France and Munich 2022
This was a trip that was originally booked in 2020 but Covid hit. We rolled it to 2021 and then rolled again to 2022. We started in Amsterdam, Azamara Cruise ending in Bordeaux, then to Munich.
Amsterdam, Sea Day, Rouen, Cherbourg, St Malo, Sea Day, Nantes, Bordeaux, Munich
Sunday, Sept 4 - Monday Sept 5-6
Our flight left DFW left pretty close to on time. I thought the layout of the seats were better this time on American with a heavier blanket and pillow. I actually slept, Greg not as much. Food was decent. My red snapper was a huge piece of fillet and nicely cooked. Greg opted for chicken breast. I think I made the better choice. We arrived late, passport control line was long but moved quickly. It took us forever to get our luggage. The driver that we reserved said he was going to have to charge us 45 more euros for being late, then called and said he couldn’t wait on us. Taxi to the hotel cost twice what we reserved the driver for, so we got screwed on that end.
Hotel Estherea was very nice and our room was ready when we arrived. It was a bit over the top and very pink.
After resting for about 30 minutes, we went downstairs to meet Jan Slingerand with Tours By Locals. We had a 4 hour pettycab tour of City Centre. We saw lots of architectural buildings from 1400 - 1800 AD, including churches, a synagogue, the old Parliament, parks, the Anne Frank House, parts of walled gates, the Maritime Museum and much more. We had been here before but didn't spend much time in the city center, so this was a perfect tour for our afternoon in Amersterdam.
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| Our ride for our 4 hour tour |
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| bicycles, lots of bicycles |
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| Replica of the East Indiaman Amsterdam that was lost on its first sailing. We walked on this ship when we were here before. |
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| Anne Frank home |
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| Outside wall of museum |
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| These hangings were on the guild buildings. The depiction describes what the guild made. |
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| City gate |
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| Rijksmuseum |
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| gardens |
After our tour, we rested and then went downstairs for our complimentary cocktails. The very nice girl at the front desk recommended and made us a reservation at T’Zwaantje. It specializes in traditional Dutch food. I ordered grilled trout and Greg had pan fried mussels with mushrooms, onions, tomatoes and peppers. Both were excellent.
Greg had a new beer as well, Affligem, which was a thumbs up.
Back to the hotel to crash.
Tuesday, Sept 6 embarking
After sleeping until 9:30 (can you say jet lag) we packed up and checked out a little before noon. The hotel kept our luggage and we set out for lunch. Our choice was ABC Sandwich Shop. I ordered a goat cheese club which was huge and tasty. Greg opted for the Irish Burger. We sat outside and enjoyed people watching.
We walked a different way back to the hotel. Sitting in the lobby waiting on our taxi, we visited with others waiting to board Azamara as well. Our taxi arrived early, we reclaimed our luggage, and were off to the port.
Checking in was super easy as always with Azamara. No waiting at all. We were escorted to the bar by Discoveries where our muster was held. After that we were free to go to our rooms. Instead, we headed to the buffet to reserve our specialty restaurant reservations. We selected every night and will cancel once we see the MDR menus. Specialty restaurants are included for suites. Then off to see our room. Because we had 6 free nights, two rollovers both at 125% FCC, and we went from 15 nights to 13 nights to 11 nights, we had a lot of credit and booked the World Owners suite on deck 7 aft. A once in a lifetime opportunity!!!!!! The room was unbelievable.
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| half bath |
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| view from back balcony |
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| spirits in our room |
We met our butler Osvy and state room attendant Hilda. Our luggage followed quickly and we unpacked. We have so much storage it’s unreal.
After settling in, we went for a drink on the pool deck. We both signed up for the Ultimate Beverage Package. Greg needed to in order to get Jameson and me for the Reisling. We attended a reception for those in the large suites. The officers were in attendance. A nice start to the cruise.
Dinner tonight was in Prime C. Greg had Rack of Lamb and I had the small filet. Good as always. We ventured upstairs and listened to the band, Marvelous Funk, a group from Indonesia. They aren’t too bad.
Then we went to Spirits Bar to listen to the piano player, Derek. Didn’t like what he was playing (Lubys dinner music), but we enjoyed him much more throughout the cruise.
