You Were Seen by No Less than Seven Muggles!

The train ride between Edinburgh and London is beautiful and very picturesque. I googled the route and determined we needed to sit on the eastern side of the train. We saw cliffs on the coast, sheep and cows in the fields, and large towns, like Newcastle. It was a great way to travel and it only took about 4 hours. There was even a little kitchen on board for buying snacks and drinks. If you have an opportunity to train across the countryside in the UK; take it.

When we left for Scotland, we didn’t really have time to visit Platform 9¾, so when we returned to King’s Cross Station, we headed there first. Platform 9¾ is not actually between platforms 9 and 10 like in the book, but they are within sight.

This is not an attraction you can just wander up to and expect it to fit in your schedule. The muggles have noticed something, and the line is long. There is a conductor who outfits you with a scarf in your house colors, and a professional photographer who takes a picture of you while you are jumping. When holding the cart and jumping, you look like you’re running into the wall—especially when the conductor holds your scarf out in an act of movie magic.

After posing for your mildly embarrassing “magic” photo, and after your friends have taken personal photos of you being ridiculous, you can visit the Platform 9¾ Harry Potter Shop. In the shop you view the professional photos and decide if you want to purchase any souvenirs similar to those available at Leavesden. Most importantly, you can purchase a replica ticket for the Hogwarts Express.

Yes, this was a really cheesy place to visit. Yes, the line is long. But it was really fun, and as of this moment, still free.

My ticket to Hogwarts

Useful Links!
Pictures from our Trip!

OKTOBERFEST!

Need I say more?

Totally kidding! Of course I must say more! OKTOBERFEST!!! This place was CRAAAAAAAZY! If you are alive and have had beer, you are probably aware of the premise of Oktoberfest, but you probably don’t completely understand the magnitude of this celebration.

Oktoberfest is a two-ish week long celebration celebrating the 1810 marriage of Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese. Their wedding reception was so awesome they decided to celebrate again the next year, and we are 200 hundred years later still partying. Of course the focus has shifted slightly from royal nuptials to beer consumption, and there are a few more guests, approximately 6 million people visit every year. Those in the know call Oktoberfest der Wiesn after the “field” where the festival is held every year, Theresienweise.

At der Wiesn there are 14 different beer tents. I use the term tent loosely. A more accurate description of the big tents we entered is a giant barn typical of a state fair. These humongous spaces are filled with hundreds of tables with seating for thousands of people. The beer maids execute a carefully choreographed dance to bring beers and food to all the patrons. As far as I know, the beer only comes in litre mugs. I struggled lifting my mug when it was full, and have the bruise on my hand to prove it, but these Iron Maidens could carry 7 full mugs at a time. Talk about a workout plan. To get service, you must be sitting, and to be sure of a seat, you must make a reservation. Without a reservation, the seats are first come, first serve, and most people don’t vacate their seats once they have them. On the weekends, without a reservation, you are unlikely to get a seat after 10am and on weekdays after 3pm. Reservations must be made in person at the tent where you would like to sit, or by mail, fax or email. They must also be made for 10 (a full table). We did not have a reservation.

We opted to go in the middle of the week to avoid the crowds and increase the likelihood of finding a seat. Our day of choice was Wednesday the 3^rd because the weather forecast was in the 70s, and it was supposed to be sunny all day. Unfortunately, Wednesday was German reunification day, a national holiday. Working on the assumption that the holiday would mean weekend crowds, we left Regensburg early to arrive in Munich early. We biked to the train station and passed only 1 person on the way. She took one look at our outfits and asked if we were going to der Wiesn. After momentarily blanking, I remembered that ja meant yes, and responded accordingly. Most important, this exchange confirmed the slang term for Oktoberfest.

Arriving at the train station, we found it extra crowded, despite the lack of people in the rest of the city. Apparently, everyone was heading to Munich. We bought our tickets and elbowed our way toward the edge of the platform. Even though we managed to get on the train, we couldn’t find any seats, so we were forced to stand in the vestibule by the doors. Every stop added more people to our vestibule, and by the time we reached Munich, there wasn’t room to swing a cat. Furthermore, because so many people were trying to get on the train, it took much longer to travel, so we ended up standing in the same place for 2 hours. The worst part about the journey was the maddeningly cute couple standing behind me. They were to loudest, wettest kissers ever. It was like water torture. But as our vestibule became more crowded, the portly German gentlemen drinking at 10am managed to drown them out (mostly).

