Advertisement
Published: October 4th 2006
Edit Blog Post
The sign saying Bundesrepublik Deutschland welcomes me to Germany for the 3rd time this year and I wasn't sighing about either. Our destination was the scenic Rhine Valley. As we found our way the city of Koblenz, we followed the road that lines the Rhine River and it was a spectacular sight. Small village after small village sit waters edge. Where there is no vines covering the valley there are castles teetering on the edge. We stopped at a town called Boppard, just 13km from the famed St. Goar. Accommodation was sparce as there was a wine festival in town. We got lucky with a small place over the river, dumped our stuff and headed for St. Goar. The massive caslte, Burg Rhinfels, clings to the valleys walls and is a statement with an exclamation point. Atop the castle has some spectacular views over the river and St. Goar. The town is a beautiful area to wander amongst the cafes and shops, just the type of small German towns I love.
That night we went back to Boppard and indulged on the Wine Fest. Fireworks over the water and more wine in a town square than some vineyards have on
site. What I loved about it was everyone was drinking happily with no problems. I could imagine that happening in Australia or England where stupid loud mouths get all worked up and there would be fights everywhere.
We set off at stupid o'clock in the morning for our 5 and a half drive to Munich. At over 600km away, a breakfast break, toilet stops and some road works, it doesn't take Einstein to work out that we were movin pretty quick. Thanks entirely to the one of many things I love about Germany, the Autobahn. Not quite the rev fest it once was in its heyday but still full of long stretches of open speed limit, it's a sight to see in itself. My most impressive sample was looking in the the mirror and seeing a set of lights moving up fast. I told Aaron to pull over to the next lane damn quick and as he did, a black Porche goes screaming past. The impressive thing was that we were already doing 170km/h at the time. "Old Besser" (which is the pet name we have bestowed upon our 7 seater Peugeot) doesn't quite compete with the Porches but
even at top speed, she was smooth. A tribute to German road builders, smooth, safe, fast.
Munich was crazy! During Oktoberfest, the city is overflowing with party seekers hoping to sink a few beers and taste some of the food. We wasted no time in meeting up with Alex, who arrived the day previous, as headed for the festival. The Royal Easter Show with beer instead of animals is the best way to describe Oktoberfest. Of course I told some locals that "I have come for the beer" so straight to the beer halls we go. Not even midday but the party was in full swing. People standing on the chairs (as is the common practice) beer being swilled, songs being sung, fun being had. Asking for a beer that comes in a glass less than a litre is like asking for a scotch and coke in Scotland, just don't. When you ask for a beer, you get a litre, plain and simple. We found that out after someone asked for a half litre was nearly spat on by the waitress.
We soon after met up with my cousin Tracey and my mum and dad in the Löwenbräu
tent. We drank the afternoon away and continued into the night. Alex and I took a walk through the crowd and asked random people if we could stand up on their chairs and sing with them. Everyone was more than welcoming and we shared countless beers with total strangers just having a great time like us. We also ran into a few Italians who we stayed with for a while. That's the great thing about Oktoberfest, people from all over.
The next day was Az's Birthday so back to Oktoberfest we go. After the extremely long night before hand we started out slow but after a few warm up steins, we on our way again. We did absolutely nothing that day but sit in that tent and drink. Sounds boring but after it picked up the bands were getting the crowd singing along.
To the inevitable question, what else did you do in Munich?, the answer is nothing. The first time ever I have been to a city and seen absolutely nothing, but we had an absolute ball anyways. By the way for Rohan, cause I know he wants to know, no, I didn't see any 5 litre
steins. Can't say there isn't any, but I wouldn't put money on it.
The next stop was a lightning fast lay over in Innsbruck, Austria. We got in late, had dinner, and left early the next morning. However, the drive through was amazing. Winding our way through enormous mountains was an absolute treat.
That it for that section, next stop, Venice, Italy. Auf Wiedersehen. Until then PEACE CAMO
Advertisement
Tot: 0.29s; Tpl: 0.024s; cc: 27; qc: 144; dbt: 0.1563s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.6mb