Munich: City of the Monk

Our last day in Munich was a snowy/rainy/cold one, but it was excellent nonetheless! Mary Margaret and I went on a guided tour of the old town of Munich (we started with the German speaking tour group but made our way to the English speaking tour group eventually ha). As typical for us, we were nerding out with all of the interesting history facts. Munich is an amazing city, and I highly recommend visiting if given the opportunity.

Kirsten and Amanda arrived this morning. We met in the Marienplatz and had Bavarian bratwurst sandwiches and some Bavarian beer in a beer garden. The city was extremely packed due to the Easter holiday, but it definitely makes for some great people watching.

Tonight, we went to a German restaurant and had delicious Bavarian cuisine. As typical in Germany, our restaurant table neighbors wanted to chat with us. One of our neighbors did not speak English, so that conversation did not go very far. Our other table neighbor spoke English fairly well and was giving us Munich suggestions and tips. He even called his wife (who is currently in the United States) and asked her to speak with us and tell us her favorite things about Munich.

We've had a great time traveling before our rotation begins. We leave Munich for Istanbul in the morning, and we are excited to see where we will be for the month! However, tomorrow I will sure miss wearing a new Easter dress and having lunch with my family. I miss you all and love you to Florida (a little family joke).

Mary waiting on the S-Bahn (train)

Mary in front of the "Mary" statue

Another really cool door in Munich

St. Peter's Cathedral

Frauenkirche

A map of Munich

Bratwurst sandwich and German beer.

Having a 1/2 liter in a Biergarten (Beer Garden)

Neues Rathaus from St. Peter's Cathedral

Frauenkirche from St. Peter's Cathedral

Kirsten and Amanda at the top of St. Peter's Cathedral

Mary Margaret and I at the top of St. Peter's Cathedral

Love,
Brooke

Always Have Copies of Your Travel Documents

Confession: while we were planning our trip, I went a little nuts. I made a document folder. I photocopied all of our passports (even Nathaniel's and Jonathan's). I printed all of our confirmation emails. I printed directions for each city of how to get from the airport to our hostel/hotel. I made an insane excel spreadsheet with all of our flight information, hostel/hotel information and address, etc. I tried to think of everything we would need to look up on our phones, because we will not have international phone service throughout our trip. Well, today, that document folder paid off.

This morning, Mary Margaret woke me at 3:45am. We took a taxi to our airport shuttle bus stop. Then, we elbowed our way onto a shuttle bus for our 45 minute commute to London Stansted Airport. Upon arrival at the airport, the airline attendant complemented our skills in being exactly under the weight limit for the airline. That's right. I bought a travel luggage scale. You would too if you had to pay $96.00 for going over the weight limit by less than 2kg (about 4lb).

Flight went fine, except they charge for in-flight drinks. My goodness, I just wanted a coffee. Then we made it to Munich and waited in line at customs. In London, they asked a ton of questions, but it was not a big deal. Not in Munich evidently. When I got to the customs agent, I gave him my passport. He asked the common questions. "How long are you here? Why are you here?" etc. And then he asked for a copy of my plane ticket for my departing flight. "Well, I can not check into my flight until 24 hours before the flight departs." Wrong thing to say. He made me get out of line until I could find a copy of my departing plane ticket. Little known fact about me: I panic at the drop of a hat. That's why Mary Margaret and I are best friends. She is the voice of reason. After calming down, I remembered I had made copies of our travel itinerary that our school travel agent emailed us. Success! See you later mister man.

After being shoved and growled at in line to get a S-bahn (the train) ticket, we made it on the train and to our hotel. And it was worth it! Our Munich hotel is 100 times nicer than the London hostel. Aaaah... sweet luxury.

Unfortunately, Munich shuts down on Good Friday. We went to do some sight-seeing, and found that every exhibit/church/cathedral/store and most restaurants were closed. So we walked around, took some pictures, and called it a day!

The street our hotel is on. That is snow on the ground.

Please compare this room to our London hostel.

When I said nothing was open, I meant it. Mary Margaret and I ate at a local German restaurant for lunch, McDonalds.

Neus Rathaus or the New Town Hall

Max-Joseph-Platz in the Old Town North

So excited for sunshine and needing to wear sunglasses.

A shrine we found to Michael Jackson. If anyone knows what this is about, we would love to know.

Michaelskirche or Church of St. Michael

A cool door we found. Its the police headquarters.

I have not had my picture made with Tusk, but I found his German brother.

Burgersaal (it is a church).

Lebewohl,
Brooke

Becoming Royalty

Hello family and friends in America! Yesterday (28 March 2013 - how dates are written in Europe) was Mary Margaret's and my last day in London. It was such a busy and awesome day. We went to see St. Paul's Cathedral (we could not go in because they were having a special closed service), Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, the Churchill War Rooms, and the British Museum. So... yes, phew. Busy. But I am all about seeing as much as I can while I am visiting a new city.

