Today we had the opportunity to explore the heart of Munich, Germany. On the way to the city, we stopped on the outskirts to see Hitler's Administration building. Chan Rogers, a Veteran that took the city with the 45th Infantry, recalled what it looked like back in 1945. Hitler's buildings were actually twin buildings, located parallel to one another. The buildings were ordered to be "De-Nazified" and the building fronts showed the scars. On the front of the buildings, above the entrances, Nazi symbols were torn off. The other building had ivory growing all over it. Chan said "They didn't want to tear the buildings down, so what better way to pay tribute (to the Jews) than to let ivory, a sign of peace, take over."
After loading back on the bus, we headed for the shopping central of Munich. We arrived at the town square called "Rathaus," located exactly in the middle of the city. It was a little before noon, so we heard the bells sound and watched the famous "Glockenspiel," which is a Deutsch fairy-tale type clock display on the bell tower. After the display we split up into small groups and started exploring the city. Hall, Bonnie and myself decided to start walking, with no specific destination in mind. My goal was to find a German Beer Stein (for coffee and hot tea, don't freak out).
Hall cracked joke after joke and had us laughing most of the day. I was pushing him in a wheelchair, which was not cobblestone friendly, and he said "I'm the definition of Rock and Roll..." I laughed so hard my stomach hurt. Then we started singing "I'm All Shook Up." I felt bad it was such a rough ride for him, but he just shrugged and said "It's like a massage that I don't have to pay for."
He did end up paying for it by buying our lunch. Hall insisted that he pay and treat us to our first German meal. We stopped at a little restaurant right off of the square for lunch. On the menu, pizza was one of the cheapest items at around seven euro. Hall and I ordered pizza, thinking it would be a slice or two, but boy were we wrong. The waiter came out with two full pizzas and set them in front of us. Hall gave about 3/4 of his pizza to Bonnie and I, and then put the pressure on me to finish mine as well.
A really neat stop was to HB or the "Hof Brau Haus," a brewery famous for being one of Hitler's favorites. Some of our Veterans enjoyed a pint, while the students had cola (HA). It was a really neat setting, with German beer maids serving tables and walking around with GIANT pretzels. We made the best out of it and took some funny pictures. We were nearing our trips end when I realized that I had not purchased my stein yet...
We stopped at a little souvenir shop, where I found the best deal on steins I had seen all day... 17 euro. Hall treated Bonnie and I to "Gealto," a popular treat in Europe, much like ice cream.
To me, tomorrow is the true start of our trip. We will be touring Dachau, a concentration camp that many others were made to copy. I get chills thinking about the tour. Mr. George Spooner has not been back to Dachau, where his father's life was ended by the Third Reich, but tomorrow he will walk into the camp in remembrance and share his story with us.
As always, prayers for the Veterans, survivors and students are appreciated.
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