Munich

Last night, after giving me several small cheeses for the road and a few hugs, Monika and Ulrich packed me into the car of a friend of theirs and I was whisked down the Autobahn into the outskirts of Munich.




I am staying at the home of Stefan and Steffi, also friends of the Leiners and who were gracious enough to put up a stranger for two nights. Stefan is a musician that runs a music school here in Munich as well as plays in a pretty tight little cover band (I saw a DVD the other night) that tours frequently here in Europe. This morning he told me he grew up in this house, and that it had been in his family since the 20ś, but that it was destroyed during the war and rebuilt in 1949.




Munich was the center of the Third Reich, and Hitler delivered many of his tirades here in the city plazas. Subsequently, much of this city was virtually destroyed during WWII. I had an opportunity to go on the "Third Reich" walking tour this morning, but though it would no doubt be interesting...I felt it was a little bleak for only having one day here, so I stuck with a couple classical museums instead.



A few days ago, at dinner, we were talking about U.S. History and Native Americans. I was telling them that one of the things I learned during my walk across the country is that our history books don't adequately represent what really happened, even after all this time we aren't in the habit of telling the truth of our own history. They asked why. I said I didn't know. Blindness, shame...unwillingness to deliver anything but an embellishment.


"Why?" Johanna, Monika and Ulrich's youngest said, "We had Hitler...we had Nazis, we learn all about what happened during the war. It's important to know exactly what happened so that never happens again."





As I walked through the streets of Munich today I couldn't help but think about what was happening here 60 years ago. I went St. Peter's Cathedral and saw photos of the wreckage after it had been bombed; with altar statues crumbled under the marble columns and the pews wasted and splintered to near dust. Many of the sites I saw depicted these "before and after" photos and I appreciated the will to rebuild.




Steffi told me last night that her grandparents would say that those here in Munich were the lucky ones because this was the area occupied by the Americans following the allied victory. Germany was divided up into 4 regions, the U.S., British, French and Russian armies each had a section of the country. She told me that the Americans were the most tolerant, and weren't as prejudiced or cruel against the German citizens as the other occupying forces. "The Americans weren't attacked on their own land by the Germans...maybe this is why," she said, "also, I think many Americans, especially during that time, had relatives or knew people that were from here, or at least had some familial ties to Europe and I think this helped them understand and relate to us during the rebuilding. And I think this is why the Iraq occupation is a failed effort and is so different for the United States now."

Yep, different.










I've enjoyed getting to know a few folks from Germany over the last weeks. It seems to be an astute culture, with people widely interested in politics and history. And, thankfully for me, pretty much all speak fluent English. Germans spend 7, 8, 9 years studying English, starting at an early age...and so not only do they speak it well, they seem to enjoy practicing it with a native speaker. Many also learn another language (French, Spanish or Latin) in their later school years. They don't understand a culture that doesn't encourage this sort of multi-linguistic education. Neither do I.



History, history. I know sooooooooo little about the world. I don't even really have a good bead on my own country sometimes I think. People kept asking me here to explain the Electoral College to them. I would mostly shrug, "I have no idea. I try, keep trying every presidential election cycle to wrap my head around...can't." They would kind of laugh, but not really. How could I not know how our own President gets elected?




Well, it's a good thing there's weisswurst and bretzels during those times of trouble! Mmmmmm, sausages. They like their sausages here in Bavaria, and I am all for that. White sausage, with a little sweet mustard and a salty pretzel to go with it is pretty standard fare here. Knocks those bocadillas clear out of the arena of snack food competition. There is no competition when it comes to sausage and mustard in my book.




And if I had that passion for understanding the Electoral College, I could deftly explain it to the world. But, so it goes.

And it's probaby a good thing I'm leaving tomorrow or I would get quite portly from weisswurst and then I would come home all roly-poly and you would wonder if I really did any walking at all.



Well, it's evening here. The taverns around the Glockenspiel are filling up with people enjoying liter mugs of beer here on a Saturday night. The air is crisp and a half-moon is hanging up there with a few sifty clouds around it.

Tomorrow is a long day - flying in the morning to Madrid and then take the train later that evening to Lisbon. I'm getting excited though about making my way home.

Oh, and before I forget, and in case I can't get to another internet station, I wanted to wish my Aunt Rebecca a happy birthday on the 11th!!!!!!! And a big thanks for collecting those papers for me, you rock. We will celebrate your birthday when I get home!

Also wanted to thank all my Veteran brothers and sisters for their service and will remember them on Veteran's Day.

And I also wanted to give a shout-out to my buddy Gwennie who has been so helpful in taking care of my mail, my truck and my motorcycle for all these months I've been away. She's been a rock for me this whole year and I really appreciate it. Love you lots!

Okay my loves...talk to you soon...Oh, and Kathleen? Keep it up...you can do it!!!!!!