The show in the theater was a variety of the band, piano player and Singers and Dancers. All very talented. After the show, we crashed.
Wed, Sept 7th Sea Day
Suites can enjoy breakfast in Aqualina so we ate there today. Since it’s a sea day, we hung around in the room.
As we were eating lunch, we passed the White Cliffs of Dover.
Dinner was in Aqualina. On our last cruise with Azamara, service here was dismal. Certainly, not the case tonight. The show in the theater was a one man act, Mark Donoghue. He played the harmonica, guitar, and fiddle. Very talented and a very enjoyable performance.
Thursday, Sept 8 Rouen
When we woke up we were sailing down the Seine. We ordered room service the night before and Osvy was right on time. The country side was beautiful with small villages along the bank of the river.
We arrived in Rouen at 1 pm.
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| May be the smallest port cruise terminal |
Our excursion left at 2 pm. We went into city center by bus. Definitely not a walking option. Azamara did offer a shuttle bus option for those that did not want an excursion. Our excursion was a short walking tour.
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| The astronomic clock is on a Renaissance arch spanning the busy street Rue Du Gros-Horloge located in the old town. |
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| The mechanism is one of the oldest in France, the movement was made in 1389 |
The tour ended at the Cathedral, Cathedral Notre Dame de Rouen is a Gothic architectual building with the tallest steeples in France. It sits on the site of a church first built in the 12th century.
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| Cathedral opened in 1876 |
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| Our guide Barbara was very good with a big personality and good humor. |
After touring the cathedral, we had a pastry in a shop next to the Cathedral. Our snack was orange cake with orange marmalade served with orange juice, coffee or tea.
We had a bit of free time however the skies opened up and it poured. We spent our free time under the doorway to the Cathedral, staying out of the rain. Luckily the rain stopped when it was time to return to the bus.
Our excursion returned at 6 which was the time of our dinner reservation. We asked Osvy if we could order room service off the Prime C menu and he said yes, so we had him cancel our reservation and we ordered room service. Osvy seemed delighted to bring our dinner and thanked us for letting him do it. Seemed a bit backward, we were each thanking each other!!
After dinner, we went downstairs to the Spirits bar for martinis, then to the theater for the show which was the Singers and Dancers. The show was very good. We stopped back at Spirits and had a cocktail or two, listening to Derek on the piano. He only sings after the 2nd show, which is too bad. We much prefer his singing instead of just playing. He is a very talented piano player.
Friday, Sept 9 Rouen
Early morning. Room service at 7 and off to the theater at 7:30 for our excursion. A two hour drive into Paris, then a panoramic drive through Paris, cruise down the Seine with lunch and a stop at the Eiffel Tower. We had spent three days in Paris a few years ago but did not actually go to the tower nor did we do a cruise on the river, so we thought this was a good option for the day. Our guide today was Alain. Alain did a good job of explaining history along the way without talking nonstop. Once in Paris, we did a drive by seeing the Arch, Champs E’lysse, Alexanders Bridge, the old train station, Orsy, that is now an Impressionist Museum, the Louvre, and other sites. Since we had already seen these sites and have lots of pictures, we were okay just driving by.
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| Our guide Alain |
We then stopped at the Eiffel Tower for 30 minutes. 5 would have been plenty because once you take your pictures there is not anything else to do. They have the area fenced off, so unless you have a ticket, you can’t get close. The garden area/grass area was pretty sad. They had a hot summer with no rain so that probably was the reason.
After reconvening with our guide, we walked to the boat. After a bit of a disorganized seating process we were settled. Our guide joined us at our table. We had a pre lunch drink of acia and white wine, followed by white wine then red wine was offered with the main course. The appetizer was duck pate in a flaky crust and entree was pork. It was a large piece of meat and was very tender. Dessert was strawberry pound cake. Can’t complain about the amount of food and wine!
We headed back to the bus for our drive back to the ship, arriving at 5:05. All aboard was at 5. Gangway came up right after we arrived.
Then the announcement came. A rope became entangled in the propeller as they were bringing in the lines. Capt Micheal said the rope was freed, thrust combustion was fine but the port master will not release us until divers go down to make sure. Divers won’t be here until 3:00 tomorrow so Honfluer has been cancelled.
