Monday 24^th June – Day 22

Having got up early and had breakfast we set out to have a look around the centre of Munich.  Despite the heavy rain we still saw some spectacular sights.  The parliamentary buildings, royal palace and St Peter’s church are simply breathtaking constructions.  We also got the metro to the Olympic Stadium.  The stadium looks tiny but can actually hold 70,000 people.

Having been impressed with the sights we decided to hop on random metro trains and see where we ended up.  It actually turned out to be an efficient way of getting around the city.  We found a beer garden in the ‘Odeonplatz’ part of the city and had a couple of the famous Munich Weissbiers.

Later, we headed back to our hostel for some tea.  The restaurants in Munich are expensive but the hostel is cheap!  During tea we got talking to a couple of girls from Dublin called Jenny and Claire who were students doing a German course.  They thought that spending their summer in Germany would help them.  Good idea!

Sean and the girls needed to do their laundry and so the rest of the evening was spent watching the spin dryer and enjoying each other’s company.

Tuesday 25^th June – Day 23

Having got up early, had breakfast and checked out we headed to the metro station with heavy hearts.  Sean and I both loved Munich but it was time to move on.

The train journey to Salzburg took only two hours and passed by uneventfully and with the usual German precision.

Having arrived in Salzburg and checked into our hostel Sean and I set out to see just why this place is so popular.  We soon found out why!  Mozart memorials and museums are there at every turn and the cathedral and castle are nothing short of breathtaking.  What a beautiful city!  We sure were glad we came and I lost count of the number of photos I took.

Having trekked in the baking sun for several hours Sean and I went back to the hostel for a cheap spaghetti bolognaise meal and some ‘Steigl’ beers.  Needless to say the beers were well received.  During our meal we met a Finnish couple, from Tampere, called Thomas and Anna.  They were great company and we talked until 01:00.  Realising it was time for bed I went to my dorm only to find they were sharing my room with me!  We kept talking until about 03:00 until we could talk no more.

Wednesday 26^th June – Day 24

Having woken up surprisingly early (07:30) Sean and I headed downstairs for breakfast.  Afterwards we felt that with Berchtesgaden being so close we would make a day trip to see Hitler’s Kehlsteinhaus (or Eagle’s Nest).  We found a tour that, for €35, would take us on a four hour tour of the Obersalzburg mountainside, its bunkers and then the Eagle’s Nest.  Having been to where Hitler made the decisions to invade Czechoslovakia and Russia on his fourteen ‘official’ visits is quite difficult to comprehend.  We even went up the specially made lift that Hitler was in when he came up with the outlines for the Jewish holocaust.

The views where breathtaking and even though we were 26kms from Salzburg we could see it from the Eagle’s Nest.  This day trip will be one I’ll never forget.

Due to the lateness of our arrival back at the hostel we had tea, and a couple of Stiegl beers, and went to bed.  Whilst I was in my dorm I got talking to two Canadian girls, Kelly and Amanda from Vancouver, and we stayed up to 03:00 putting the world to rights.

Tomorrow we are heading back into Germany towards Heidelberg.  It is a shame to leave Salzburg but we have to start moving if we are to be in Amsterdam by 4^th July.

Thursday 27^th June – Day 25

Having caught the early train out of Salzburg we headed north-east towards Heidelberg in the Rhineland.  Due to us only being able to spend one night in Heidelberg we wanted to get there early so we could see as much as the place had to offer.

I have to say that we messed up with regards to our accommodation.  Our hostel was approximately two kilometres out of the city centre but having trekked around for over two hours (and seen most of the sights along the way!) we still could not find where we were meant to be staying.  We gave up looking for the hostel, we hadn’t paid any booking fee so we didn’t lose anything, and found a rather quaint pension which offered a twin room (right next to Heidelberg castle!) for the same price as the hostel.  Needless to say, we took it!

Having had a very cheap Indian takeaway and a couple of Diet Cokes I headed out to see Heidelberg castle.  Sean, the Incredible Sleeping Man, stayed in the pension because he was tired.  I have to say that Sean really missed out.  It was free to get into the castle and the views will live with me forever.  I found myself nearly in tears because of the sheer beauty of the view from the castle.  I could see that I wasn’t the only one either.

I headed back to the pension for an early night in preparation for the long haul to Luxembourg tomorrow.  I will be sad to be leaving beautiful Heidelberg.  Even though I have only been here a matter of hours it has left an impression that will live with me forever.

Friday 28^th June – Day 26

Having had a lie in until nearly 10:00 Sean and I got up to try and see as much of Heidelberg as possible in the time we had left.

We managed to see all the little cobbled side-streets and statues it had to offer before we boarded our train.  The journey passed by uneventfully giving me the opportunity to write my postcards.

Having arrived in Luxembourg City we where met with stunning views of what appear to be medieval castle walls.  I posted my postcards and once I had checked into the hostel headed out for a look at the sights.  There is a lot on offer in the city and having trekked around for four hours we decided that we were going to stay another night.  There are memorials and statues (as well as breathtaking views!) at seemingly every turn.  We headed back to the hostel for a very cheap pizza at 22:00 and went up to bed.  Tomorrow we were going to make the most of our only full day in Luxembourg and so prepared for an early start.

Saturday 29^th June – Day 27

Having woken up at 07:15 Sean and I went for showers and breakfast before most other people were awake.  Having had a huge breakfast we headed out at about 08:30.

With today being our last in Luxembourg we felt that we should make the most of our time and so headed out to see the sights.  The cathedral and ‘History of Luxembourg Life Museum’ are extraordinary buildings and a real feat of engineering, so to speak.  I can see why the buildings are so popular now!  Due to us having such a large breakfast we were not hungry at lunch time and so kept on trekking around our magnificent surroundings.

After what seemed like a short while we felt our stomachs rumble.  It was 19:00!  We headed back to the hostel for another cheap pizza.  Just as we finished off a group of school children, aged around ten, arrived and suddenly ear defenders seemed rather appropriate!  We headed up to our rooms to escape the noise and also have an early night in preparation for tomorrow.

We needed to get up around 06:00 tomorrow as we were due to catch a train to Brussels.  We were sad to be leaving Luxembourg, but we only had a few days left and we had to keep moving towards Schipol Airport.

Sunday 30^th June – Day 28

Having risen at 06:00, just before the alarm went off, we had breakfast and set out towards the train station.  Just before we left our dorm a South African chap asked me if I could remove a tic from his left buttock with a needle.  Not a nice job and something to be eradicated from memory as soon as possible.

When we got on the train we found we were the only ones on it and it stayed that way until we reached Brussels.

With my knowledge of French we managed to get directions to our hostel and dumped our bags and ran straight to the nearest café just in time to catch the kick off of the World Cup Final.

Afterwards, we set out to see what all the hype about Brussels was for.  We spent all day trekking around the city but felt a little disappointed.  The Royal Palace and cathedral are beautiful buildings but there seems to be few other attractions.  One of the tasks I had set myself was to find one of the world famous Leonidas chocolate shops to get some ‘souvenirs’ for the folks back home.  When we found it it was shut!  Never mind, we will try again tomorrow.

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