Back to the U.S.A.

We left Frankfurt, and its wonderful train station, to go to the Frankfurt airport.

The airport was unbelievable with its treatment of US-bound flights. We had no idea we were about to go through about 3 hours of security. The scans, the lines, customs, then again more scans. Then a pat down. Then again questioning at the gate. Seriously folks!! This is all a bit hard to swallow considering we just spent a week on various high speed trains without any security to speak of.

We flew over Greenland, covered in ice. Airplane pictures can be non-descript and boring, but for some reason, I find this place kinda cool.

Like looking at Mars.

Frozen over.

Frankfurt

After a great time in Munich, we were onto Frankfurt. Again, via high speed train. This was the last stop in our tour, and the departure city for our flight back to the States.

We spent time poking around the 'old city' of Frankfurt.

The architect-ure, again, is striking.


We also stopped into the Central Bank of the EU - essentially the European equivalent to the Federal Reserve.

There, you can view and buy money from all sorts of countries, those of which aren't found here in the U.S. Meaning, Iran, North Korea, and other fringe countries. These were fresh bills, straight from the mint of various countries. Non-circulated.

Quite amazing to see such things.

Our last meal out was a fantastic Turkish restaurant, called Doy-Doy, where the marinated lamb and chicken is cooked on swords. Wonderful rice pilaf and grilled pitas. The hummus was out of this world.

Truly, Frankfurt is a cultural city.

Munich Oktoberfest - Day Two

Alright, so the plan was to wake up early and hit those tents. The theory being, the unreserved seats in each tent start to fill up as the morning turns into afternoon. Now, keep in mind, about 70% of all seats in a tent are already reserved - for long standing families, corporations, friends, whatever. Minimum 10 people required for one reserved table. So, the rest of us folks without reservations need to get their butt in gear and get to a tent first thing. And we did. We were at the 'Weisen by 11:00 a.m. (Although, the recommended time to arrive, had it been a weekend is 9:00 a.m.)


We chose the Schutzen Festzelt tent - about a 5,000 person capacity. It's more Bavarian based. You won't find many foreigners here.



They are known for their suckling pig. That's what we wanted and after making appropriate oink-oink noises to the German waitress, we were brought two glistening pieces of pork, crispy edges and all, soaked in a dark malt sauce, served with a large potato dumpling and a white sauerkraut. Not celiac friendly at all - but today, of all days - it would be okay to have the beer. This is the time to have it. At Oktoberfest. In Munich.

Over the course of the next EIGHT hours, we downed liter after liter of Radler - which is a hybrid of the Oktoberfest beer mixed with lemonade.


Afterall, had we been drinking the regular standard issue beer, we would have been on the floor within an hour.


We knew the Radler was really the only way to maintain some level of decency.



We couldn't have picked a better tent. A better table. We met wonderful Germans who at every turn would help us order from the menu (they serve coffee - who knew?). They helped us with all the cheering, the toasts, what the German phrases meant, etc. We were explained that some of the songs were not only German, but uniquely Bavarian. Song only in this tent. They went out of their way to buy us traditional German foods, whether from the tent or from outside the tent, and brought back plenty to pass around and share. Prost!


We had great conversations with everyone, and the younger generation definitely knows English. And they yearn to practice it, so it was a good opportunity for us all. Some of the gals next to us had even lived in the US for a number of months, so were familiar with where we were from. We talked iPods, cellular phones, VH1's Flavor of Love, Britney Spears, the OC, just about everything pop culture.

As the hours waned on, the dancing progressed to standing on the table-top. No longer were you sitting.
As the hours waned on, the singing progressed from standard oompah-band type songs to cheery sing-alongs, even American songs of John Denver's "Take Me Home" and Patrick Swayze's "I've Had The Time of My Life." Who knew they like to sing to that stuff? It was fairly weird. But after hours and hours of beer, you end up singing to just about anything.




Ein Prosit der Germutlichkeit!
Ein Prosit, ein Prosit
Der Germutlichkeit!

Meaning, "A toast, a toast, to coziness!"

Everyone was in lederhosen and dirndl dresses. This is the tradition. Beautiful handmade workmanship goes into each piece. They are beautiful. Folks like us look like obvious outsiders, although they didn't mind us impeding on their traditions, and asking questions.


Even though they serve the beers until 11:00 p.m., Eric and I hit a wall about 10:00. We were pretty banged up, bruises from God-knows-what. Believe it or not, holding those steins takes a toll on your hands! And we wanted to get outside in the coolness to get something to eat, maybe a liter of water, and stagger back to the hotel.




Thankfully, the gluten-free gods were shining upon me and I found a great little stand that sold corn on the cob. For Eric, it was a meter-long braut of some sort. Together, these would help quell the swill of beer currently going on in our stomachs.


And what a night, hard to capture, but the video shows a bit of the celebrations. Yes, we were about two sheets to the wind at this point, so the camera is a little shakey.







We would return to Munich in a heartbeat. Our only regret: not staying long enough. This is a fabulous city. With welcoming people and wonderful traditions.

I can understand how folks can fall in love with a city.

We certainly did with this one.

