Rachel and Jeremy had their school vacation last week and we
were lucky enough to be able to have them come over to Munich to visit us in
our new surroundings. I booked some relatively inexpensive flights that had
them travel through Frankfurt and then on to Munich. They left on Sunday night
and arrived early Monday morning.
So Monday morning Deb and I left our flat early and traveled
down to Hauptbohnhof (3 words in German Haupt Bohn and Hof) to grab the S-Bahn
up to the airport. We arrived a bit early at the main train station and had enough
time to grab a coffee and then jumped on the S-Bahn only to find the ride
packed with early morning travelers all going to the airport. It was standing
room only with Deb in one spot and me in another. I love the fact that public
transportation is so prevalent and used so much here in Munich.
After a few stops we were able to get some seats
after the Allianz people got off at their stop. We arrived a bit early at the airport and waited for Rachel
and Jeremy to get their bags and come out. Finally, after about 15 minutes
they showed up, we hugged and kissed, and jumped back on the S-Bahn to head to
our flat.
The red eye flight is tough, and it is only the hardiest and
most seasoned travelers who arrive looking anything but frazzled and harried.
Well, Jeremy and Rachel were not in that group; they were tired and spent and eager to leave the airport. It is normally less than a thirty minute ride into the city, but about 2/3rds of the way, the train
stopped and just sat there. The conductor (or whatever you would call him here
in Germany) came on the loudspeaker and said something, but as none of us speak
German we had no idea what was the problem. It was funny, in 2 ½ years of travelling the S- and U-Bahns here in Munich, I have never had it break down, but it happened to us
twice in one week, including this most inopportune time, when the kids just
wanted to get to the flat and crash.
We waited, and waited, and waited. Strange, how you think it will be any minute now in circumstances like this. After about 10
minutes or so we (by this I mean Deb) got brave and searched the train for
someone who could speak English and tell us what the problem was. She
approached a well dressed business man who told us (her) that sure enough, there was some problem down by Einstein Strasse. So we waited
a bit longer, hoping that German efficiency would fix the problem, but alas
nothing happened. During this whole time people were slowly abandoning the
train. They would get up, open the train doors, and make their way down the
platform to somewhere else. The business man said that they were leaving for
taxis etc. but we, not knowing the area, the train stop, or anything else, were
paralyzed.
Finally, I said let’s go, and we headed out into the great
unknown, hoping that we might find a taxi or some other means to get to the
flat. Well, wouldn’t you know it, but at the bottom of the stairs leading away
from the train stop there were no signs and you needed to go left or right.
There were two other gentlemen standing there also trying to figure out left or
right. Flip a coin and make a decision so we went left, along with a young man
from Italy who was trying to get to his mother's flat somewhere in the downtown
area. It was a modern moment, with the three of us (the Italian,
the unknown man, and me) all standing there with our modern GPS-enabled smart
phones and no clue as to left or right. So being a lefty I suggested left, as
there were no street signs and it was quite difficult to figure out exactly
where we were and where the closest tram stop might be.
We trudged along for a little ways, and sure enough a tram
line came into view. Not only that, but it was the #19 tram that goes right
through our neighborhood, stopping in Max Weber Platz, not more than a
stone's throw from our flat. After just a few minutes we were there and happily
headed up to the flat, the kids' home away from home. The kids were beat so we had a simple snack and Jeremy
went off for a nap while Rachel crashed on the sofa.
After resting, we went that night to the
Spatenhaus, a traditional Bavarian restaurant adjacent to the Residenz Museum
and directly opposite the Opera House. We had a nice, simple dinner, just
the four of us, and afterwards walked down Maximillian Strasse, the
most expensive street for shopping in Munich. We window shopped for a while and hopped on a tram to head home. Here is a picture
of Rachel and Jeremy at the statue of Maximilian as we waited for the tram.
Thus began the first day of Rachel and Jeremy's week with us in Munich. Within a couple of days, they were beginning to feel like it was their home, as well. Jeremy loved being able to step out the front door and easily get anything he wanted. Rachel also mentioned how lucky we are to be living in such a lovely city. We were so very glad to share our good fortune with them.
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