We had dinner in Aqualina and went to the show featuring Devin Norris, one of the Azamara Singers. He did an excellent tribute to Michael Buble, You and I. He has a very strong voice. Early morning caught up with us so we headed to our stateroom.
Views of Rouen from the ship.
Saturday, Sept 10 Rouen
No where to be, nowhere to go so we slept in. We ordered breakfast at 9 and Greg was in charge of the alarm. Bad decision. No alarm and Ozvy called and said breakfast was on its way. A quick scramble and we made it before breakfast arrived. It was another rainy day so we stayed on the ship. Greg and I both read in the morning, then went to the Drawing Room so Hilda could clean the room and then lunch in the MDR. Much of the afternoon was spent watching the dive team set up, then the diver going down. He probably was under the water for 1.5 hours. When he surfaced and the boat he was working out of came into view, we saw lots of pieces of rope. Whether it was around the propeller, we don’t know. We do know that it was the Rouen port worker that did not keep the line tight that caused the line to get caught. This was the first large cruise since Covid and the port workers were inexperienced. Stuff happens. The captain was in Spirits Lounge later and expressed frustration that Azamara divers were not allowed to do the inspection and how long it took the port divers to arrive.
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| The ropes after they were brought up |
We had dinner in Prime C. Our table was facing out so we enjoyed the scenery as we cruised back down the Seine.
Greg and I had Chateaubriand for two. It was as good as the last time we had it in 2019. The show was the Asst Cruise Director, Sarah Hayes, originally from Florida. With 30 years of experience in show business she fits the Azamara profile. Her show was called Great American Songbook and was excellent. She definitely is talented. After the show we went back to Spirits and sat at the bar. Derek was singing so we stayed through his break and lasted for a couple of more songs.
Sunday, Sept 11 Cherbourg
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| Good morning from Cherbourg |
Room Service for breakfast then down to the theater for our tour of Juno Beach, the Canadian landing spot. Our guide Geoffrey was a bit goofy. He is an Aussie living in France. The way he searched for words, you would not think that English is his first language. We stopped first at an overlook to see the remnants of one of the harbors that was built. This was a British harbor on Gold Beach at Arromanches-les-Bains. The harbors were built for delivering equipment, tanks, troops and other reinforcements. The artificial harbors were manafactured in Britain, shipped in parts across the Channel and put together after the Allies secured the beaches. Over 529,000 tons of supplies and equipment came into France through the harbors from June to November of 1944, playing a crucial role in WWII.
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| Our guide Geoffrey |
Then we went to Juno Beach. The First Canadian Army landed on Juno Beach with the Royal Canadian and British Navies providing transport, mine sweeping bombardment and reinforcements. The beach was defended by two German battalions.
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| Juno Beach Centre |
After this stop, we went across the river where we had way too much time to eat our sack lunches, which left much to be desired. After eating, we walked down the boardwalk and sat for awhile looking at the beach. Our next stop was the Canadian Cemetary. Unlike the American and German, the Canadian is not crosses, instead regular tomb markers. The positive, a lot more information on each grave. Geoffrey read the poem Flanders Field and showed us the grave of the oldest Canadian killed on D-Day. He served in both WWI and II and was 47 years old. There were two towers that you could walk up and see the whole cemetary and a bit of the beach.
We headed home after this stop. We were back on board by 4:30.
Sights along the way
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| cruise terminal was an old railway station |
Monday St Malo Sept 12
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| Good morning from St Malo |
This was a tender location. After room service we headed to the theater for our excursion.
Our guide was Ann and the driver was Patrick
We left St Malo and headed to the walled medieval town of Dinan. Ann gave us a lot of history of the Brittaney area. In short, English controlled, then French controlled, then Brittaney tried to control itself and through the years it was a constant battle between the groups for control. Probably more history than we wanted to know. Dinan is built into a hill on the left bank over the River Rance. Originally built in the 11th century with a granite castle, Chateau de la Duchesse Anne. The castle was built by the dukes of Brittany in the 14th and 15th centuries.
