Munich -- Continuation from last post!

***This is a continuation of the previous post, as the blog will not let me edit it any further***

So anyway, yes... Olivia and I felt like total, utter prudes. Here were these girls, dancing on tables, and guys drinking test tube shots out of womens' cleavage, and we're just sitting there like "doo-bee-doo-bee-dooo." When two gentlement approached us with test tube shots in their mouths hoping we would take said shots, that's when we decided to leave the bar altogether and just go to bed. Which, I must say, was not much of a relief. Our cabin (that we shared with 22 other people, boys and girls) was right next the lively bar. Not exactly sound proof. And of course, right about when I'm ready to doze off, three girls walk in the room, TURN ON THE LIGHTS, and continue to have a full-voiced conversation while packing their suitcases. Unreal. But I honestly don't know if I would've slept well with all the excitement of seeing Eric the next day--I had been counting down the days and now the moment was within hours!!

So Olivia and I wake up bright and early and head down to the main shopping drag of town for two purposes: 1) to find Olivia a pair of boots and a jean skirt and 2) to allow me an opportunity to try on some of the traditional German dresses that are so popular and numerous in Munich (particuarly for Oktoberfest). While we did not find Olivia a suitable (or affordable) pair of boots nor suitable skirt, I did get a chance to try on potential Swiss Festival garb. Had the outfit not been nearly 100 euro I would have bought it in an instant! lol

I should mention that prior to this, I stopped down at the internet cafe to check on the status of Eric's flight. For some reason I had this looming fear that his flight had been delayed our re-routed because of the incredible storms occurring in Ohio/east coast area. When I typed in the flight number, it brought up a flight plan that showed Eric's plane going successfully from Columbus to Chicago (okay, that checks out good) and then Chicago to... WHAT?! KANSAS CITY!? Needless to say I was literally freaking out. Here I am, in Munich, so looking forward to spending the day with my sorely missed boyfriend... and there's a chance I might not see him! Of course, there was nothing I could do... no way he could contact me and vice versa. I never really understood the phrase of someone's heart "sinking," but I literally felt it sulk all the way down to the pit of my stomach. The only thing I could do was to go Eric's hotel and ask if the group from Ohio State had called to inform them about any late check-ins.

I was to meet Eric in front of his hotel at noon that day, only two hours after having landed in Munich. Olivia and I had wanted to visit Dachau concentration camp on a tour that left at 10:30 that morning, but I was afraid of not getting back in time to meet Eric. So I stayed behind and Olivia went to Dachau. I must say, I was a little nervous about us being separated, but I knew we both had our Handi's on us (the European word for cell phone) so I was comforted.

But here I was--in Munich--with an hour and a half to kill before I was supposed to meet Eric. I made my way through the most confusing underground system EVER to the stop near the hotel. It took me 15 minutes to figure out that I needed to ask for directions (lol) and successfully did so in German (woot woot!).

So I find the hotel and I notice that there is a significant amount of baggage in the lobby. The group's perhaps?? I didn't want to get my hopes up. So I proceeded to ask the receptionist if the group from OSU had checked in yet, and RIGHT as the words left my mouth a familiar bag caught my eye... could it be?? Yes!!! It was my carry-on! The bag my mom had packed full of winter clothes for Eric to bring to me! Thank the LORD they weren't in Kansas City! I have never felt so compelled to fall on my knees and thank God (well, perhaps that's a bit dramatic. But I certainly was thankful!). Apparently they were checking in the adjoining building across the block. I looked at my watch and noticed I still had quite some time to kill before noon. Maybe get a snack? Some ice cream Anything to keep me from anxiously pacing in that hotel lobby! Aaaaaand then I choked on my spit (seriously?! What a thing to choke on) and went into quite the coughing fit. WATER. Good idea, Laura.

So I went back out into the street to go in-search-of a cafe. I hadn't walked three steps out the door when I saw a group of people walking towards me... and there was Eric Bond, walking at the front of the group :) Honest to goodness, my breath caught in my chest for a split second and I could literally hear a movie score playing in my head. This is the very moment I return to when I think about this trip. Call me a sap, call me a softie, but it's the truth! What a rush it was to see him! And so we embraced and exchanged "ohmigosh how are you?!" and "aaaaaah's" for a few minutes. The group was still moving towards the hotel, and my throat was still hating my life, so I told Eric I would be back in two shakes!!! The funny part is -- which Eric told me later that night -- most of the people in his group were extremely confused as to why Eric ran up and hugged a random stranger in Munich. HAHA!

Soon we were reunited in the lobby once more, and I helped Eric and his roommate David settle in (and by "helped" I mean that I sat in the chair, partaking in the complimentary Haribo gummi bears while I watched Eric unpack lol). The funny thing is, after the initial flustered meeting, it was as if no time had passed. Just chilling out like we always did in the summer. I liked it that way. That's how good friends do!

