Gosse

Today we boared the bus early for us (7 am) - Disney has been really respectful to the sleeping habits of children and we usually haven't got on the bus until 9 am. However, it was a big morning as we traveled to Schloss Neuschwanstein (loosely translated as Castle of New Swan- swans dominate), the inspiration for Walt Disney to build the castle at the Magic Kingdom. It is exactly what you would think a castle should like like - nestled in the Alps and ornately decorated. Unfortunately, they didn't allow photographs inside, but you can see us walking over the moat with the castle in the distance. If interested, google Neuschwanstein and you can see the inside of this beautiful castle.

The story of Ludwig is fascinating - he was bethrothed to the sister of his true love named Elisabeth (Sisi). He went crazy because he couldn't be with her and he sat in his castle and wrote her letters. The Germans revere Sisi as the Princess Diana in their history - the same aura - a beautiful, tragic love story. Since King Ludwig was considered mentally ill, he couldn't rule the kingdom and died mysteriously in a lake... details of his "suicide," or more widely accepted murder, are locked by the family and cannot be opened for 100 years.

Jaci's observations:
Major industries in Munich - BMW (great museum here) - BMW got its start making airplanes (thus the propeller logo) and found success with its automobiles. Addidas shoes also has its headquarters here.
Men really do wear the little suede shorts with suspenders (laderh... can't remember how to spell it)

This will be my last posting ... although we are in the Four Seasons, they only have dial-up and not wireless, so it's been hard for me to get access. We leave tomorrow morning at 11:30, fly to Amsterdam and then direct to MSP.

After a two hour bus ride, we arrived in the village where Steiff bears originated in the early 1900s. We all had fun making bear heads (the body takes an additional 7 hours to make) and touring the museum. I had the best schnitzel - cheese schnitzel, which is basically mac and cheese, but with homemade noodles.

We then boarded the bus for the trip to Munich. It is a large city about the size of Las Vegas with the population of Phoenix. We are staying at a Four Seasons hotel right in the middle of the fashion district. Gucci, Faragamo, Chanel, Tiffany (see video), Dior.

Octoberfest originated in Munich, however, the date was changed a few years ago due to the constant rainy Octobers. Today, it starts in mid-September and goes until Oct. 3. Approximately 7 million people come to the city. It celebrates the marriage of King Ludwig and is held on the grounds that the wedding took place. The significance of Oct. 3 is the date that the reunification of Germany (East and West) occured.

Since beer is so prevalent here, for all ages, I asked about the incident rate of alcoholism and DUIs. Our guide said that because it is not the "forbidden fruit" it is in the US, it is not a problem. He said that when he was growing up, he wanted Coca-Cola and his mother said, "Come now, drink your beer." So for him to have Coke was a big deal and beer was like milk. They also have a great respect for beer since it has religious connotations due to its beginnings tracing to the Monks in the 1300s. I think the tolerance level must also be high because when they toast, they drink 32 oz in one swoop. The tradition of toasting also originated here - again, with the knights. When you toast in Germany, you are expected to look directly into the eyes of the person that you are toasting (probst) to see if they are trustworthy - to make sure they did not put poison in your beer.

Maypoles also originated in southern Germany (also referred to as Bravaria). Each town has a beautifully decorated one reflecting items of significance to the village. Ours in DC would have windmills, cement/garbage trucks, rebar and a snake! The maypoles are celebrated, obviously, on May 1 and must stay up for 7 years.

Jaci's observations:
Four-wheelers are treated like motorcycles. They are licensed and driven on the street.
There are a TON of bees here - I've only seen one fly and no mosquitos!
I am getting ready to come home!

Today we made pretzels in the morning and then spent the rest of the afternoon shopping. It is Christmas year round here - they have beautiful hand-crafted Nutcrackers (Carol's collection has expanded signifigantly), nativities, coo-coo clocks and smokers. This is what I pictured Germany looking like.

Observations:

None of the windows have screens, even in the upper stories, so you can open them wide and look out. Safety isn't a big concern...the children also ride in their car seats in the front passenger seat.
The salt used on pretzels is the same that we use on ice.
Smart cars are the rage - they look so funny. They even have Smart convertibles (or as Caroline calls them, cars without ceilings).

Carol's notes:
We left the Trendleberg Castle and went to the city of Kassel. We visited the Lowenburg Castle that was built by
Wilhelm IX, ruler of Hesse-Kassel. This Castle was built in the 18th century and made to look like a castle from the medieval times. It is also called the Lion Castle because there are Lion statues at the entrance and Lion statues throughout the inside of it also. A German Princess brought us into the castle and then the kids went with her and the adults took a tour of the castle. One of the most interesting things was seeing the Knight Room, which held various suits of armor, including the "bad-luck" black suits. This castle was bombed in 1945 and is still being repaired. It will be done in 2011. All the furniture had been removed before the bombing so it is authentic and very interesting.

After a 3 hour trip through the countryside this afternoon, we entered the walled city of Rothenberg. It is also called the Christmas Village. We had just a short time before an evening Night Watchman tour, but in that short time we were amazed at all the beautiful little shops that are filled with Bavarian china, cuckoo clocks, smokers and YES, nutcrackers-hundreds of nutcrackers. How will I ever choose just one to bring home? They told me in the shop that they ship to the United States. Tomorrow is shopping day in the afternoon!!

Jaci's observations:
There are no billboards anywhere so the countryside is clearly visible and beautiful.
Palaces were built in the 1800s, so they are considered "new."
When Germany pronouce "th," it comes out "s", so Thursday is "Sursday."
The tradition of saluting a person of respect comes from Germany. The knights used to lift up their metal visors to greet their allies so they could see their eyes..and that motion evolved into the salute.
"Stinking rich" was coined for the Germans who didn't bathe often. The poor people just plain smelled bad and the rich would buy huge bottles of perfume. They still smelled, but they tried to cover it up by being heavily scented, thus "stinking rich" or "filthy rich."

Word of the day:
Romantische Strasse (ROH-MAN-TISCH STRAZ)
The Romatic Road is a tourist route created in the 1950s that stretches north to south across 24 towns in southern Germany. This is the path we traveled today.