Europe Day 5 & 6 Around Munich

Friday night we booked two days on the Munich Hop on Hop off bus, so Saturday morning we walked to the pick up spot near Karlsplatz, grabbed some breakfast, and got on the bus. Our first stop was Schloss Nymphenburg, the palace of the Kings of Bavaria in the 18th and 19th centuries. We then went to Olympiapark, where the 1972 Olympics were held. We weren’t able to stop at the Siegestor or the Odeonplatz due to a festival going on, but we drove by some interesting parts of the city. There are a lot of museums in Munich.

We crossed over the Isar, then back towards the Old Town. We got off the bus near the Marienplatz hoping to eat lunch at the Hofbrauhaus, but because it was a Saturday before a futbol game it was way too crowded. Instead we walked to near the Rathaus and looked around and got some pretzels.  

We then walked to the Odeonplatz, where we checked out the sights and walked through the Hofgarten. They were setting up for the festival. We then headed back to the hotel, stopping to check out some shops on the way. By then we were tired and cold, so called it a day. 

This morning we skipped breakfast and took the Hop on Hop off bus first thing to the Hofbrauhaus, then waited for it to open at 11. 

After a hearty lunch of pretzel, pork, and dumplings, and some apple strudel for dessert, we got back on the bus to get a better look at the area around Konigsplatz.

We then walked around in the English Garden, one of the largest city parks in the world. We then got back on the bus and rode back to the stop near our hotel. In the late afternoon the sun actually broke through the clouds, making it warm enough for a final walk through Old Town to see a couple of things we couldn’t see from the bus and hadn’t seen on our earlier walks, like Frauenkirche and Wittelsbach Fountain. It started raining at dinner time so we just ate at the hotel and hung out til bedtime.

Europe Day 3 & 4 Trains in Germany

Thursday after breakfast, we checked out of our Brussels hotel and walked the short distance to a different train station than we came into on Wednesday. After a bit of a wait, we took a train to the northern Brussels station, where we boarded a high speed train to Frankfurt. The train was fairly crowded and there were no luggage racks near the entrance to put our luggage on, but I was able to get all three of our fairly large and heavy suitcases on the racks above the seats, and we were able to sit fairly close together.

We arrived at the main Frankfurt station after about 3 hours of traveling through mostly green countryside. It was drizzling outside and our hotel was a little over a mile away, so we grabbed a taxi. The taxi driver was very rude when he learned we were only going a short distance.

Our hotel was a tall tower near a concert venue, large convention center, and mall. It was almost 2 miles from downtown and we didn’t want to walk that in the rain or take a taxi, so we just looked around the mall a bit, then went back to our hotel to relax and go to bed. 

This morning after breakfast, we walked to the train station and boarded a train to Munich. When we first got on the train was even more crowded than yesterday, and it took us quite some time to find seats near each other. The only good thing was there was more luggage storage areas on today’s train. We realized we had erred by not buying reserved seats. If you’re thinking about traveling on European trains with more than two adults and luggage the reserved seats are the way to go. Also the train left about 15 minutes late and arrived in Munich about 25 minutes late. It was about 3.5 hours from Frankfurt to Munich.

Our hotel was about a five minute walk from the main Munich station. After checking in and figuring out our plans, we headed east toward the old town and the Marienplatz. It was about a 15 minute walk. We stopped and bought some warmer clothes, as all three of us had brought too many clothes for warmer weather and not enough for cooler weather, as it looks like the next week is going to be rainy and cool.

Just past the Marienplatz was the Hard Rock, so we went there for dinner (No 36). We then headed back to our hotel where we worked a bit more on travel plans and organized our stuff. Our room was a little crowded; most rooms in Munich have either one king or two twins; we elected to squeeze into one room rather than pay for two, so Jenn was on a rollaway. 

Europe Day 2 Brussels Belgium

This morning, we checked out of our London hotel and took the Underground to St Pancras Station, where we boarded a Eurostar train to Brussels, Belgium. 

The trip took two hours, plus we lost an hour due to the time change, so we arrived in Brussels around 2:30 pm. We found our way out of the train station and to a taxi stand and about 15 minutes later we were at our hotel.

Our hotel was close to the European Parliament building. After settling in a bit we headed out. We walked through Gardens of Brussels by the Royal Palace to the Grand Place, a little over a mile. 