The old walled city was interesting, especially the views over the river contrasting the old Roman bridge to the new modern bridge. We toured the cathedral, went to the overview then had free time. After buying our magnet, we stopped at a cafe for a caramel crepe. It was a great people watching location.
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| Half-Timbered House. There are over 130 of these houses in Dinan. |
This Romanesque Roman Catholic church , built in the 12th century by Riwallon Rufus, a knight taken prisoner in the First Crusade, who vowed to build a church if he ever saw his homeland again. As such, there are a lot of middle-eastern architectural influences.
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| The stain glass is from the 12th and 15th century |
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| Bertrand du Guesclin known as the Eagle of Brittany was one of the most successful French generals of the Hundred Years’ War. He was well known for his strategy of wearing down his opponents by harassing them through skirmishes to cause loss of life, disrupting supply and thus affecting morale, the so called Fabian strategy. Nevertheless he also took part in six pitched battles and won the four in which he held command. |
When we returned to Saint Malo we went into the city center and toured the Cathedral which is a mix of Roman and Gothic architecture and was built in the 12th century on the site of an ancient church first built in the 7th century. The church did suffer damage during WWII.
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The captain had mentioned how good the mussels were in Saint Malo so we stopped at a local cafe. We thought we had asked for one order to share but we each were given an order. Way too much to eat but they were good! The couple next to us tried to converse but they spoke no English and we spoke no French but we did learn that they lived in St Malo in a 100 sq meter apt near the ocean.
After we left the restaurant we headed back to the tender station.
Scenery as we sail from St Malo
Dinner tonight was in Prime C. I had rack of lamb and Greg ordered Steak Diane. The show was the Singers and Dancers. Well done but recognized only about half the songs. We ended the night listening to Derek in Spirits Lounge.
Tuesday, Sept 13 sea day
Azamara hosted a jazz brunch starting at 10 with the band playing live music. We slept in and went down to the brunch at 10. We went early to the brunch so we could only eat one meal before dinner since we were doing the Chef’s table. It was a cloudy drizzly day, good for reading. Chefs table was the French menu. The dinner lasted over three hours so we missed the shows. We sat across from a couple from NY that we had met earlier. Enjoyed both the meal and conversation.
We did find out that the lady (Diana) we met at the reception for suites and high loyalty members was the lady that had the medical emergency on the first night. She choked on a piece of meat. It happened right after we talked to her. We had been looking for her because we found her delightful and she wanted to talk to Greg about climate change. We met her friend Lily that first night and Lily was at dinner tonight and told us Diane wanted us to know what happened. So sad. Lily said she was so close to death and the doctor on board saved her. She was released from the hospital today and her son flew over to take her home. So sad
After dinner, we went to Spirits Lounge to listen to Derek.
Wed Sept 14 Nantes
The tide was too low so the ship sat still for over an hour waiting on the tide to rise. This was at 3 am but it meant the ship didn’t dock on time, so our excursion left late. After room service, we headed to the theater.
Our tour was to the medieval town Guerande and the Salt Marshes. Our guide gave a very detailed talk on the history of region going back to the 1300’s. Nantes used to be head of Brittany province but not after WWII. Nantes is now in a different province. Unfortunately many (including us) dozed off. The guide walked us through the old town and the cathedral. We had some free time and then met up for lunch.
The wall around Guercande is one of the best preserved in France. Very little has changed since the 15th century. The wall contains 10 towers and 4 doors.
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| La porte Saint-Michel – the main gate |
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| Our guide |
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Saint Aubin's Church (15th–16th century) |
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| Notre Dame Church is the oldest building and built in Gothic style in the 14th century. |
We had buckwheat crepes with cheese, bacon, and walnuts with a lot of lettuce and one over easy fried egg. Dessert was a sugar crepe with a scoop of ice cream.
After lunch we drove about 10 min to the salt marshes. The salt of Guérande used to be traded throughout Brittany, tax free until Emperor Napolean decided to tax it resulting in the beginning of a decline of salt activity. We had a guide from the salt company to walk around the ponds and describe the process. Salt is only harvested in the summer months and they store it for three years before packaging it to sell.
