Salzburg 1/26/10

The snow has finally returned so we went sledding today on the hill by the house. Kevin told us that there’s frozen cow shit at the bottom, but no one ran into it to my knowledge. Mucho fun throwing snowballs and definitely the play for the afternoon.

Went to a Redbull’s hockey game tonight. Not really that packed, but fun nonetheless. Unfortunately there were no major fights, only minor scuffles. #79 known as “Oper” looked like Kris and actually responded to the crowd (AKA us, no one else was that enthusiastic). It was impressive what you could get away with there. Anthony was hanging off the glass to the point at which we were waiting for it to break. Only after he marched around with a trashcan lid banging it did a guy stop him just to get that back. At the end “Oper” mobbed the guys who waited by the Redbull’s box. Final score for Redbull’s vs. Polar Bears (Pretty sure that’s who they were): 8-3.

Salzburg 1/25/10

Visited the Augustiner Bäur brewery today in Salzburg. I realize that I’ve had their beer before and didn’t’ like it as much. A pity that they can’t fill my vice of dark beer, as they only had their original on tap.

Munich → Salzburg 1/24/10

The scenery looks like the Polar Express: snowy woods with many tall, bare trees where wolves could hide.

Munich 1/23/10

Today we took a “free” guided tour around Munich presented by a guide in association with Wombats. Our guide Ozzie (black but part German) took us past sites that have survived Munich for more than 60 years (4 total). Apparently Munich has covered over many of its Nazi roots (capital of Nazism after all). Some former Nazi headquarters are now a Coke factory or museums. The Hofbräuhaus even hosted the first Nazi meeting upstairs (or something to that effect). On the tour we stopped by the Frauenkirche, Glockenspiel, Karlsplatz, Marienplatz, Maximiliamstrasse, St. Michael’s, National Theatre, Odeonsplatz, St. Peters/Alter Peter, beer gardens (closed for the season though), Viktualienmarkt, and Beer Hall Putsch (Coup of 1923). Even had another bratwurst and hefeweizen (not as good though and it really froze my hand).

Due to time constraints I don’t think we’ll see the “Neuschwanstein” which is the castle Walt Disney used as a basis for his own at Disneyland. I tried to get back to the toy museum on my own, but got lost so I gave us and went back to the hostel. While seeing the automated show of the Glockenspiel, which is kind of like a giant cuckoo clock, I wondered if this is what Mom filmed on her camera. I declined to film it as my battery was low (I’m on my spare battery already, need to remember the charger next time). It’s probably on Youtube anyway.

Looking for a place to eat dinner, we walked past three Augustiner restaurants trying to find the “Stubl” brewery one that wasn’t a high priced restaurant. Along the way we started talking to Thomas Nielsen (yes, he is Danish) who is from Sydney, Australia and was also at our hostel. I told him about my trip 10 years ago there, and he talked about places he’d been and how TV shows come late to Australia unless you have some sort of fast pass service (maybe it was called Fast Forward?). He is actually on summer vacation (something I forgot about the situation Down Under). Eventually the group split after walking at least a mile one way and then another back to get to the restaurant we passed earlier (some were turned off by the prices and others just wanted to get the Augustiner beer. I was the latter). Thomas found it funny to watch the large group of us Americans be indecisive. At the restaurant I got two ½ liters of the Augustiner Dunken (Dark Beer). I really do like dark beer now, it is a new passion.

Thoroughly buzzed since I didn’t have any food at the restaurant, Thomas and I got pizza by Wombats which wasn’t bad. At the Wombats happy hour we met Andrew from Perth, Australia (first Australian Thomas had seen in awhile). Andrew is traveling with his brother over the break having already hit up the Seattle (A waste to travel to if you’re not 21, odd what the drinking age does to foreigners), Amsterdam, and was going to Tokyo the next morning. Looking for clubs with the rest of U of R, the Aussies and I went to the nearby Euro Hostel where other Australians were celebrating Australia Day. The one guy playing guitar was pretty good, playing mostly 90’s hits for the crowd at the hostel’s bar.

We finally did head out for clubbing again around 1 in the morning (when everything opens up after the pubs close). Lines were somewhat long and there were cover charges as high as 8-10 Euros. Along the way AMar and Katie W. decided to pretend to be Australian: “We’re twins who grew up in a kangaroo pouch!” Thomas found this hilarious and said they were giving Australia a bad name. After walking down the street with the clubs, Thomas and I settled on the Pimpernel (which had a reasonable cover charge of 3 Euros and 1.50 for jacket checking). Seth and Kris decided to walk back, all of us assuming that Anthony, Katie W., and AMar were already in along with the Kiwi we had met (James). The club wasn’t bad, but personally the hassle doesn’t seem worth it to me. I’d rather just go to a pub.

