DAY 12 MUNICH

This is our last day in Munich. We woke up at 9.30am. Michele and Kristine went to work already. We had shower and then went out to the supermarket to buy some sausages and leberwursts (goose liver for bread) and snacks. I bought nearly 30 Euro Stuff. Kinda crazy but I really like the German sausages, taste so good!!


Then we went to Michele and Dirk’s office to have lunch with them. It’s the last chance for us to spend time together. Michele worried if we were able to go to his office so he wrote down the way for us last night. But we got off the tram too early so we had to walk to Karlsplatz. We followed the tram way and took the subway to their office. Finally we arrived on time!! Cool!! :D

They took us to have pizza. They said in Germany people eat one pizza!! I didn’t really believe but Michele and Dirk and other people can really eat all!! Michele and Dirk even said they could eat two!! Unbelievable!! I shared one with Connie and we were full already.

" Michele looks so cool in this pic becoz I'm a good photographer!! :D"

After lunch we went to their office again to get back Connie’s iPod. It’s strange that they don’t turn on the light and air conditioner at work. It was dark!! Michele said it was ok though. I think Germany is doing quite well to protect the environment and save the energy. They use less plastic bag and their government encourages them to recycle stuff. It’s good to do that!!

Then we had to say goodbye to them. It was really sad and I didn’t want to leave. My vacation is ended so fast!! I enjoyed my trip in Germany and I’m happy that I have known them!! They are so kind to show us around and take care of us. I feel home in Germany. We become real friends and it’s a very good experience for me. I see a different Munich, it’s not what I can see if I join the tour or go by myself. I love Munich, I love the people, I love the BEER!! :D Hopefully we can meet again soon.

Though I don’t like to say goodbye, we still had to leave. We spent 2 hours to do our final shopping in Munich centre. I bought 2 pairs of Birkenstock and they only cost 100 Euro in total!! And I also bought a 1 Liter beer glass and postcards. Then we went back to Michele’s home to pack our stuff. I hardly put all my stuff into my suitcase!! My luggage was 27kg and I had extra 3 hand carries! It was a hard way for us to carry drag our stuff to airport!! One of my suitcase wheel was broken and I had to drag it like dragging a big stone. Dirk was right!! It was so darn heavy like a stone!! :P

Goodbye Germany… I wish I could see them again soon no matter we meet in Hong Kong or Europe. It was a great fun and I will miss them all. Can’t believe time runs so fast!! Remember the first day we were a bit unfamiliar with each other but now I feel like we know each other quite well. We make fun on each other and have really good time. I love Germany!! :D

DAY 11 MUNICH

I had a deep long sleep last night. Sleeping from 1am to 10am, it was a good sleep coz I was drunk last night.

Today we went out with Michele and Dirk and their colleagues. We had a big breakfast at Newsbar. I had a farmer breakfast which included potatos, scrambled eggs, hams and bread. The breakfast cost 8 Euro, it was delicious tho it was a bit expensive as a breakfast.

After breakfast we went to somewhere to see people surfing on the river. They were stunning!! Can’t believe they can surf in such cold weather!!

Then we went to Schloss Nymphenburg. It’s a Baroque palace. There is a big castle with park and lake. We walked around there. There were many swans, ducks… I can tell people that I have been to Swan + Castle!! Cool!! :D The swans were so big!! I was a bit scared to get close to them. Dirk was scared too!! There is a pic to prove and he face is so funny!!

"Dirk & Michele didn't dare to get close to the swan"

After walking around the park, we had a drink at the café. I ordered an ice chocolate. Michele said I should drink beer!! I think he wants to see me drunk :D It’s kinda shame to get drunk in front of them!! I’m just not used to German beer!! Well I’m sure next time when I see them again, I wouldn’t get drunk!!

Then we went back to Michele’s home, rested for a while and then we took the subway to the city centre to have dinner. When we went out of subway, there were people who played classical music with viola, violin, cello and accordion. Their performance was great!! In Europe, it’s normal to see this kinda show. They are willing to perform and show their talent!!

The restaurant was nice with old decoration. We had Bavarian food there. The pork tasted good but the potato stuff was too sticky and not much taste. I drank 0.5 Liter beer and I was so fine!! :D Michele still thought I would get drunk! HaHa! I was not!!


After dinner, we went back to Michele’s home. It was our last day to see Kristine coz we couldn’t see her again tomorrow since she has to work. It was so sad to say goodbye to her. She is a very sweet girl and I like her a lot.