Munich Oktoberfest - First Night

We arrived in the rain to Munich. Dammit. No rain, though, will hold us back from hitting the tents. We left the hotel for a soggy walk to the Theresienwiese, which is essentially the inner ring/circle where all the massive tents are. There are about 15 tents - each one built differently, by different families, emphasizing a unique aspect to Oktoberfest. Some are known for a particular decoration. Or a particular menu. Or a certain atmosphere - whether you'd find celebrities, all Italians, or families.

By the time we arrived to the grounds, approximately 4:00 p.m. local time, all tents were at capacity. Meaning, 6,000 to 7,000 folks per tent. Unreal! We thought it best to use the opportunity to browse around the different tents, check out what each one was about and go from there. We can always order a beer in the biergarten, as soggy as those were.

Eric donned appropriate headgear for our first night.
















This is the Hofbrauhouse tent. Spectacular decorations. Those are chandeliers made with hops.

We also saw Hippodrom, which Paris Hilton made famous last year.
















We had a couple of biergarten beers, not steins, and had some fabulous roasted chicken. Man, that was the best chicken ever. They literally take it off the roaster right there, cut it while its piping hot, stuff it in a bag and throw in some obligatory paper napkins and wetnaps, and that's it. Hot chicken. In a bag. Great concept.








The lebkuchen displays were amazing. Apparent tradition to wear these large decorated cookies, similar to a gingerbread, around your neck - all in various German phrases. Of course, we only knew a couple, so made sure we bought the ones we could decipher. Yes, they are edible, but you shouldn't eat it until after Oktoberfest.

Train to Munich from Brussels

It was a daunting morning. At every turn, we were challenged.

We had to be at the Brussels train station at 6:30 a.m. (which is 12:30 a.m. east coast time) to catch our train onto Munich. The scheduled cab never came. So we hailed one on the streets. A Morrocan driver who weaved in and out of the left lane zooming through underground tunnels. We were having a Princess Diana moment, for sure.

We arrived at the train station, got to the platform, loaded all the luggage on the train and sat in our seats only to hear the conductor in a thick German accent indicate the train was inoperable and was not going to be leaving the station. Us and about 200 other folks invade the Eurorail office to try and re-route ourselves to our final destination.

We end up having to get on a train to Koln. Then a train onto Mannheim. Then a train onto Munich. All the while hustling down the platforms, trying to make a six minute connection time, and find the appropriate train, car, and seat numbers. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the train rides. Our time to wind down between stops. For Eric, time to journal. For Cheryl, staring out the window and playing Klondike on the Nano.

And seeing all those wonderful German vineyards, perched high upon the rocky soils. Its a remarkable sight the whole way down to Bavaria. Quite the reward for a hard-fought morning.

The shopping and beer

We meandered the streets of Bruges, Belgium in search of the beer mecca for Eric: called The Bottle Shop. They literally sell just about every beer made in this country. And of course the glass fitting to be paired with that particular beer. Eric bought a Buccaneer Red, 6 others, glasses, etc. It was really the store he had dreamed of. This is where he learned there was no U.S. duty restriction from bringing beer back into the country. You instantly knew at that point we would be pushing the 50-pound-per-bag limit on luggage. Their glassware was awesome as well, and luckily they agreed to ship the glasses to us back home, thus saving us any potential disappointment from broken glasses in heavy luggage. We purchased a beer walking tour brochure from the store and wanted to hit a couple more Bruges beer spots.



Next door was a(nother) chocolate store. Touristy. Well, you get the idea here.

We continued onto more stores, that sold more beer, and more chocolates. Sensing a theme here?




We had a great lunch at Cambrinus, on Philipstockstraat, which consisted of huge omelets made with local eggs and their own farm ham.

They serve over 400 beers, however, we ordered their house beer - wonderfully dark and sweet - perfect complement to the eggs and savory ham. Great place. www.cambrinus.eu

Bruges, Brussels Architecture

We take a day trip (one hour by high speed train) to Bruges, Belgium. "Venice of the North" as its called because of its winding canals, stone bridges, and plenty of pedestrian zones. Oddly, there is more English spoken here than in the big city. Mainly because the British flock to this place.



The architecture has turned to more of a Dutch flavor since being in Brussels.



Its a small city, easily explored end-to-end in an afternoon.

Manneken Pis

It's touristy. And corny. But all tourists flock to this little guy and his ever-flowing pee. A fountain around since the 1800's, supposedly to commemorate a little boy who put out a fire.

He has over 650 outfits and is dressed during the day. Here he is naked at night.

And you can buy just about anything at a tourist shop in his honor.

The Atomium

The larger-than-life molecule created for the 1958 Worlds Fair lies on the north side of Brussels. Flocks of Japanese tourists descend upon the site and for 9 euro (=$13) you too can ride the elevators up to each globe. There is even a restaurant at the top but, really, how can you top a wonderful french meal at Chez Leon? Style over substance, I suppose.

Nightime in Brussels

Every night in Brussels, you are truly charmed. The warm glow of the street lights. The wonderful French foods served outside at the cafes. Essentially je ne sais quoi of French living. Brussels is surprisingly more French than we had first anticipated. We thought it'd be more 50/50 French and Dutch. Although we've never been to Paris, we imagine it being a close comparison to Brussels.