Hoping off the train in Munich, we quickly entered the subway system, jumped on another packed train, and rode to der Wiesn. And it was amazing! Sensory overload!


Here's a link to more Photos from Oktoberfest!

Kicking it Old School

View of the Alps out the plane window

Awhile back, for funsies, I was checking out the prices of flights to certain areas around Europe, and I found that we could fly to Barcelona for the weekend for only 200 euro, total. We settled on 27-29 of January, and bought the tickets. Joe was worried we wouldn’t be able to bring luggage or be charged for it at the gate, and I assured him, no this wasn’t some janky airline, it was Spanair, a star-alliance member, and we would be fine.

To arrive at the airport in Munchen we had a couple options, one of which was parking the (rental) car there all weekend. We decided to call this plan B in case something went wrong, and take the train into Munchen instead. This enabled to walk to the train station and not have to pay to keep the car anywhere. So we bundled up into many layers, to be shed later in the warmer climes of Spain, and set out for the train station. 40 minutes and 3.5km later we arrived, very cold, but early.

Here in Germany, there is a train ticket called the lander-pass, which allows you to travel anywhere in your region, all day, for only 29 euro. We had plans to purchase one of these, but found an older woman who was also travelling to the airport and had already bought her ticket. We gave her 10 euro to tag along, and hopped a train to Freissing. Here we got off the train and waited in the cold for 10 minutes, before taking a bus to the Munchen airport, called Flughafen, incidentally my most favorite German word.

We checked into the flight, boarded and settled in for our 2 hour flight southwest. I fell asleep midflight, but suddenly woke up (fate) and looked out the window to see the snow covered peaks of the Alps. Most amazing view of them is from above, though maybe within, I haven’t tried that yet.

After landing, we obtained our Barcelona cards. I found these cards online, and they are quite handy. The main perk was transportation–this card can be used on all public transportation, and unlimited number of times, for a set number of days. We had a 3 day card, enabling us to get transport to and from the airport and within the city. In addition, there are discounts at museums, restaurants, spas, etc. across the city, as well as free passes to a select number of places.

We used the card to get to our hotel, riding first a bus from the airport terminal to the train terminal, a train to the metro station, and then a series of metro trains until the stop that we thought was closest to our hotel before walking the remaining 3 blocks. As it turned out there was a closer station, which we used in the future. 

Passau

After all the travelling we did both before and after Christmas, we were craving a little continuity, and stayed in Regensburg for our 1^st weekend back in Germany. Since we arrived on a Monday though, this worked out to two weeks chilling with no travels. If we don’t travel, I don’t have too much to write about, hence the lack of blog posts. However, we’ve got some big plans coming up so expect some more posts in the near future. This past weekend we went to a city called Passau. We knew we wanted to travel somewhere, and after a quick weather check settled on Passau because the forecast predicted sunshine. Another bonus: it was about an hour away on the train, making for a nice easy day. The city is located at the conflux of 3 rivers, the Danube, the Inn, and the Ilz, with Old town on a peninsula between the Danube and the Inn. The Ilz is much small than the other two and makes less of an impact, but it too is visible on the peninsula.

The point of the peninsula of Passau, DE where 3 rivers become 1. The river on the left is the Inn, the river on the right is the Danube, and on the right side coming between buildings on the far right shore, is the Ilz river. 

Passau drew us in because of its cathedral–one picture in the guidebook was enough to convince me we needed to go there. Dom St. Stephan is located in Old Town and from the outside has all the appearances of being like Frauenkirche in Munich. The inside though, is breathtaking. The cathedral was rebuilt from 1668-1677 after the Great Fire of 1662. It was rebuilt in the Italian Baroque style and the largest and best example of this architecture north of the Alps. It is also home to the largest cathedral pipe organ in the world. When we walked inside, all we could do was stare dumbfounded at the artwork above us.

High Altar of Dom St. Stephan in Passau, DE

St. Stephan Cathedral in Passau, Germany
Baroque Architecture

Dom St. Stephan in Passau, Germany

The largest cathedral organ in the world, located in the baroque Dom St. Stephan cathedral in Passau, Germany

Back outside the cathedral is a remnant of the Great Fire of 1662, a stone head with a silly grin on its face, called the laughing fool. Passauers assume that this head fell off the original cathedral during the fire. The body has disappeared but the head survives, and is memorialized nearby its former home.