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| Our guide |
Tonight was White Night, Azamara’s Pool Party. The wind was fairly calm and we didn’t need a jacket until later in the evening. The BBQ is served by the officers. Music started with DJ, then band Marvelous Funk, followed by introduction of the captain, officers, and crew. The Captain from the mast was certainly different. The singers and dancers entertained until 10 pm. Probably the best White Night Party that we have attended.
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| Our captain |
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| Captain |
Thursday Sept 15 Nantes
Our guide is Monique and driver is Terry for our tour to Chateau Gaulaine and Clisson Castle. First stop was Chateau Gauline. The Chateau has been in the same family for over 1000 years. There was a time after WWI and before WWII that it was sold to a Dutch family. The Chateau was used by German officers but no battles were fought around it due to the marshy land. They believe because it wasn’t French owned that but was not destroyed. The Gauline family bought it back in the 1950’s and current owners’ father spent over 5 million euros restoring the Château from the inheritance of the grandmother. The owner of the land was given the title of marquis and the title has been passed down through the centuries. The Chateau continues to grow grapes and produce wine. The marquis’s brother was our guide and his mother poured the wine. They live in the Château. We toured the bottom floor seeing the original kitchen, drawing room, marquis and marchioness bedrooms and the bedroom for the visiting king. King Louis XIV stayed in the bedroom.
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| Guide Monique |
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| brother of owner |
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| family tree |
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| from the family winery |
The Clisson Castle was ruins only and we could only see from the outside. It was a huge castle/fort in its day. It was built on land occupied from the 11th century. Most of the present castle was built during the 13th century. Constructed by Guillaume de Clisson, on a rocky outcrop, its form at that time was an irregular polygon flanked by round towers and isolated from the rocky plateau by a shallow moat.
After walking around the castle ruins, we walked into the city. Our guide pretty much lost control and people started wondering on their own but we did all manage to meet back together. Greg and I bought a cookie and a drink and sat on a bench for awhile before heading to the bus. There weren’t as many stores in the little town and what stores they had were closed.
As we approached the pier we came to a complete standstill. There was a group of gypsies traveling with a circus and the 18 wheelers were blocking them from entering the town. Evidently they have a reputation for dishonesty. We were about an hour and a half from sail away and some of the people on the bus were going beserk. Eventually the police showed up, got the trucks moving and we arrived back to the ship in plenty of time. I even had a bit of time to enjoy the balcony.
Tonight we ate in Prime C and there was a guest entertainer in the Caberet, who sang jazz, swing and Motown. We enjoyed it so much that we went back and watched the show again. Derek was wearing his kilt for his Celtic night in spirits after the show.
Friday, Sept 16 Bordeaux
We did not arrive into Bordeaux until 1 pm. The weather was nice and we were able to enjoy the cruise down the Garrone River.
Water looks like chocolate milk! They had a cookout on the patio and is was good food with nice weather. We went back to the room and started packing. After docking, we wandered into town, managing to get turned around many times. The boat was parked right in the city center so it was convenient. We did see both Cathedrals, the fountain, and found the art museum but decided we didn’t have enough time to do it justice. We walked back along the quai.
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| Saint-Louis -des Chartrons Church was built between 1874 and 1880 |
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| The high towers measure 58 meters and are visible from all over the city |
After getting back on the boat, we finished packing before dinner in Aquilina. We went back to the room, changed clothes, put the suitcases out and went to the show. There was only 1 show at 9 pm. The singers and dancers did a tribute to Elton John. Nicely done.
We enjoyed one last cocktail, listening to Derek on the piano.
Saturday Sept 17th disembarkation
Azamara makes it so easy. We were able to have room service for breakfast, left the room a little after 8. We could leave whenever we wanted but our guide wasn’t coming until 9:15 so we waited until a little before 9 to leave. All we had to do was get our suitcases, no customs because we started in the EU, and never left the EU.
Margeaux, with Bordeaux with Elodie, was waiting for us in the parking lot. We loaded up our suitcases and headed to our hotel, Intercontinental Bordeaux, to drop off our suitcases.