DAY 10 MUNICH

Big Day today!! We were going to Oktoberfest!! Drinking beer and having fun today!! Yay!! We woke up at around 11am coz last night we drank until 6am. We had a big breakfast and then we went to an accessory shop to shop around. Kristine wanted to buy something for her friend’s birthday and we bought a pair of cute earring there.

Then we took the subway to Michele’s office. We met Dirk there but he was late :D They showed us their office. Their office is so big and cool!! They have their own entertainment room and many kitchens!! There are unlimited beers, drinks and snacks!! Beer again!! Wow!! It’s so IMPRESSIVE to see how German people love beer!! I can’t believe they can drink beer at work!! They have 6 weeks holiday with good benefit at work, well I really want to look for a job in Germany!! If there is any non-German speaking job, please let me know!! I’m ready for it :D

Afterwards we walked to the Oktoberfest, it was so crowded!! Thanks god it was a nice sunny day!! I understand why Michele asked me to wear sneaker coz there were so many people and many broken glasses on the ground. Kinda dangerous to wear scandals. Fortunately I listened to him :)

We got into a tent where Max and their Yahoo colleagues were already there. Inside the tent it was a bit hot coz there were nearly 8,000 people!! The atmosphere was great, there was live band and people were so hyper and happy! They sang, drank and danced together!! I enjoyed it a lot!!

I drank 1.5 Liter beer and 1 Liter beer mixed with lemonade. The beer tasted sooo good. I liked it a lot but I got so drunk. The beer was so strong. I hardly remember what I did!! Silly me!! I couldn’t walk straight and I had to hold Dirk and Michele’s arms when I got home. Dirk and Michele made fun on me again!! They think I always get drunk!!

With the help of the pics and what they told me, here are the things that I remember:

• I drank 2.5 Liter beer
• Max was so drunk
• We went to bar after Oktoberfest
• My hand was hurt by Dirk’s cigarette accidentally and I had a scar on my hand
• I slipped on the floor when I walked to the washroom alone, my jeans, shoes and bags were dirty
• There was a fight in the bar and Michele said something to me (Can’t remember what he said)

Things that I can’t remember:

• We went to Michele and Dirk’s office after going to the bar coz they needed to get back their jacket
• I said Hong Kong is bigger than Shanghai to someone (strange and silly!!)
• I followed a stranger to the dance floor, Connie and Kristine were being with me
• My coat was burnt with few holes but I have no idea when, where and who
• Michele told me there is a bar next to their flat but I said no

We went to the Oktoberfest from 3-11pm, after that we went to the bar, hung out a while and then went to Michele and Dirk’s office. Then we sent Dirk’s home, I only remember Dirk said he was tired so he wanted to go home. And he told me we would go to the lakeside tomorrow. Then we walked back to Michele’s home, I remember Michele kept saying there were still 20mins. I wasn’t totally drunk!! There was still a picture on my mind!! :P

DAY 9 NÜRNBERG / MUNICH

Shit!! Heavy rain and cold today!! I was praying for the sun last night but it still rained!! I finished my dishes already!! How come it still rained? I hate it!!

We planned to stay in Daniel’s home until tomorrow but it rained heavily and Connie wanted to go back to Munich in the evening so we left at around 5pm.

Daniel drove us to the Nürnberg train station first and he showed us around the city a bit. We couldn’t walk much becoz of the rain. I think Nürnberg would look so nice if the weather is fine.

Nürnberg is an old city and there are a lot of historical buildings. I wanted to walk to the castle but it was too far away and it was hard to walk under the rain. We walked around the Market Platz where the x’mas market takes place. But it’s still early for the x’mas market so nothing much to see there.

I went into a shop which sells puppets. I bought 2 puppets and a cup. A bit expensive tho I like them very much. Also I wanted to buy something to make myself happy.

I was so careless that I left my mobile at Daniel’s home. Me and Connie waited him at the station and then he went back home to get my mobile. I felt bad that I make such trouble… Nürnberg isn’t far away from Munich, we only took an hour train to there.

Michele picked us up at the train station at 6.30pm. It’s good to see him again. I felt like going back home. He took us to take the subway but he lost his way!! Haha! He had to ask someone for the way home! So funny!! He explained that becoz he usually drives home and he rarely takes the subway :D

When we went back home, Michele cooked us some pasta for dinner. And we ate some bacons which he made that by himself. So delicious!! Dirk came to Michele’s home after work. He joined the dinner and we chatted and had beers again. I drank 2 Liters and I was a little bit drunk. I had to drink more to practice coz they said the beer is much stronger than the normal one in Oktoberfest.