There are many other sites in Passau worthy of attention, but to be honest, we came to see the cathedral. When we had our fill of Baroque architecture, our plan was to wander around and check out whatever seemed interesting at the time. Our next stop became the Passauer Glasmuseum in the Wilder Mann Hotel. Approximately ⅔ of the historic hotel has been turned into a glass museum and the other ⅓ is still used as a hotel. The hotel has historic rooms, and if you are interested, you can stay in the wedding bed of King Ludwig II and his wife Duchess Sophie Charlotte. Personally, I don’t like to know who has been “sleeping” in beds before me, even if they are famous. When I stay in hotels, I pretend I am the first person in the bed and try not to think about other people who have already been in it, but to each his own I guess. http://www.wilder-mann.com/index.php?id=1152

The glass museum is pretty cool (at first) but it is A LOT of glass, and gets boring (unless you are a glass enthusiast) by the 2^nd floor. 2^nd floor you ask? Yes, this museum is 4 twisty floors full of cases of glass from the last several centuries. I was happy to go, because I like the concept of preserving the glass. In small sections, the collection has a lot of information to offer, but I think housed all together like that, it loses some of its novelty and its audience.

Our last stop before hopping on a train back to Regensburg was the Veste Oberhaus across the Danube from Old Town, and up a mountain. The goal being to see the Old Town from the mountain and get some great panoramic views, and after a serious uphill hike we were rewarded with the beauty of all that is Passau. 

View of Passau, DE from Veste Oberhaus on the banks of the Danube River

[Great Fire of 1662] This fire is mentioned a lot on the landmarks of Passau. Apparently, it consumed much of the city. I’ve googled it, and nothing historical has come up, so I can’t say what caused it or how much of the city was destroyed, I can only speculate due to the frequent references. 

Paris pt. 3 850 years of Catholicism

Cute metro stop leading to an underground labyrinth
of passages and rail lines

After we left the Arc de Triomphe, we decided to try out the metro rail. Turns out it was super easy! For only €3.40, both of us were able to ride to any single stop on the metro. After learning this, I regretted walking all day. Every joint and every muscle in my lower body was throbbing by the time we sat down on the train. We rode to the stop closest to Notre Dame de Paris and set out to fulfill the last identifiable picture from 1945.

Like many cathedrals in Europe, Notre Dame is the result of centuries of work. This cathedral is one of the first buildings designed in the gothic style, and in fact set the precedents of architecture for many cathedrals following after. It may be difficult to pronounce Notre Dame ever truly finished. This year marks the 850^th anniversary of the church, and they are receiving 9 new bells from the French government. The new bells will replace the bells that have rung in the church since 1856. The 1856 bells were themselves replacement bells; cast of poor quality metal and producing inferior sound. During the French revolution, the bells were stolen from the church and melted down; since that time, the bells in the cathedral have not done justice to the majesty of the building.

The Portal of the Last Judegment
Western Facade, Notre Dame de Paris
2011

The Portal of the Last Judegment
Western Facade, Notre Dame de Paris
1945

We arrived shortly before a mass, and were able to witness the start of the service. Friday night Advent services include several priest and frankincense and myrrh. A warm glow filled the massive space from candles and spotlights; just enough to keep the rooms dim. It is very easy to understand how the cathedral could represent the power and beauty of God to the people.

Notre Dame de Paris

Paris pt.1 We meet Lisa

Where to begin with Paris? Perhaps with its size: Paris is the largest city I have been to, miles and miles of buildings, each with its own history. We arrived by train, with a plan in mind: the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe and the Notre Dame de Paris. A big agenda, but we had 10 hours and felt that we could accomplish our goals if we moved quickly.

At the train station we obtained a map, and noticed that the tourist desk sold fast pass Louvre passes for 10 euro. Since it was our first destination, we bought 2 and headed that way. Our route to the Louvre took us through some seedier parts of the city, not dangerous feeling, just not as family friendly as other places. We saw our first real-live prostitutes, and passed by a troop of day laborers before entering the garment district where the shops sold scads of buttons and fabrics.

After a lengthy walk, we reached the Louvre, which was packed with people waiting in line outside, even though it was cold, rainy, and the middle of the day. We realized they were waiting for tickets, and as we had already purchased ours, we could bypass the line, and go right inside. If you want to visit the Louvre, buy a ticket before arriving at the museum. This will save your hours in line, which you will want once you get inside.

The Glass Pyramid of the Louvre

The Louvre buildings are a work of several hundred years, beginning in the 1100s, and with the passing of time they grew more grand and ornate. The present layout is sort of like an upside-down U, where you approach from the open end, and descend underground through a glass pyramid to enter the different wings.