When I got back to the hostel, everyone asked me where Anthony was (this was at 3 in the morning). Katie, AMar, and Ryan were already back, but everyone assumed that he’d been with me. Scary stuff. So Jordan, Kris, and I backtracked around Munich to try and find him. After at least an hour we came back to find him in the lobby of Wombats. Apparently AMar and Katie W. had gotten into the 8 Seasons club, while Anthony, Ryan, and James had been denied. Anthony and James got hungry and went to Burger King and later some bars, while Ryan decided to wait for the girls. Much relief and case closed.

Munich 1/22/10

The train ride only lasted around an hour and a half. I was able to watch most of Back to the Future during the ride. The Thetas and a couple others jumped off a bit early from the train at München Ost instead of München Hbf. They had to take the S-Bahn to meet us, not as bad as it could have been though. Finally got a German sausage today even if it was at a train stand. We’re staying at the Wombat’s hostel which isn’t that bad. They provide sheets and there’s even a bar. The doors use a card key that you just hold up.

We went to the concentration camp at Dachau. Definitely depressing, but it hit others harder than it hit me. I met some Greece tourists while helping them find the crematorium on the map.

Visited the Hofbräuhaus as well. The dark brew was tasty. I got two ½ liters. Should’ve just gotten a whole liter, but then again it is cold when I get around to that 2nd one. Also got a gigantic pretzel for 3.40 Euros. Quite tasty. Also had the “Bockwurst.” I’m hoping I’m not sick of sausage after this trip.

The train ride back took about 30 minutes due to technical difficulties that caused us to be at a standstill at the station. Never since San Francisco have I been so cramped in public transit.

Salzburg 1/20/10

Today we did a walking tour of Salzburg. “The” Cathedral was pretty awesome. I emphasize “The” because when I asked the name to clarify which church or monastery in town this was (of which there are many) Eva got a little p.o.’d at me when I thought it was the St. Peter’s church, which was within the cemetery at the Cathedral. It was around here that Jim told us about when the castle was under siege and the archbishop paraded a bull back and forth on the walls, painting it a different color each time so that the enemies thought that they had a larger food supply and could thus hold out. One of the colors that the bull was painted was red. Hence this is where the name Red Bull comes from. I also discovered that the horse statue I walk by everyday on my way into town from the castle is actually a fountain that horses were walked through to bathe in. This is the same fountain seen in the Sound of Music.

I finally tried the B-52 shot today at O’Malley’s pub. I’ve wanted to try this for awhile as it’s a layered shot that I found on Wikipedia once. What I didn’t know about this particular shot was that it’s a bit of a show, hence the price of 5 Euros. Upon setting the glass on the bar, the bartender asked me a couple times (it was loud there for a Wednesday) if I had a lighter. I replied no, upon which he pulled one out along with a straw. He instructed me to drink the shot through the straw after it was lit. Intense. Christina was right that is a delicious shot. I also had a Hefeweizen while I was there known as Edelweiß. I really wish that I’d grabbed a glass from the bar for that drink instead of the Magners Irish Cider glass I stole (I’ll try that drink later). The Zipfer beer I had was better than American brews, but after the Hefeweizen it didn’t compare at all.

On the way back from the bar I ventured to the “Sausage Queen” a late night van that sells various meals of the sausage variety. Of course I didn’t know what the cheese-filled sausage, that everyone had raved about before, was called so I assumed that every sausage was there. I got a frankfurter which was two links served with a Kaiser roll…no cheese inside… I have resolved tonight to get one with some others who are heading down for karaoke night. I really need to get a European brat, it’s the thing I’ve been fixated on for awhile now. I even dreamed I had the damn thing after getting back from the bar.

Salzburg 1/16/10

Today we visited some glacier called the Salzkammergut, which was basically a frozen lake. We took an hour long bus ride to get there, afterwards stopping for lunch in one of the towns. I ordered the Cordon Bleu which was pretty good, although the meat and potatoes really appealed to me after I saw what it looked like. Everyone at my table was digging my French fries. I will admit that they did have a good color to them and didn’t look like they’d been pre-made. The Kaiser beer today was definitely a step up from that of yesterday. Alas it is the last of the free drinks that Jim and Eva are paying for.

Afterwards we went on a sleigh ride through the country. There were three sleighs with at least 11 of us each in them. After that ride I’m definitely happy that I brought a beanie with me. I was originally hesitant packing the thing as I’m not a hat person (I’m gonna have to get used to hat hair here) but now I’m thankful Mom suggested it to me. That ride was freezing. My face and fingertips were the coldest parts of my body, even though I am wearing full-fingered gloves. That ride has convinced me to get a scarf next chance I get. The scenery was very nice all blanketed with snow. It reminds me of those Christmas village models that people set up in their homes around the holidays with the buildings, trees and ice skaters that move. When we were done, we were dropped off where we had started and served warm wine. Took some getting used to, but not bad although I used it more for a hand warmer.

