munich, germany: guteg tag!

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hello friends, first and foremost

- thanks for the replies... we love hearing from you.
- HAPPY BDAY JIMMY, HAPPY BDAY MRS. CHI, HAPPY BDAY RICH, HAPPY BDAY STEVE!

well we're really upset right now because we typed a whole long update and
the computer deleted it... so forgive us if this email is half-ass and not
as detailed. here goes...

we've done a lot since we last wrote. mainly-
- st. goar, germany
- munich, germany
- innsbruck, austria
- venice, italy

ST. GOAR
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left amsterdam and went to germany. we stopped ina little town called st.
goar, about 20 km from wiesbaden! this is where my brother was born. mom
and dad, this is right by koblenz. the town is run by the mafia... no
joke... three familes own every business, home, hotel, etc. but the town
was nevertheless quaint and beautiful. the hotel was right on the rhine
river and had a view of three castles perched on top of a mountain. very
pleasant. we window shopped a bit and saw "the first teddy bear shop in
the world"... so the mafia claims. i doubt it, but i smiled and nodded.
didnàt want to get thrown in the rhine river. we also went to an original
koo koo clock shop, and a bierstein shop. the food at the hotel was
scarce.... almost, dare i say, like a nazi camp. they even had a taunting
sign that read; "EAT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN". and there was only a few
scraps. damn nazis. st. goar is also famous for "ice wine". some of you
may know what this is... its basically an elaborate wine that requires; 5
days of perfect frigid weather, fermented grapes, and a talented nazi.
good schtuff. thats all from st. goar

MUNICH
=========
munich was fantastic. we went to the main square, marienplatz and saw st.
james cathedral, fraunkirche church, and shopped around a little. on the
way here, we passed by nurmeburg, where my eldest brother was born. it was
very nice to see roughly where my parents met and fell in love. very
personal for me. very nice.

then we had the most enjoyable night of our trip so far. our group went to
the most famous and oldest beer hall in germany - hofbrau house (sp?) we
got tanked! beer is served in 1-liter steins, and teresa and i had about
2.5 liters. pretty amazing for two weak drinkers. we had a blast sitting
with some local germans and some crazy aussies. it was a blast. teresa
also got hit on by an OLD german man who was singing on stage. i have
video proof. went home jolly.

next morning, we went to dachau, the nazi's first concentration camp. just
like anne frank house, it was sad but educational. gas chamber, cramped
bunkers, crematory, ovens, etc. a must see when you travel to germany. it
began to snow there, it was about 30 degrees. frigid!

then we had a nice afternoon in tegernsee, or lake tegern. it rests at the
base of the alps. it was a beautiful sight, similar to banff canada. white
mountains surrounding a crystal lake. we ate some great german food, but
not as good as my moms. fried schnitzel, potatos, goulasch soup.... yummy

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