Expect to be jostled, and keep a close eye on your things as there are people everywhere and, yes mom, you could get pick pocketed. It didn’t happen to us, but I suppose it could have it we had not been on guard.

Since this museum is so large, it is best to arrive with your battle plan already laid out. You will not be able to see everything in 1 day, so don’t expect to, or you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Instead, pick out a few pieces or artists beforehand, put them on a must-see list, and plan your footsteps accordingly. Also, make sure your must-see list is not too long, as it is easy to get distracted by something breathtaking.

My plan was concise: Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, Medieval Louvre, and Objects d’art. Even this list was too long. We were only able to see the first 3 things on the list, and we were in the museum for 3 hours. 

(Clarification: we saw other masterpieces besides the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, just not the items on the list)

The Mona Lisa

Some quick observations:

The Mona Lisa is very tiny, only 20 by 30 inches. This may sound large, but you cannot get within 20 feet of the painting, so it appears smaller from that distance. Other paintings are closer, but Lisa needs extra protection

This painting will absolutely be surrounded by people just standing and listening to their audio guides. They do not feel the need to make room for others, so if you want to photograph it or see it closer, it helps to be short and to have skill throwing elbows.

The Venus de Milo

 Lots of the Greek and Roman statues are missing body parts



 Paintings depicting the lives of Saints can be very dramatic to look at (think severed heads)

Medieval Louvre is a cool (temperature) place to explore, which is a nice break from the other, warmer rooms


You are allowed to photograph the artwork, but you may not use a flash or a tripod, so it can get a little tricky. To accomplish non-blurry photographs, own a decent camera, and familiarize yourself with its manual exposure settings. 

And now, a sample of what awaits you at the Louvre:

Christ Carrying the Cross

Altarpiece of the Virgin

Christ Carrying the Cross

David and Goliath
(I love how only the masterpieces are in focus)

Austrian "Day" Trip

Glockenspiel
Munich, Germany

On 11 November, Joe came home and said that we were going to go with his coworkers, Jonny and Jay, on a day trip the following day, 12 November. The plan was to leave Regensburg by train early, 8:44am, arrive in Munich approximately 2 hours later, eat lunch and walk around, board a new train, and head to Salzburg, Austria, where we would spend the remainder of the day and return to Regensburg around midnight.

Glockenspiel
Munich, Germany

 In Munich we had perfect weather. The sky was a gorgeous blue with white puffy clouds. It was much better than the fog we had been dealing with, and served as a wonderful background for the pictures we were taking. We walked from the train station to Marienplatz. Here we listened to the band (complete with grand piano, outside) play some music while we waited for the clock tower to strike the hour. At this time, a jousting scene was enacted on the Glockenspiel. Luckily we were there for 12pm because apparently it only goes at 11, 12, and 5. It was cute, but as Joe put it, the music didn't really go with the actions, and he wondered what all the fuss was about.
We ate our lunch at Hofbrauhaus, another tourist attraction. This beer house is HUGE and very popular, the regulars can actually keep their personal steins on the premises under lock and key. The rest of us mere mortals had to hail down a haggard looking waiter to even hope to get beer. Even then it was a stretch, as these folks were clearly stressed by the huge number of clientele at lunchtime.

Hofbrauhaus
Munich, Germany

Hofbrauhaus knows it's a tourist attraction, and knows that because of it's name it can get away with a lot of things, such as crappy service, mediocre food and beer, and jacked up prices. I say it's worth it to go once, just to say you have been, but only order 1 beer and an appetizer to keep the cost down. We stopped in their gift shop, considering buying a stein, and their prices were outrageous. I just checked their website, and the prices don't match, probably because they know internet shoppers will not pay that price. A mug that says 6.50 on the internet was, I swear on my life, 35.00 in the gift shop. Outrageous. We did not make any purchases there, though now that I've checked their website, I may buy something . . . .

