2006 World Cup Madness
By devilwillride
Description: Twelve days, seven cities, eight matches. |
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Munich
January 22nd 2007, Munich, Germany
Arriving at 7 in the morning, I was rather out of sorts the entire first day. After taking the train from Frankfurt to Munich, my first act was to find Olympic Park. Just my luck, Germany was playing Argentina that day so it seemed like an entire sea of black, red, and yellow was descending on the stadium.
It was beautiful, but not good for a sleep-deprived, jet-lagged soul, so I headed back to the city and watched the match at an Italian restaurant. All the workers were decked out in Italian shirts, colours, etc., though I didn't find out until later that it was Italy-Ukraine that night, not England-Portugal like I thought.
The second day was exploring the city. It's beautiful to wander around without any plan or destination, though there's an obvious fault in that I didn't know most of the buildings I saw until later. Munich's architecture is well-preserved, and although there were masses of tourists, the city felt comfortable. The afternoon was spent watching England and Brazil lose their respective matches. Due to the number of England fans at the hostel, it was perhaps quieter that night than usual.
The next day I went down to Füssen to see King Ludwig II's castles. One thing that continued to surprise me throughout the trip was the amount of agriculture in Germany. Outside of the big cities, it's one big pastoral setting, and it's very, very green. Though the surrounding village was kitsch to the extreme, Ludwig's castles were amazingly beautiful. After seeing them in person, it was easy to understand why Ludwig chose this setting, and the unique design of Neuschwanstein.
Accommodation
| Name: |
Wombats City Hostel |
| Type: |
Hostel |
| Rating: |
Highly Recommended |
| Atmosphere: |
Friendly |
| Value: |
Good Value |
| Location: |
In the city centre |
Prices were expensive for World Cup, but it included a buffet breakfast so it worked out. Very clean and organised. |
Activities
| Name: |
Hohenschwangau & Neuschwanstein |
| Rating: |
Highly Recommended |
| Fun: |
Fantastic |
| Value: |
Good Value |
| Stamina: |
Moderate |
These castles are to the south of Munich, near Füssen. You can get day tickets through DB specifically for the castles, and it's cheaper if there's at least two of you. Neuschwanstein may be touted as overrated and expensive, but both the castle and the setting make the cost worth it. If you're short on time or money, see at least Neuschwanstein (though Hohenschwangau is also worth it for the history). |
Top Tip:
If you're taking one of the last tours at King Ludwig's castles, make sure you know the transport schedule back. We very nearly got stuck in the village on a Sunday evening because the buses stopped running, and thanks to private taxis we got to the last train for three hours.
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