A majority of the group was planning on heading out to Dachau as well, and Eric and I decided that this would be a good idea. So off we went to venture outside the central city. At one point he reached for my hand and held it, and it was like that feeling you get after lent when you finally allow yourself to indulge in whatever it was you had restricted yourself from for so long. Granted, it had only been a month since I saw him, but it was just so wonderful to have that tangible reassurance again. And I was finally one of those young Viennese couples that I had always glared at with envy on the U-bahn, holding hands and being... well, just together! Yay! Okay, I'm done being sappy... really :)

Dachau was pretty intense in a multitude of ways... I'm sure you can imagine. I have always been very interested in the Holocaust... but being at the site of where thousands of innocent people were starved and shot to death was somehow more disturbing, gripping, haunting... but somehow very humbling. These truly were hallowed grounds. The camp was very desolate. It just felt bleak and evil. I was amazed at the incredibly crafted propaganda that the Nazis used to promote these "work camps" to the public, and all of the mental abuse inflicted on the prisoners. Absolutely disgraceful. And it makes you wonder if such crafty and cunning propaganda is still used today....

The crematorium was the worst. Here are two people whose worst fears are burning alive. And just the thought... oh, how awful... many victims were hung right infront of the "fireplace" where they would later be burned. Pictures of bodies piled up in the very room in which we were standing--that'll get you. Olivia put it well when she later told me that it was like she couldn't breathe when she was in there... such a great weight came over her.

Well, wasn't that a cheery post! Just kidding, the day gets better dont worry ;) We leave Dachau and head back to the Train station to meet Olivia for dinner. We decided to simply walk around the center of town and look for someplace that just "spoke to us." Well, we found it. Cute little Indian slash German restaurant tucked away in a side street. We had our first experience with having to share a table with random strangers (apparently this is common in Europe, particuarly in the more popular restaurants) and with what we deemed "chemistry-beaker wine." It was literally brought out in a beaker that I would use in Mr. Wherley's chemistry class lol. The food was fantastic!!! And so were the laughs shared over the meal. Friends can be some of the greatest blessings in life....

After dinner, we were contemplating whether to go "out on the town" or just go out-on-the-town. We chose the latter (as we were all prudes, as aforementioned, and pretty tired). We spent literally a half an hour trying to find this particular Jewish synagogue that lights up at night (we did get a nice, night time view of the city though!). And when we found it, it unfortunately disappointed our expectations. Oh well. But we DID find a fun little playground next door. You are never too old for playgrounds... which we demonstrated, of course :)

Olivia and I decided to prolong our evening outing with Eric--not only to spend more time with him, but to put off the dreaded hostel bar experience from recurring lol. We made our way back to the hotel where we spent two hours watching YouTube videos on David's computer and trying (with some pretty annoying tactics, I might add) to prevent Olivia from falling asleep (haha!). I must also tell you that a good half hour of that time was Eric FORCING us to watch Sarah Palin's speech from the Republican National Convention. I obliged, naturally, but with a grain of salt of course (being a democrat and all). Olivia and I have come to the conclusion that Eric has developed an adoration for this woman that defies party affiliation... it's borderline my-Josh-Groban adoration. It's nothing to do with the politics when it comes to Sarah Palin. Hahahaha! (See, i know he doesn't read this so I can get away with saying whatever I want! Muahahahaha!). Eric please don't kill me. Love, Laura. (That's a disclaimer in case he does lol).

After thinking we had been locked IN to the hotel, Olivia and I went back to the hostel to sleep and surprisingly were successful this time! The next morning, we met Eric at the "golden baby" to do some last minute visiting and sightseeing before Olivia and I ventured back to Vienna. I wont hurt Eric's pride by mentioning that he was 20 minutes late in meeting us because he went to the wrong U-bahn stop... ehem... ;) Unfortunately, Olivia and I had to lug our crap around with us since we had already checked out. I honestly think I broke my clavicle from carrying my carry-on. It's still legitimately bruised! Regardless, we showed Eric some of our favorites places, and then decided to take a trip to the Englischer Gardens. I honestly wish we would've had more time there. It was absolutely gorgeous... and huge, let me tell you. But we did manage to snap a few group shots, eat some roasted almonds, and walk around a bit. Sooner than I would've liked, we were on our way to Munich Hauptbahnhof to bid our adieus.

In case you ever wondered, saying goodbye for a second time is significantly worse than the first time. Well, at least it was in my case. The first hour of the trainride was quite awful for me, as I tend to brood on things... Olivia, bless her heart, was doing everything she could to cheer me up--"Think of froggies... bunnies, maybe?" and I kept saying to myself "it's only three more months." And with the help of Olivia and the talkative English-speaking Norwegian guy beside me, I was doing much better. The last few hours of the trip back to Vienna, we shared a cabin with your typical Austrian citizen. He had the look, the accent, and the dress code. His name was Norbert, and Olivia and I placed him around 27 or 28. Originally from upper Austria, he now lives in Vienna working as a surveyor for the underground trains. This is a journey he takes often to visit his family and girlfriend on the weekends. He was a very friendly gentleman who was very excited to be able to practice the English he'd studied for ten years. Olivia and I picked his brain about Austrian politics (their own presidential elections are being held next week), about education, about great hiking/biking areas in Vienna, about parks we needed to visit... just about everything! I was glad to learn that in Austrian politics, it's ALL politics. No exchanging of nasty personal comments during debates and conventions or uncovering former marriage scandals, etc. God, that has to be a relief. Anyway, Norbert gave us his card should we ever want to get together and continue talking more. I love the random, wonderful people you can meet by travelling and opening yourself up to new situations.

And with that, my friends, I will bid you all a goodnight. Thanks for sticking with me through all of this :) Miss you terribly but love you dearly!!!!

Tschuss,
Laura