Michele and Dirk usually made fun of me and Connie. They lied and said something not true to cheat us!! It was fun to play together. And they usually spoke in German!! So mischievous!! I want to learn German so I can understand why they talk :D

And someone said he would do STRIP DANCE at Oktoberfest!! And he said he only accepted EURO notes but not coins!! I said I would give him HK dollar notes but he said HK dollar is nothing!! What nothing? Better than nothing!! The reason that he doesn't accept coins is the coins will slip off from his boxers HAHAHA :D This is the the reason, I think coins is enough for him already :D Of course finally he did nothing!! Chicken!!

We started our dinner at around 9pm and we drank until 6am!! Time ran so fast and we didn’t realize the time!! 2 Liters in 9 hours is a new record for me :D Michele and Dirk think tomorrow I would definitely get drunk coz people would drink fast. Well let’s see!!

I learned something interesting today. Michele popped our beers bottles with his bottle bottom and the beer raised up quickly. Then we had to drink it fast. Interesting!! It’s fun to pop someone’s beer!! I couldn’t drink fast, it ran into my nose and wetted my jeans!! Darn!! I will do that when I drink with my friends in Hong Kong!! And I learned how to open the beer flap with a lighter. Hard but cool!!

DAY 8 BERLIN / NÜRNBERG

Leaving Berlin this morning, it’s cloudy and a bit cold today. Darn! I had to carry my super heavy luggage to the Berlin train station. I felt like my arms were broken!

The things that impress me most in Berlin aren’t the buildings, it’s the graffiti. It reflects the street culture and the unique art of Berlin.

We took the 10.57am train to Nürnberg. We talked to a German woman at the Platform. She had been to Hong Kong 10 years ago. We took pics with her cute little son. Western babies are so cute!!! We didn’t know our seats are in which train carriage, we dragged our lugguges back and forth, it was so tiring!! Finally we just got in any carriage and then just picked seats to sit down.

We arrived at Nürnberg at around 15.25, then we walked around the station, surfed internet and waited for Daniel to pick us up. We met him at 5pm and then he drove us to Erlangen, it’s where he lives and works. We went to the supermarket to buy some bread and meat then went to his home.

Daniel lives in 2^nd floor, his flat is on the top (roof), it looks nice. He said he could see the stars at night if the sky is clear. That’s cool. I like this kind of house. What a pity that it rained so I couldn’t see anything.

We watched video, surfed internet for a while and then he cooked tomato for us. It was good! Seems most of the European men can cook!! After dinner, Daniel showed us some of his pics and we chatted for a while. I’m a bit surprised that he likes Asian stuff so much!! He taught us some bad German words but I hardly remember :P It’s hard to pronounce. And it’s funny to see him speaking Cantonese!

DAY 7 BERLIN / POTSDAM

Having breakfast at Henriette’s home and then we headed to Postdam today. I think the train/ tram/ subway system is strange in Germany coz anyone can go to the platform without buying the ticket. Yesterday we bought one day pass but we realized no one would check us so today we didn’t buy the train and train ticket. We took the subway and tram for FREE :) Luckily no one checked us, even if someone checked us, we could pretend we can’t speak English!! An advantage for being a tourist! :P

We didn’t have any plans so when we arrived Potsdam, we just took any tram and had a free tram city tour. We went to Schloss Sanssouci and walked around the Park Sanssouci. Sanssouci is the former summer palace of the King of Prussia.

The Park is so huge! It took us few hours to walk around there!! I think Potsdam is nice. It’s so different with Berlin. Berlin is more like a city with modern architectures. The buildings in Potsdam is very cute and with unique cultural landscapes. The air in Potsdam is even fresher than Berlin!!




Afterwards we went back to Berlin in the evening and went to Warschauer. We looked for a bar to have a drink. Henriette told us there are lots of bars there. Unfortunately it was still early, some of the bars were not opened yet. We just picked one and had a bottle of beer there.

Then we went back to Schiöneweide and then went to supermarket to buy some sausages and chocolates. Henriette is a vegetarian so we didn’t eat much meat at her place. We bought some sausages and ate it right away :P

We went back to Henriette’s home at around 8pm. She made us some potatoes for dinner. She ate few sliced of bread only!! Henriette told us they usually eat big lunch and light dinner. It’s very different with Hong Kong!

After dinner, we started to pack our stuff. These few days we bought a lot of stuff. My luggage is so darn heavy!! We went to bed at around 11pm, kinda strange coz I never sleep so early in Hong Kong. No night life, no meat, not much drinking in Berlin! Wow!!! Healthy!! :D