Last night, we (again) found a really cool Mexican restaurant that only locals frequent. It was delicious. Kirsten's dish was definitely my favorite: goat cheese, spinach and sweet potato enchiladas. That might not sound appetizing to you, but, my friend, it was "close your eyes good" (thanks for the spot-on description Kir).

Here are some pictures from our day...

St. Paul's Cathedral

The London Eye

Big Ben and The Chester County Independent

Big Ben and Houses of Parliament

In front of Westminster Abbey

Amanda's going in the map, for all you Friends lovers.

A little tourist pic action in front of Westminster Abbey

Inside the Churchill War Room bunker

British Museum

WARNING: The following is a cheesy girl moment. You might want to skip this paragraph. So, whilst walking through Westminster Abbey, I thought about how many kings and queens walked down the center aisle for their coronation or to say their wedding vows before God and their loved ones. And then I thought, "Oh wow. It is March 28th. Nate and I get married 6 months from today. And I'm walking down the same aisle Princess Kate walked down on her wedding day" (it was a long thought). So, basically I am royalty now. It's a stretch. I know.

We had to get up at 3:45am to make our flight from London to Munich. You will hear all about that adventure in my next post. I hope everyone is having a great Good Friday.

Regards (Mary Margaret hates this salutation),
Brooke

"Good night, good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow."

Day 3: Another amazing day in London. However, it is bitterly cold. One of our tour guides today told us it was the coldest March in the past 50 years in London (I did not fact-check this tidbit, but it just explains how cold it is) I have not been able to wear my boots the past two days, because my feet are incredibly sore. So I wore Toms today without socks. At one point I could not feel my toes. No exaggeration. So tonight, Nathaniel bought me some warm angora socks from H&M. He is so kind and generous like that. And if you have ever met my sweet friend Mary Margaret, you know she is not a fan of cold weather (to put it mildly). But she is being a trooper!

Today, we visited the Tower of London and Shakespeare's Globe Theater. We also saw the Tower Bridge, the London Bridge, and walked across the Millennium Bridge. Tonight, we browsed (dreamed, really) in Harrods, a ritzy shopping center. Finally, at the suggestion of my great friend, Rick Steves (the author of the guide books I am using), we ate at a local Italian restaurant which was really delicious. And we felt super cool for being where the locals were. It is the little things in life.

Tower of London - where many famous patrons were imprisoned and later executed

Mary Margaret and Amanda in front of the Tower of London

My little Eskimo friend

Just hanging out with the Chester County Independent in front of the Tower Bridge. "Oh the places you will go." Also, if you look closely enough you can see my sweet Grandaddy accepting an award (left picture above the fold on the left side).

University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy newsletter submission

Sweet friends in front of the Tower Bridge

An exhibit on how the Kings' horses have changed throughout history. Ms. Cathy Denson, you would have loved it!

London Bridge (bridge closest to us) and the Tower Bridge (in the far background) while standing on the Millennium Bridge

Shakespeare's Globe Theater

Inside Shakespeare's Globe Theater

Touring Shakespeare's Globe Theater with St. Paul's Cathedral to the left

Sitting in the balcony

 

Harrods, where all shopping dreams come true.

Mandy, Kelly, and Jodie are leaving London tomorrow for Liverpool, England. We have really enjoyed sightseeing with them, and we are going to miss them (and all of their jokes and stories)!

Thank you for all of the sweet emails, messages, and comments I have received. It makes me miss home a little less! Thank you for your prayers also. We can really feel them as we travel throughout our day, and we know its the cause of many of our good fortunes.

Love,
Brooke

"Welcome to the Tube at Rush Hour"

For all you James Bond/Skyfall fans (I am looking at you Nathaniel Denson), you might get the title of this blog post. I am currently on the hunt for the new MI6 location. If you have not seen Skyfall or any James Bond movie for the matter, you are truly missing out on cinematic masterpieces, but whatever.

We did survive the Tube (what the subway is called in London) at rush hour. It was super packed, but we got on the right line at the correct time! Success! We have mastered the tube, and I really wished Memphis had one. It would make my life so much sweeter.

In the tube at Charing Cross.

We also visited Kensington Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Palace (the residence of Prince William and Princess Kate), and Royal Albert Hall. We had afternoon tea at Kensington Palace. Princess Kate was supposed to come, but she got called away (that's not true). We have been nerding out with all the history lessons, though! Tonight, we met up with Jodie, Mandy, and Kelly at a pub and watched a soccer match. Here are some pictures from Day 2 - London!

In front of Princess Diana Memorial Fountain (for you, Nana)

Kensington Palace

Inside Kensington Palace

The Orangery - where we had Afternoon Tea on the palace grounds.

A spot of tea.

Afternoon tea with Princess Kate

Royal Albert Hall

A pint in a real English pub.

Pubsters watching a soccer match.

To end on a sad note, the new girls in our hostel room smell like rotten onions. Welcome to Europe my friends!

Love,
Brooke