Beer, Camps and Castles

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Boxing Day in Munich and everything is pretty much closed =( Even the souvenior shops! So with no much else open, we headed for the Hofbrauhaus and ordered a litre of beer! After downing that, what else was there to do but head to another beer hall, the Augustiner Keller, no 1 litre beers there though.

I had been to Dachau concentration camp today but this time we decided to our on a tour and Im so glad we did. Our guide was fantastic, his knowledge and style of delivery where superb, he opened the tour by saying "You will not enjoy today, it will not be a good day but it is an important one" and this was so true. The gruesome stories he told, while we stood in the very rooms that people where tortured and killed just brought home the horrors of the Nazi regime. Interestingly, Hitler was only responsible for the third worst genocide in history. Joseph Stalin in Russia killed more of his own people than Hitler ever did (I cant remember what the second one was). The guide also told the story of how horrific genocides are still occuring, Cambodia, Rwanda, even after the world learnt what mankind can be responsible for, it is still occuring. The SS used horrific methods to break the spirit of people, including lynching you up by your arms, your arms were behind your back so your arms were literally pulled out of their sockets and you would end up, armless on the ground, rather the guards dogs have eaten your toes. Prisoners were shaved and then thrown into an acid wash upon arrival to ensure they didnt have lice, only to have to put on lice infested clothing. You were fed nothing, if you attracted the attention of the guards, simply for being different, you were killed. When we reached the gas chamber, our guide pointed us in the right direction but refused to go with us. He has done over 400 tours of Dachau and has only been through the gas chamber once. I dont blame him, it was a very harrowing experience standing in a room where millions of people lost their lives. When the US liberated this camp, the soliders wanted to burn the gas chamber down. The survivors prisoners refused to let them, telling them that there had to be proof, people needed to know what had occured.

After spending a rather intense day at Dachau, we were definately in need of a pick me up.. Off to the Hofbrauhaus for dinner and drinks we went! What was only going to be one beer, turned into 3beers.. and a fun night with a young German couple.. they didnt speak much English, we didnt speak much German but we all understood the word "Prost!" and before long, we were saying this repeatedly and getting the group of Austrians at the end of the table in on the fun! It was a good night, not so much fun the next day, less so for Chris than me for.. for once..

We boarded a 2hr train bound for Neuschwanstein, the Disney castle! A king, who may or may not have been crazy built this castle however only got to enjoy it for a matter of months before he was sent to a insane asylum so that he could be overthrown. Not wasting any time, it was turned into a museum only a few days later. After the heavy day before at Dachau, a day at a castle was a lovely way to end our trip in Munich. Even though we chose not to go in the Castle, we spent our time in magnificent grounds with stunning views.

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