Afterwards we stopped at a supermarket to do weekend shopping since most stores are closed on Sundays for religious services (although Europe is less religious than the US). Apparently we have to weigh our vegetables ourselves to get a tag for the cashier as we found out. This was really weird to us.

Salzburg 1/15/10

While exploring Salzburg and taking photos, we got yelled at for the first time for being Americans. I decided to take a photo of the Hotel Salzburg, while snapping the pic I heard a lot of yelling and saw out of the corner of my eye some movement. I figured some crazy guy was having a panic attack or something and continued with my photo. My second glance revealed that I was actually in the path of 4 cyclists with my friends, all of us having clustered right in the middle. We immediately dodged out of the way while one of the cyclists yelled, “We speak German here!” (as translated by Katie S.).

For dinner we had schnitzel. I was disappointed because I had thought we were getting a sausage or brat of some sort. In reality the meal was just chicken-fried pork. I’d kill for a brat at the moment, it really is the food I’ve been looking for since I got here. The restaurant we ate at the Goldene Ente (Golden Duck) served the first European beer that I’ve gotten to try (Birst). Unfortunately this one sucked. There was some kind of aftertaste to it which some described as “metallic.” Nevertheless I finished the ½ liter I’d been given. Anthony even drank 2 more glasses donated by those who weren’t feeling it.

Salzburg 1/14/10

Upon arriving at the airport I quickly got my bags and went directly to the taxis (no customs or passport check at all for some reason). The first guy I asked to drive me was a dick. After jumping in and loading up my bags, I showed him the address that the “castle” was located at, before being told that I needed to take another taxi because his was “too big.” As explained to me by the second taxi driver, the man really didn’t want to take me because the distance was short and he wanted more money.

Zurich Airport 1/14/10

Flight was enjoyable from LAX. I’ve got a good 4 hours to kill waiting for my flight to Salzburg. On the flight I sat next to a guy around my age from Sweden. We made idle chit chat in Airworld (Up in the Air reference, which I’ve been reading this trip). He was visiting his sister who is abroad in the US at CSU Fullerton. The weather in CA exceeded his expectations from what he told me. I asked him if he had any recommendations on where to go. He recommended all the major cities that I planned to go to, but downplayed Sweden. In his words Sweden is like Canada—country, and not much to do.

Walking through the plane to the gate I felt the cold instantly. My breath was revealed to me as I walked through the passage connecting both. Zurich is completely covered in snow. Looking at the landscape while landing I felt like Dorothy, “Toto we’re not in Kansas anymore.” It’s currently 5 pm and already it feels like a blackout because of the weather. I’m sure that if I walked anywhere in Europe with snow as it looks to me outside, I’d feel like I’m in Let the Right One In.

Having not much else to do, I’ve taken a couple pictures in the Zurich airport. It would seem like they would keep holiday decorations up awhile here because of the glass chandeliers that have Christmas lights hanging from them. Overall this airport is pretty “glassy” and looks a lot cleaner and modern than US ones.

I’ve toured a couple shops so far. I probably spent the longest in the Duty-Free alcohol store. All that legally available booze that I can buy! Must be some sort of celebration going on as every bottle of whiskey is tagged “Whiskeyfest Jan-Feb 2010.” Switzerland’s wine bottle intrigued me. It’s literally as if the Swiss Army made a bottle that had attachments that popped out. Granted it doesn’t remove the cork itself, but the bottle pretty much looks like the knives. The Swiss Chocolate Knives gave me a laugh when I saw them.

Europe really doesn’t joke about smoking. Every pack has written on it in bold lettering, “Smoking Kills” or “Smoking seriously harms you and others around you.” A novelty to me, I snapped pics of the packaging before being told I couldn’t do that. Luckily I was able to keep them, though.

Pre-flight 1/13/10

Security was a breeze and I didn’t even have to pull out that bag with medicines and whatnot.

There is a Rick Steve’s lookalike sitting at the gate. The resemblance is uncanny.

Commonplace Talk

It's funny the conversations you get into doing everyday things. Getting my blood drawn today at the hospital is evidence enough. After the physician asked me for my birth date he commented on the fact that this year will be my 21st. Instantly he started relating how he remembered getting to the bar on his, but not back. The guy to the left of me waiting for his bloodwork mentioned, "I was going to have a fun time, till I spent my 21st in county." The attendant continued with his tale of how he also took his sister to clubs in Hollywood for hers. "Sometimes it's funnier to be the sober guy and see everyone else get sloshed."