Munich and Graz
Munich was our last destination before making it to Markus’ home country, Austria, where we made a stop in Graz to visit friends.
Munich
The route from Zurich to Munich would have ideally been done via a train, however there was construction on the route and we had to take a bus. In Munich we met with our friends again, Chelsea and Matt, and promptly got our Munich journey under way with an obligatory beer garden. We chose a more authentic one Taxisgarten, which was certainly off the tourist path. As we were there in the middle of the day, it wasn’t too crowded, except for the large group of elderly citizens from a nearby care facility. It was really enjoyable to see them enjoying their day out–most of them with a small beer in hand. In the evening we continued on to Olympiapark, where a festival was underway. We walked around a bit, enjoyed a ride on the bumper cars, and settled into the grassy hill overlooking the lake with some beers–it was a good day.
The next morning we explored the old town, including Viktualienmarkt, Marienplatz, and a hike to the top of St. Peter’s church to take in the views. Our timing on the top of the church was unfortunate, many people had gathered for a view of the Rathaus’ (city hall) clock, which makes a little show around 11am and 5pm–it was hard to just turn in a circle because of the crowd. We then walked through the entire length of the English Garden, stopping at a lakeside beer garden and then ending our walk for more beer and dinner at the Aumeister beer garden.
Graz
From Munich to Graz, Austria we took a five hour bus ride. Graz is Austria’s second largest city, yet despite visiting Austria on numerous occasions, this was Megan’s first visit. We stayed with a friend from our University time in Denmark, Kiki and her boyfriend Hannes. Another friend from Uni in Denmark also came from Germany for the weekend–it was a mini-reunion! The first night we wondered through the city center and walked up Schloßberg, where we took a much needed break at a beer garden with terrific views over the city. The next day we visited Arnold Schwarzenegger’s childhood home, which has been turned into a museum. This was a surprise that they had plotted for Markus’ birthday, and it was quite an entertaining treat. After this we cooled off at a nearby lake where we relaxed for the day. In the evening we took a drive to Weingut Pichler-Schober. We had a wonderful meal and shared bottles of wine into the evening, all while taking in another phenomenal view–it was a wonderful way to catch up with friends.