Super quick and then off to our first winery, Chateau Jouvente- Grand Vin de Graves. The sommelier gave a very detailed tour. First we sampled juice that was picked the day before (think grape juice), then wine less than a week in aging barrel, then wine a few months in aging barrel, then finally the bottled wine. White wine is a combination of Sauvignon blanc and Semillon. Every vineyard produced a different combination and the combination changes year to year within the same winery. The reds are a blend of Merlot, Cabernet franc or Petite Verdot. The château was once owned by a judge so there was a jail. That is where the barrels were stored. We also found out that new barrels are replaced each year, costing from 500-1000 euros each. They are used anywhere from 2 to 5 years. One winery only use their barrels for 2 years. They then sell the barrels to breweries and distilleries for 50 euros. The barrels are hand made from French oak.
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| Guide at the winery on the left and Margeaux on the right |
Margeaux dropped us off at a restaurant for lunch, La Chapelle. We ordered the daily special which was sautéed mushrooms with frothy egg whites, roasted chicken for the entree and pavlova for dessert. The menu was not in English and the server did not speak English. Food was good but service was very slow for us. There were several large groups that received the server's attention. It would have been more enjoyable if Margeaux had stayed and eaten with us.
Second winery specialized in sweet wines, Sauternes. The Château Suduiraut, was not our favorite but he gave an interesting tour, talking about how the harvest was different for the sweet wines. The vineyards of Suduiraut are planted in 90% Semillon and 10% Sauvignon Blanc. All the wineries were close to being finished harvesting, which is a month earlier than normal due to the dry, hot summer. Sweet wines grapes are harvested last so the grapes were still on the vine here.
The last winery today was our favorite so far, Chateau LaTour-Martillac. They had the most modern and the largest facility . The tanks were are all computerized so they had instantaneous information. We both liked their wines.
Margeaux dropped us off at our hotel. They had already delivered our luggage to our room. The best description of the room was bordello. Wallpaper and bold, heavy drapes. The bed and towels was comfy and thick.
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| Yacht Club |
We walked around for a bit. The area around the hotel was super crowded. Lots of sidewalk cafes with people watching the world go by, the longest shopping street in Europe starts here and it was packed. We stopped at a restaurant suggested by Margeaux that was totally empty. They said they had no openings, then as we were walking out, they offered a two top squeezed between two larger tops, but since they were empty, we took it. We ate and were gone before the other people had even showed up. I had veal chop and Greg had scallops. My Chop was hard to cut but tasty and really not tough. I think the knife needed sharpening. They brought enough fries to feed 4 people and I very meekly asked for catsup. He grimaced, then laughed, and brought me catsup. The waiter was very nice. We ended the evening on the hotel’s rooftop bar, The Yacht Club. We had a 40 euro voucher and spent it all on 2 drinks!
Sunday, Sept 18 Bordeaux
Day 2 of the wine tour started with a stop for a pastry. We did not eat breakfast because 2 eggs was 13 euros at the hotel, a coke was 9 euros. Crazy prices. The first winery was Saint Georges Cote Pavie. The sommelier was very nice, showing us the vineyards and their production facilities.
Then he met us in town at their wine shop in Saint Emilion. Saint Emilion is a medieval town founded in the 11th century by a monk named Emilion. They were celebrate the beginning harvest every year on the 3rd weekend so the town was crazy busy and parking was impossible. All of Margeaux’s secret parking places were taken or blocked off, but we finally find a spot. We met at Le Cellier de Saint Emilion where we did our tasting of 2 whites and 5 reds. That’s a lot of wine at 11 in the morning. Two of the reds were from his winery. The last red was a pure merlot, which has a #2 rating in the blind tasting tests for the past 10 years. Greg finally tasted a merlot that he liked. We bought 6 bottles to be shipped home. After the tasting, we walked around the town. The monks in the early years quarried limestone but in the 14th century turned to wine making. There was a convent as well. The medieval town became a UNESCO site in 1999.
We drove a little way out of Saint Emilion for lunch at La Reserve du Presbytere. We ate on the terrace. It was a beautiful afternoon. They had a limited menu. We both chose gazpacho soup and pollack with risotto and of course wine.
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| church around the corner from the restaurant |
Our last stop was back in Saint Emilion. The winery was in the old convent. They used the underground area where they had quarried stone for storing the barrels and bottling the wine. The sommelier again was super nice and gave us a great tour, but the wines didn't wow us.
