The Tent:
Soon after arriving we set out to meet up with Jeremy’s German friend and then headed to Oktoberfest. Oktoberfest is a large festival in the center of Munich that was started in 1810 to celebrate the wedding of Bavarian Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The festival has gone on every year since then, and to this day has about 6 million visitors each year, serving roughly 7 million liters of beer each year. We were able to find a seat in a large beer hall full of hundreds of people. There was live German music and liter beer glasses. Everyone was singing, dancing, eating, drinking, and fighting! We stayed for a few hours in the beer hall and then headed out into the festival grounds, where we went on a roller coaster ride, bumper cars and ate some German peanuts.
Liter Beers!
Beer Tent:"
Around 9pm Jeremy’s German friend had to head back home, so we headed back to “The Tent” where we ate more sausage, had more beers, and hung out at the bonfire.
On our second day in Munich we went to Marienplatz, which is
the central square in Munich.
Along with several modern shops in the square, there is a Neo-Gothic city hall, and several old churches including St. Peter’s church. We went into the church and checked out the intricate detailing done within the church walls and ceilings.
We also went to the top of the city hall tower for some sweeping views of the city.
For lunch we found a nice beer garden nearby that had traditional German food.
Later that night we headed back out to Oktoberfest. We went into a different beer tent this night and met some local Germans as well as a German from Berlin. Amazingly he was 9 when they tore down the Berlin wall and he had some very vivid memories that he shared with us.
After two drunken nights at Oktoberfest, our final day in Munich we spent at the Dachau Concentration Camp. The camp was the first official concentration camp during the war, and was the “model” camp that all others would be set up after.
Seeing the camp, pictures of the starving and dead prisoners, and reading about their individual experiences was quite moving. We were able to tour the old prison, where they tortured and murdered many prisoners.
The barracks where the prisoners slept was full of bunk beds with 3 tiers. One barracks was supposed to hold 200 prisoners, but by the end of the war, each held almost 2,000. There were massive health issues due to the overcrowding, and the medical treatment was non-existent for those who succumbed to the many illnesses.
The camp is surrounded by a cement fence with barbed wire and several towers, where guards would shoot anyone coming close to the fence. Most of the barracks today are torn down, but their foundations were all still intact, so it gave you a good sense of what it was like during the war.
At the edge of the camp was the crematorium. This building housed several cremation stoves where they would burn the dead and murder the prisoners. Later in the war, another barracks, deemed barracks X, was built with a gas chamber inside and due to the massive amounts of dead bodies, another crematorium was built adjacent to the original one. This part of the camp was the most chilling. There were pictures of piles upon piles of dead bodies awaiting to be cremated. The cruelty and inhumane conditions was astonishing.
Marienplatz square:
Along with several modern shops in the square, there is a Neo-Gothic city hall, and several old churches including St. Peter’s church. We went into the church and checked out the intricate detailing done within the church walls and ceilings.
City Hall:
Gargoyle with butt stuck in nose!! haha
Church Doors:
We also went to the top of the city hall tower for some sweeping views of the city.
For lunch we found a nice beer garden nearby that had traditional German food.
Later that night we headed back out to Oktoberfest. We went into a different beer tent this night and met some local Germans as well as a German from Berlin. Amazingly he was 9 when they tore down the Berlin wall and he had some very vivid memories that he shared with us.
After two drunken nights at Oktoberfest, our final day in Munich we spent at the Dachau Concentration Camp. The camp was the first official concentration camp during the war, and was the “model” camp that all others would be set up after.
Entrance to the camp, where all prisoners first came in through:
Roll Call area 2-3 times per day for prisoners:
Seeing the camp, pictures of the starving and dead prisoners, and reading about their individual experiences was quite moving. We were able to tour the old prison, where they tortured and murdered many prisoners.
The Prison:
The barracks where the prisoners slept was full of bunk beds with 3 tiers. One barracks was supposed to hold 200 prisoners, but by the end of the war, each held almost 2,000. There were massive health issues due to the overcrowding, and the medical treatment was non-existent for those who succumbed to the many illnesses.
The Barracks:
Sleeping Quarters for thousands:
Toilet Room:
The camp is surrounded by a cement fence with barbed wire and several towers, where guards would shoot anyone coming close to the fence. Most of the barracks today are torn down, but their foundations were all still intact, so it gave you a good sense of what it was like during the war.
At the edge of the camp was the crematorium. This building housed several cremation stoves where they would burn the dead and murder the prisoners. Later in the war, another barracks, deemed barracks X, was built with a gas chamber inside and due to the massive amounts of dead bodies, another crematorium was built adjacent to the original one. This part of the camp was the most chilling. There were pictures of piles upon piles of dead bodies awaiting to be cremated. The cruelty and inhumane conditions was astonishing.
Prisoner Barracks again:
Tomorrow we head to Switzerland and I can’t wait to get back
to my roots…the mountains!!
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