We enjoy walking the cool evenings and stopping along the way for treats and drinks. Eric found one of his favorite bottled Belgium beers, his Trappistes Rochefort 10, for 1 euro, essentially $1.50. Surprising since it is about $5 each bottle here in the U.S.

French wine is just about everywhere. And cheap. The smaller bottle formats are perfect for tucking into your purse or bag and enjoying it with a fois gras snack.

Along Rue des Bouchers, we ate at Chez Leon and had wonderful steaks with house beer and house red wine. For dessert, Cheryl ordered the cheese plate, which was divine with fresh goat cheese, a creamy aged cow, and a blue veined soft (not celiac friendly). Eric ordered their version of the Belgian waffle, wonderfully paired with ice cream, whipped cream, and spekuloos (traditional Dutch crisp cookie). Honestly, Eric said the street vendors whip up a better waffle for one-quarter the cost. Point is, have the waffles. Just don't add any crap to it. It's the best plain.

The weather was turning colder and the air becoming crisper. What a fantastic Belgian night.

Pommes frites

We're not big french fry people. We don't seek them from fast food chains or restaurants.


But in Belgium, they are definitely worth trying. Hot and steamy, they are fried twice for extra crispiness and shoveled into a paper cone with a generous dollop of sauce (we chose mayonnaise).




Its this specialty, along with warm gooey waffles, that give you a reason to keep walking those 10 miles per day.

Poking around

We most assuredly have a good time getting lost. Going down these one-way streets that seem to lead to another one-way street. Where are we? Who knows. We just finished browsing and sampling veggies and meats at an organic outdoor farmers market near Parc de Bruxelles. Corn on the cob, grilled with the husks on, so they turn nice, black, and smokey. Then stripped of their husk and silk only to be salted and buttered. Two euros. And gluten free.

And we keep walking.

Pierre's talents

He's apparently one of the most highly regarded chocolatiers in Belgium. Situated on the southwest corner of the Place du Grand Sablon, Pierre Marcolini's shop is the mecca for all chocoholics. Of course, this sort of talent comes with a hefty price tag. Assortments start at 30 euros, or about 45 bucks, and go up to 200 euros. His pralines (chocolates with fillings) are truly an art. Note he opened up one store stateside in NYC on Park Avenue, which we intend to hit in December.

It's the creamiest chocolate we've ever had. Unbelievable mouthfeel. It will make you forgot how much you just spent on one piece.

Je voudrais moules avec vin blanc

Later that evening, we mosey to the Rue St. Catherine area north of our hotel.

What was once home to the fish markets many centuries ago, has now turned into cobblestone streets lined with at least thirty cafes. Eating under the stars. Complete with Parisian accordion players.

This is the time to order the moules - the steamed mussels. Tenderly steamed in white wine, fresh herbs, and onions. That big black pot is all for Cheryl. As is the bottle of French Alsace. What a fitting meal to end a fabulous first day in Brussels.

Ah, that first Belgium beer

So, we get to Brussels. Ride the tram from the train station to the city center. Walk to the hotel. Check in. And although the room is not quite ready yet, lets use this opportunity to see our first sights.

We walked down the cobblestone streets, surveying the chocolate shops, the wacky tourist shops, and the cafes on our way to the Grand'Place (also known as the Grote Markt). This is what Brussels is known for - the town square dating back to 1600's and lined with various guilds (chocolate, beer, tailors, butchers, etc).

Under the cloudless sky in the middle of the Grand'Place, we choose an outdoor cafe with a view of the entire square and settle in for beers (Eric) and mineral water (Cheryl). This is an exciting time: Eric's first tasting in Belgium. He had 3 - one a lambic, one dark sweet, and one dark bitter.

Names escape us.

Food this good on a train?

We were impressed with the Thalys lunch served to first class passengers. Really impressed. Salmon pate, steamed asparagus, smoked salmon with a tender sprig of dill, Danish cheese, quiche, chocolates, and mineral water. What more could you ask for? Delta, are you taking note here??? And from a gluten standpoint, man you could have not planned for better. Yes, fellow celiacs, you too can have a great lunch onboard the Thalys trains.

Our trip starts

It was a rough 9 hour flight. Not from a turbulence standpoint. Not from a I-just-want-the-whole-soda-can standpoint. Not even from the difficulty of sleeping in a comfortable position within two square feet. But from the fact that a very nervous and mentally unbalanced passenger wanted to run through the cabin and try and imitate all diagrams indicated in those flimsy in-case-of-emergency brochures. This included his desire to inflate and wear his own life vest. Thank God he never had the need to see slides inflate as an exit door opens. Needless to say, when we finally made it to Frankfurt, we were ready to kiss the ground.

So our first leg on our journey: Frankfurt Airport to Brussels. We take the German ICE train (high speed) to Koln (Cologne). We had 9 minutes to get our jet-lagged butts in gear and schlep luggage down stairs, across platforms, up stairs, and onto a Thalys train to Brussels. Good thing the coffee in Europe is so good. I think that was the only fuel we had.