Munchen or Munich

Whether you call it Munchen or Munich, the city is called "the monk". We spent the morning touring the city and many eras of Munich's history. From the monarchy to Hitler's early years in Munich to modern times, the city has a diverse history. The monarchy lasted in Bavaria to 1918 with one of the last being Koneg Ludwig II (Mad King Ludwig) whose castle we are seeing tomorrow.

Hitler's early years began with the beer hall political discussions to his march and eventual arrest which led to the writing of Mein Kampf. After his release from prison he started his politcal movement and his rise to power within Munich. While the original beer hall was torn down, another beer hall presently resides on the same location

The city has a very modern side to it as well. The 1972 Olympics was Munich's opportunity to show that they have left the war history behind them. Unfortunately, this was the Olympics with the terrorist attack on he Isreal team. But the infrastructure that was developed remains in the city (such as the four levels of subways underground).

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Morning in Munich

Well the skies are blue and everyone should be well rested. I am having trouble uploading pictures from this hotel. But I hope to find a solution quickly. Today, we have a walking tour and an afternoon of shopping (can you hear the excitement from the boys). I imagine the boys (and some parents) will want to continue touring the inner city.


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Schonbrunn Palace

Well the visit to Schonbrunn castle was a success with a tour of 26 of the 386 rooms, as well as the royal gardens with the huge fountain of Poisedon and four mermen on merhorses. It reminded me of Versailles in Paris with the grandeur and statues in the vast gardens. With the drizzling rain and cool weather, we spent only a half hour outside; I am sure that the students would have loved to travel to the far side of the gardens, visit the Imperial zoo in the gardens (which apparently has pandas), or wander (and probably get lost) in the maze of hedges. Just to give a size of the gardens, the perimeter is 17 km.

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Monday's Rain

In th infamous words of the Bee Gees "Don't let me walk to Monday's rain". Yes it is raining in Vienna, this morning we are visiting Schonbrunn which is suppose to outshine even Versailles for royal palaces. Hopefully the rain subsides enough for the students to enjoy and appreciate the royal gardens. I'll let you know. Check yesterday's blog for an update.

Happy Easter

A happy Easter from all the students and parents in Europe to the families in Wainwright. We are presently on the road to Vienna, Austria.

Immediately after leaving Poland for the Czech Republic, we were pulled over by the policia for a passport check. Thanks for the preparation of our tour guide Mario, we were back on the road in minutes. It is 10 am as we travel through the beautiful countryside of the Czech. The biggest challenge on the bus is to photograph the passing cemetaries which are decorates to the extreme with white and yellow flowers for Easter. We have seen deer, chickens, the odd horse and goat, but we have yet to see a cow; thus another challenge as we ride the bus to Austria.

We arrived in Austria and took a walking tour of the Imperial Palace of the Hofsburg. The amount of statues of Roman/Greek within the architecture in Vienna is amazing. Amongst the Imperial Palace was the infamous Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Mozart's home and St Stephan's cathedral (as you can see in the pictures). I am amazed how the Europeans are use to tourists touring thier churches while services (but not mass) was happening. With Easter weekend, all the churches were busy with reconciliation, rosaries and venerations. I think the students were in awe of the grandeur of the churches and beauty of the prayers in another language. I noticed quite a few trying to record the bells of the church, the pipe organ playing, and even the prayers in the background.

Auschwitz Visit

We have just finished our visit to the camp and it was a somber experience for all. Besides the reality of the crimes that happened there, the biggest shock is how the Nazis knew and hid the death camp reality from the public and the victims. The students were commenting how they read about it and seen the pictures of Auschwitz but walking under sign "Arbeit Macht Frei" (which means "work makes free" oh the irony) and walking in the gas chambers and by the furnaces brought a sense of what exactly happened there.
In the afternoon, we visited Wadowice (birthplace of Pope John Paul II). We were able to enter the church of his childhood and first ordaination. There was Easter Saturday prayers being said in Polish. After Wadowice we returned to Krakow for supper.

A hello from Mrs Gaydosh to her sister Adriana Salvia.

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Second Morning in Poland

After a good night sleep a lot of students are up early awaiting a hearty breakfast for the day ahead. It is sunny today (so far) and we hope for a beautiful day.


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