Along the way we stopped and had some Frites. Once we got to the Grand Place we admired the architecture and had a drink at the Hard Rock Cafe there (No 35).  

We then continued through a shopping area, where we looked through some stores and ate waffles. We then grabbed a cab back to our hotel. We were pretty tired by this time so we lounged a bit then went to bed.

Europe Day 1 London

Yesterday evening Susan, Jenn, and I boarded a red eye flight to London. We booked through Delta, but our flight was on Virgin Atlantic. The amenities were fine, they gave us both dinner and breakfast, but the seats seemed a little cramped and weren’t real comfortable. We didn’t get much sleep.

We arrived at Heathrow this morning and took the train to the Kensington area of London. We stayed in a Marriott that was near Collingham Place, which is where I stayed when I did a London program in college. 

After we freshened up at the hotel, we walked up to Kensington Gardens, and saw Kensington Palace.

We continued north then turned east and walked along the northern edge of Hyde Park until we got to the Marble Arch and Speaker’s Corner.

 

We had an early dinner at the Hard Rock Oxford Street, which is around the corner from Marble Arch. This was the 34th HRC I’ve been too. It was located in a Hard Rock Hotel.

From there we walked west to where Jennifer stayed on her college program, then took the Tube back to Earl’s Court, which was the station closest to our hotel. We were pretty tired by then, so went to bed early.

Starcruiser

When Disney announced a couple months ago that Cast Members would start getting discounts on stays at the new Star Wars hotel, I figured it was time to book one. Susan said I should take the kids and she would stay home with the dogs so on Sunday afternoon we arrived for our stay. 

We began by getting to know the ship. Our room was pretty basic, a queen bed and two bunks. There was no window, instead a screen had a video of space. The kids bought some outfits to wear at dinner. I didn’t want to wear the same things as Bryan and they didn’t have anything else in my size so I just stuck to some things I had picked up at Cast Connections or when I had a holiday discount in the parks. 

We then had lunch in the dinning room, where we would eat almost all our meals. Lunch and breakfast were buffets while dinner was served. The food was pretty good, and they did a good job of making things look exotic. 

We began hanging out in the atrium and lounge of the ship, interacting with some of the characters and watching them interact with each other. We would also check the Disney Play app on our phones to respond to messages from the various characters. How we answered the characters put us on different paths - Jenn was gung-ho to support the resistance, while Bryan tried to feign support for the First Order. I tried to stay neutral and interested in the force, but also supported the Resistance. There was also a scoundrel/musician path. We practiced with lightsabers and learned how to run the bridge stations. We also enjoyed playing Sabacc in the lounge.  Some guests got really into the role playing. Most of the other guests dressed in costume, but not all. Many wore the same outfit both nights. 

The next morning we went into Hollywood Studios to visit Galaxy’s Edge. We had to perform different missions around the land, which included riding the Millennium Falcon and Rise of the Resistance attractions. We were given Lightning Lane passes for that. We also received a meal at Docking Bay 7 with our stay, and elected to have a drink at Oga’s Cantina. Once we completed our tasks we returned to the ship for more interaction and missions.  

After dinner the storylines all came together in an epic scene in the atrium. It was pretty fun and well done. This morning we had breakfast and checked out.

Rock Concerts

In December, Jennifer started working part-time at the local Barnes & Noble. Last month they started carrying her books.

Also last month Susan and I went to Epcot to watch Blue Oyster Cult perform at Garden Rocks. I thought I knew a lot of their songs, but was disappointed that I only recognized the two biggest. Still, I enjoyed it.

At the end of March Jenn celebrated the release of her third book with a visit to Magic Kingdom.

She has spent the last couple of nights with friends watching Taylor Swift perform in Tampa.

Flower & Garden

  

I have spent a couple of afternoons wandering around Epcot so far this month, enjoying the Flower & Garden festival. I checked out the topiaries and the booths, but didn't find many food or drink items that looked appealing. 

Last week, I took a ride on the monorail so I could check out the work on Communicore Hall, which is one of the things replacing the old Communicore West buildings.  

The other is a Journey of Water walk through, featuring characters from Moana.  

On Sunday, the kids visited Volcano Bay, the new water park at Universal, with some friends. They said it was a lot of fun.

This afternoon after work I walked through Epcot again. They often move, change, or add topiaries from year to year. This is the first year they had Encanto characters. They also added a Tiana topiary in America.