by music, people, and beer on all three floors of the establishment. It was too loud on the main floor and we finally made our way to a somewhat more quiet area on the third floor. I happened to be wearing my Oregon Ducks T-shirt and as we were moving through the first floor to the stairway, suddenly I heard a loud shout, " HEY OREGON", and a guy came running through the crowd toward me. He shook my hand and said he was from Boise State (Idaho) and congratulated me on the Oregon-Boise State football game played during the last college football season. Small world, huh? We ordered food from an English language menu and of course just had to have bier.
Following dinner we saw some more of Munich. Reinhold bought an ice cream cone and I guess it made him feel so good, he just had to give Beate a kiss - right out there in public for everyone to see. DeeDee and I went with Reinhold in his car to his home in Isen; Beate and Sabine took the S-Bahn back to their cars in the hospital parking lot. We don't remember if David and Hanna came with us or went with their mom and aunt. In any event, we all ended up at Beate and Reinhold's home, were we had some more to eat and drink, then finally went to bed.
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