In Munich we found a really nice guy to couch surf with while we were there. Upon arrival we were surprised to find that we were not the only couch surfers and learned that most weeks our host would have multiple guests which was extremely generous of him.
We had a wonderful time in Munich and managed to see some amazing places while we were there. The first night we were taken to the famous Hofbräuhaus for our first Maß of Weißbier and some delecious Bavarian dishes including Pork knuckle and a pretzel mmm. After dinner we made our way to a second beer hall the Augustiner am Dom where Michael surprised Marc with a small birthday cake for desert and we got to sample some more German beer.
The next day was Marc's birthday and we ventured out to the Neuschwanstein Castle, which was a 3hr train ride from Munich. The train ride was really cool just a little long. We arrived at the castle (which is famous for being Walt Disney's inspiration for the Disney Castle) and managed to make our way up the big hill to the castle gates for lots of photo ops and a small tour of inside of the castle. The highlight of the tour was the cave room king ludwig the 2nd had designed. That night we went out to a couple more beer halls for more traditional german cuisine and to continue celebrating Marc's birthday.
The next few days we toured around some of the sights of Munich, walked around Nymphenburg palace grounds (unfortunately all the statues were boarded up and the lakes water drained for winter, but still pretty), went on a 'free' walking tour of munich (which was not free as you were asked to pay the guide at the end what you thought the tour was worth) the tour guide was excellent and we learnt a great deal about Germany and the local area of Bavaria as well as seeing all the major sights and the Bavaria statue above the Theresienwiese (where october fest is held).
After a couple of days in the city we made our way out to Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp. It was free to walk around the camp but to learn more we both got the audio tour. It was really interesting and sad to learn so much about the first camp. It was not a 'death' camp persaywith gas chambers but it was still a horrible camp where prisoners were overworked, punished for nothing, starved and used for human experiments. We really learnt a lot more about the type of people in the prison, they were not just Jews but Poles, Russians, French, Yugoslavs and Czechs as well basically anyone who stood up against the Nazi government or who where not seen as 'German'. It was also interesting to learn how the locals in the area where not aware of the terrible conditions within the camp and we got to see photos of the Nazi propaganda which made the camps look like farms with humane living standards. Dachau was extremely sad but a really good memorial for all the prisoners who where killed or died while there.
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