Margeaux drove us back to the hotel and we said our goodbyes. She was the perfect guide, very pleasant but not too talkative and always answering our questions. Greg chose well when he picked this tour company.
We went back to our room and repacked a bit, then set off hoping to find a table to sit and enjoy the rest of the afternoon. Looks like people find a table, sip on a glass of wine all afternoon. Cafes do not hurry you at all and don’t seem to care that you are not constantly ordering a new drink. We finally found an open table in the shade.
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| cafe where we people watched from |
We made reservations for tonight at 1925, a restaurant recommended by Margeaux. Starters were escargot, Greg had the tuna steak and I had prawns in a wonton type wrapping with broth. Both choices were very good. Back to the hotel. We have a early morning tomorrow.
Monday, Sept 19th Bordeaux to Munich via Paris.
Checking out of the hotel was super easy. They came to get our bags within 2 minutes of calling, our driver arrived early and we were at the airport in plenty of time. We flew Air France, a new airline for us. No one was in line to check in and the gentleman at the gate was really nice. We had access to the Priority Lounge. It was a very basic Priority Lounge, with coffee, oj, cereal, and 2 small pastries. But it was wonderful compared to the bus like crowd at the gate. We had assigned seats but everyone was pushing and shoving. Lots of people tried to get on ahead of their boarding number. They also had 2 planes going to Paris within 10 min of each other at two gates within 3 ft of each other. Lots of people trying to get on the wrong plane. We were in business class. All that meant was the middle seat was not sold.
We had plenty of time to make our connecting flight to Munich. Again Business Class was the middle seat not being sold. We did get a lunch, vegetarian entree. All I can say is the cheeses were good. It took well over an hour for our baggage to show up. This time our driver did not leave us! It was a 45 minute ride into Munich center. Our hotel is Platz Hotel. It is nice but probably not $600 a night nice but with Octoberfest going on, it is what it is. Breakfast is included!
Our only other visit to Munich was in 2008, so it had been a few years. We had not seen Matt's parents since 2008.
Matt met us at 6:30 and we headed for an Italian restaurant near Octoberfest. Matt said it’s his favorite restaurant, L’Osteria. Greg and I shared a huge pizza. After dinner, we walked to Octoberfest. It was cool with all the lights of the rides at night. We rode the Ferris Wheel then went to the beer tent Hacker Pschorr. It’s the favorite of the younger crowd on the weekends. It was packed on a Monday night, still mostly young with a few older ones like us. The guys drank a large beer. The highlight of the evening was a very drunk Italian that decided we were his long lost oma and opa. We were die laughing but Matt was soooo embarrassed. The music was typical American music, Abba, We are the Champions, Sweet Carolina, etc. They did play a couple of German songs. The crowd stands the whole time, usually on the benches and tables. Quite the party. It had been a long day so we grabbed a taxi back to the hotel. We are going back on Thursday in the daytime.
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| Oma and Opa with our long lost grandson! |
Tuesday, Sept 20 Munich
After 5 days in a row of getting up early, we slept in. It was included so we had a late breakfast. It was a huge buffet with a egg/omelette station. We joined Matt at 11:30 and visited St Peter's church which opened in 1294. All the statues and trim is gold. It was just before noon so we waited for the Glockenspiel which runs at 11 am and noon. Timing was perfect. After it finished we walked to the Theatine Church which began construction in 1663. You could definitely see the influence of the Italian architect. Then we went by train to the Frauenkirche Church, built in 1468. We walked by the fountain in Karlsplatz, then to Kings Square. Last stop was the Deutsches Museum, the world’s largest museum dedicated to engineering. Unfortunately several wings that we would have enjoyed were closed, including the astronomy and mining exhibits.