Salzburg, Austria

After lunch we returned to the train station for another 2 hour train ride into Austria. We didn't have much of a plan for our arrival, and ended up buying a guide book so we would know where to go. We wandered through the Mirabell gardens outisde the Mirabell palace. We went into a guitar shop where Joe tested out a 12 string guitar, but opted not to purchase it, as it was 500 euro. We had dinner at a small brauerei. Joe and his coworker Jonny split a meal, horse meat with polenta. I ordered pork loin, and Joe's other coworker Jay ordered seafood ravioli. The horse meat was actually tasty, it was chewier than beef, but tasted a lot like a roast. My pork loin was actually cold bacon. I tried to eat it, but I loathe bacon, and ended up just having bread, with the promise of something more substantial later.
Salzburg is more Alpine than Regensburg, though it's not quite in the Alps yet. This resulted in towering cliff faces surrounding the town, looming up behind buildings. Very imposing, but also beautiful. After that fail of a dinner, we found a bar attached to a modern art museum. This building was literally carved into the cliff behind it. Inside, the walls were stone, and we rode an elevator to the top of place, which was also on top of the cliff. We could see all of Salzburg at night, and the nearly full moon rising over another nearby "foothill". As the evening came to a close, we found ourselves at the train station munching on Mozart chocolate, delicious truffles named for Salzburg's most famous son, and waiting in the freezing cold for our train. As the minutes ticked closer to the time of departure, a voice overhead announced the train would be 5 minutes late. We continued to wait. 4 minutes later the voice announced the train would be 10 minutes late. This continued in 5 minute increments for some time. Around 25 minutes in, we gave up and we to sit in what I later called the hot box. This box was a room made of glass on the train platform, much like a bus stop, but all the sides and the roof were enclosed. There were some seats, and it was slightly warmer than outside but not because it was heated, because it wasn't. In here we met a German girl Jonny called Cameron Diaz. She did have similar hair. She was very nice, spoke English, and also waiting for our late train. We asked her if the German announcements gave any more information than the English announcements-they did not. At this point we knew the train was late due to a "disturbance in operations". Let's break this statement down, shall we? Disturbance: stop, interruption, departure from normal. Operations: functioning, working, activity. So the overhead voice tells us the train will be late because it has stopped running. Not much information to work with. Why did the train stop? Will it be starting again soon? She didn't see fit to inform us. I was having flashbacks to our late plane, delayed because of a battery exploding in a suitcase. Around 45 minutes into the delay, 6 women entered the hotbox with us, speaking rapidly in Spanish Spanish. This means they use the vosotros form and say words with esses using a slight lisp. It's easy to distinguish, but not as easy to master for someone who learned Latin American Spanish, though not impossible. We started conversing with them, and pretty quickly it became obvious I spoke Spanish. We chatted a little, and I told them all we knew about the late train, ie; nothing, and I told them about our theories why the train was late: it hit a cow. They looked confused, and asked if I were serious. I then had to explain about the cattle guards on the front of trains in the US. Apparently livestock on the tracks is not a common problem here. Shortly after reaching 95 minutes, a man came in and told us that a train was coming on another platform. I passed this information on the Spanish women, and all 11 of us trooped to platform 34. Here we were informed that hopping on this train to Friessling would help us get to Munich, as we could change trains at the next station. Everyone boarded the train. In Friessling, it became evident that there was no other train headed to Munich from that station. All the lights were off, and the only other train there was heading back to Salzburg. Cameron Diaz talked with the conductor who told her that there were no trains for Munich from Friessling that night, and furthermore, there were no train for Munich from Salzburg either. If we wanted to reach Munich we would need to get back on the train, change trains twice, take a taxi, and then change trains again. Even then, there would be no guarantee of making our connection to Regensburg. We wished the Spanish women good luck, after I told them what was up, and said we were returning to Salzburg where we would spend the night and try again in the morning. Jay and Jonny wanted to sleep on the cheap, and opted for 2 twin beds at the holiday inn. Joe and I just wanted immediate comfort, and settled for the 4 star best western we could see. This proved a much better choice. We had a lovely king sized (European style) bed, soundproofed windows, English television, and a heated towel rack. In the morning we were even able to obtain toothpaste and toothbrushes before headed down to our complimentary breakfast in the hotel restaurant/brewery. The only downside was the shower's water pressure. It was too much. When you turned it on, the shower head would dance around like a fire hose in cartoons. I was splashed in the face more than once, and Joe managed to get the ceiling when it was his turn. Jay and Jonny had a much less comfortable evening, well Jonnie did anyway. Apparently Jay snores very loudly. So loudly in fact, that Jonnie felt the need to grab all his bedclothes and sleep in the tub. Not a pleasant evening for him. We were able to catch a train into Munich without any issue, and we all slept the first hour. After arriving in Munich we decided lunch was in order, so we went to a brewery very close to the train station. The beer, service, and food were all great, and we even bought steins: for a whopping 6.50 each. Finally, we were able to board the train back home to Regensburg where we could change into some fresh clothes.