Last time at the Marienplatz
Monday morning , both Shelly and I woke up with mild colds. so we decided to take it easy. We had breakfast at the hotel, then retreated back to the room.
Late in the morning, we ventured out down the tram route to investigate the little shops we had spotted along the way. We then hopped on a tram to the Marienplatz, grabbed a little lunch then headed up to the English Gardens, to check out some parts we had not seen before. The weather was again wet and cool. Occasional showers, plus our colds, pretty much eliminated any chances of going on any extensive tours now.
After browsing through the Gardens, we made our way to a tram station and rode back to our normal jumping off point, the Effnerplatz, then back to the hotel for a nap. We were both a little sapped from our colds.
That evening, we met Gordon at the Hofbrauhaus for a last "German" dinner. I was glad to still have a bit of an appetite, so I enjoyed the meal, and the beer. Gordon says beer and chocolate are good for colds. I felt pretty good after the meal.
Back at the hotel we began to pack and organize for the trip home as we watched the World Cup. Very big in this part of the world. Actually, probably everywhere but the US.
Tuesday we packed in earnest, getting all the stuff ready to go. We would be carrying an extra bag home with some of Gordon"s stuff. Also, the other large check in bag had his things, too. He'll be coming home two weeks after us!! Man, those bags were getting heavy!
We took it easy that day, didn't really do too much. That evening, Gordon came by and we had dinner at the local Italian place. Gordon explained how to get to the airport, and came up to the room for a little while before saying goodbye.
Next day was the travel day! Raining again, we first walked to the U-Bahn to get our pass for the Airport. We then checked out and went to the tram to make the connections. At the airport, we got through 2 security checkpoints and grabbed a sandwich and one last beer.
The Lufthansa flight to Chicago was pleasant enough. This is a good Airline. Complementary wine and pretty good food too. Chicago's O'Hare is huge! We taxied for 20 minutes before getting to the gate. Then through Immigration, Customs, and Security. We then had to re-check our bags for the United flight back to SMF. By the time we got to our gate, boarding had begun! The 2 hour lay-over proved to be barely long enough!
The United flight from Chicago to SMF was very different from the Lufthansa. We were squeezed into a cattle car like seating arrangement. I lucked out because they needed someone to sit at the emergency exit, so I got extra legroom! For a 4 hour flight, there was no food offered at all, at least we got something to drink! Upon arriving at SMF, I was glad we have a relatively small airport.
Our check-in luggage did not make the connection, so it was delivered the next day. We hopped on Super Shuttle for the long ride home. Back to the house about midnight. It had been a long day!
The weather in Munich our last day was just like our first day there!
Overall, this had been a good little trip. We didn't have any grand plans as we had in Australia, so we weren't too disappointed by the weather, or by catching colds. The weather broke in time for us to enjoy the Zugspitze, the Eagle's Nest and Salzburg and Bad Tolz, so I couldn't complain. It was great to see Gordon doing so well over there, I think he's going to return to Germany at some point in the future.
Europe is an interesting place to visit. It's so similar yet so different. And of course, everything is about 10 times older there than over here! I think it's best to take it in small chunks, so maybe this is the beginning of many trips to Europe!!
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