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| St Peter's is the oldest recorded parish church in Munich and assumed to be the starting point for the whole city. |
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| Glockenspiel |
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| The top half of the Glockenspiel tells the story of the marriage of the local duke to Renata. In honor of the happy couple there is a joust with life-sized knights on horseback representing Bavaria (in white and blue) and Lothringen (in red and white). The Bavarian knight wins every time, of course. |
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| The bottom half represents the end of the plague. 1517 was a year of plague in Munich. The coopers are said to have danced through the streets to "bring fresh vitality to fearful dispositions." The coopers remained loyal to the duke, and their dance came to symbolize perseverance and loyalty to authority through difficult times. |
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| Theatine Church |
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| Frauenkirche Church |
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| King's Square |
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| King's Square was used during WWII as a square for the Nazi Party's mass rallies |
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| river by the museum |
We went to dinner at Hofbrau House. It’s a tourist place but it’s a fun and we wanted to go back. We thought it was fun 14 years ago and it was again.
Wed, Sep 21 Wed
Greg went down for breakfast and then we walked back to the Platzl. I wanted to get pictures of the old town hall. We caught the tail end of the Glockenspiel and then went to see the church across from Old town Hall, Heilig-Geist-Kirche, which is one of the oldest churches in Munich. It was heavily damaged in WWII and restored.
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| Old Town Hall |
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| Heilig-Geist-Kirche |
We went back to Hofbrau House for lunch because Greg wanted to get the Bavarian salad. It wasn’t quite what he remembered. I ordered the soft cheese spread and red cabbage.
We met Matt at 1:00 and we took the train to his home town. His dad met us at the train station and we went to his house. Not much had changed except they have added a sunroom. Hildegard, Matt and Greg and I walked through the cemetery. It is a ver peaceful cemetery with little alcoves with graves. Ali went to pick up the granddaughter, Theresa, and brought her back to the house. We took a long walk, stopping for ice cream, and taking Theresa home. Matt left us to visit his great aunt who is in a nursing home and has not been doing well, then was going to a concert. We finally met Matt’s sister Francesca. Ali’s car was at Francesca’s so we drove back to the house, enjoying a glass of wine. We went to a Greek restaurant, Poseidon restaurant, a favorite of the family. Greg and Ali had octopus and Hildegard and I had the fish platter. Besides a fillet, I had scampi and grilled calamari. It was all excellent. Ali drove us back to our hotel.
Thursday, Sept 22nd. Munich
We had to pack and check out of the hotel, leaving our suitcases in storage with the hotel. Matt met us at the hotel at 11:30 and we headed to the train station to go to Octoberfest. Ali and Hildegard were meeting us there. We stopped first at Augustiner Beer Hall where we ate lunch. Music was pop with a lot of American music. We then went to the area they call “Old Octoberfest” which has an entry fee. It’s what I thought all Octoberfest would be like, traditional Bavarian music, more older people in traditional German outfits. The beer is cheaper here as well. Ali wanted a digestive so the guys all had one. I'm not sure what it was but it was served in a small glass boot. I had a Hopsn Spritz which I have no idea what was in it but it is slightly sweet and light. Yummy! There might have been more beer consumed before moving on. The guys then did target shooting. All three were good shots. Everyone rode one of the carnival rides (only 1 euro each). A bargain. It went round and faster than we were expecting and all had a good time. We left the old area and went looking for a roller coaster ride. We picked an easy one and even Greg rode it. Our last stop was the Paulaner Beer tent. It was 4:30ish and the tent was full, but we managed to find a table. The music was turning up, people standing on tables, and almost all songs were American. Que Sera, Sera is very popular in Germany as is Sweet Caroline.
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| Old Octoberfest Tent |
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| Paulaner Beer tent |
We headed back on the train, saying goodbye to Matt at the hotel. We retrieved our luggage and our driver arrived right on time. He was the son of the gentleman that picked us up at the airport on Monday. We stayed at the Hilton tonight since we have an early flight tomorrow. Hotel is very nice.
Friday, Sept 23 Flying home
The bellman/shuttle driver knocked on the door at 7 am, we checked out of the hotel, and he drove us in a very nice car to the terminal, 5 min away. The line to checkin was crazy long but priority had about 15 people with 3 agents so it went fairly fast. Same for security, the priority line was short. We stopped at the Priority Lounge for a light breakfast and then headed to the gate. The gate was at the very end of the terminal and they had already called groups 1 and 2, but they packed us on a bus and took as to a jetway away from the terminal. At least we didn’t have to climb airplane stairs! Flight home was uneventful.
