MOVING DAY!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN and moving day! We are able to move into the flat this afternoon and are just doing some last minute packing. Looking forward to sleeping in our new bed and hopefully we will start to feel like we actually live in Munich instead of just visiting. However, we will miss the Karl Theodore Hotel and all it has to offer -the gourmet kitchen, the excellent internet connection, Tanglemenn’s and of course the delicious Italian restaurants with the wonderful waiters downstairs. Here is the video of our lovely flat too:

vermisse euch alle. – die Gauntletts

Englischer Garten

After running numerous errands this morning (haircut for Brad –his very first one, a new phone and North Face fleece for me), we decided to head to the Englischer Garten (German for “English Garden’’) for a walk and lunch. This is one of the world’s largest public parks (larger than New York’s Central Park) and stretches alongside the Isar river from the center to the northernmost rim of the city. The park includes several attractions such as numerous beer gardens (we checked out one of them), a place for surfing, paths to go for a jog, and large lawns to play games and drink bier. Brad and I even saw people storing their beer in the river in order to keep it cold while they played games. After visiting the garden for the first time, I felt like I had stepped into a forest and it was difficult to believe that I was actually still in the heart of Munich. After a short walk, we stumbled upon the Chinesischer Turm (Chinese Tower), which is one of the most popular Beer Gardens in Munich. It is huge and is fully equipped with a traditional brass band, Bavarian cuisine, and, of course, super sized beers. Brad had the currywurst with pommes frites and I wanted handl, but they were all sold out so I opted for Sauerkraut. We also shared a pretzel that was the size of my head and man it was delicious. After lunch we walked around a bit more and then headed to the U-Bahn as we need to still complete one more errand –visiting the KPMG office. Brad had been telling me about the KPMG office for weeks and how it has stairs that lead to nothing, a rainbow exterior and lots of coffee mugs with KPMG on it. After seeing the office we decided to go back to the hotel for a quick nap before dinner.

After arriving home, I had to call AT&T in order to obtain a code that would unlock my phone and by doing so I realized that I had left my US SIM card on the table at the office. I am such an idiot! Of course, Brad was super sweet about it and said, it’s okay honey, we will go back and get it before we go to dinner. My husband is truly the best. We decided to call it an early night since we are potentially moving out of the hotel tomorrow into our new flat, fingers crossed!

Gute Nacht. vermisse euch alle. – die Gauntletts

Brighter Days!

After another breakdown last night, (not related to class) I am feeling much better and actually starting to enjoy my German class. I even won one of the games and received a bar of chocolate. After class, I decided to walk around the area as it is a beautiful day outside and could not dream of spending it inside. Plus, I needed to find packing tape as we are moving into our flat and we must re-close all of the boxes we brought. I decided to walk down Sendlinger Tor and ended up discovering some really amazing shops. One in particular called Kane, which is filled with loads of home furnishings. From penguin coffee cups (thought of Marty) to old canoes transformed into wine racks, this store is wonderful. Vintage chairs with Audrey Hepburn face on the back (immediately thought of Angela) and light fixtures/chandlers that would make any girl happy covered this store. I cannot wait to bring my mom here and start decorating our flat.

I also stumbled upon a few costume jewelry places, a Levis (where I found Brad this amazing sweater), and another department store. On my way back from the galleria in Marienplatz, (found packing tape there) I decided to walk back down Sendlinger and stopped at the Starbucks. Yes, this is the first time in four weeks that I have stepped foot into one and I went with Earl Grey tea. Anyways, while in line I noticed the enormous display case containing every type of pastry imaginable except for cookies. With a closer look, I determined that Starbucks had sold out of them and then remembered something that Brad’s co-worker said, “you can only get chocolate chip cookies in Munich from Starbucks.” I guess he was right.

vermisse euch alle. – die Gauntletts

First day of School (Part 2) and The First Breakdown

I know you all had bets on when the first melt down would be and who ever had Wednesday, October 27th in the pool, well Congrats!!! Yes, I cried (real tears) to Brad this evening over my German homework, but we should probably back up a bit to see what led to my full-blown collapse. Everything was going well this morning as I awoke feeling ten times better (thanks to the meds Brad brought me) and excited to attend my first day of German class. I will admit I was pretty anxious to see what I had missed the day before and nervous that I would be unable to catch up, but still positive it would all work out. Oh man, was I wrong. I quickly realized that the teacher will not speak anything but German to you and several of the students are far more advanced than me. Also, she started the class by throwing the ball around and asking everyone different questions in German. So when it got to my turn I had no idea what she said or how to respond. Luckily, the gentleman seated to the right of me was super nice and assisted with the response. Then about an hour an half into the class John (another student) finally showed up and the only seat open was the one to my left. He is from Turkey and is completely terrible. He laughs at everyone in the class and on top of that, he tries to tell others when they are saying or doing something incorrect. It is very distracting and just plain rude. Also, I was paired with him for an exercise (matching words with pictures) and this was something I was actually good at as I had just completed the same lesson on Rosetta Stone a few days ago, but John thought otherwise. He would change every one I placed down and then look in his translation book only to find that my answers were correct. So annoying and I think the kid is downright awful.

Class was finally about to come to an end, but now it was time to receive our homework for the evening. It ended up being only a couple of sessions in our book and decided to complete it all in the media center prior to returning home. To be honest, I thought it would only take me an hour (two at the max) to finish it, but as the clock turned 17:00 (class ends at 12:45 PM) and still not done, I decided it was time for a break and headed to the U-Bahn. On my walk home, I stopped at Tengelmann to pick up dinner for Brad (went with a frozen curry and pasta option) and then headed upstairs to our hotel room. After spending another hour or so trying to figure out what numbers the lady on my CD-ROM was saying, I made dinner for Brad and watched TV. Still working on the homework when Brad walked in, I got so overwhelmed and just lost it. Of course, my loving hubby came over, gave me a kiss and said let’s do it together, but I can only count to twelve. This made me laugh instantly and we began working on it. After fifteen minutes of more tears and listening to the CD hundreds of times, we were able to complete the final section. It was a really bad day and I think I wanted to quit the class at least ten times today, but Brad said stay positive and give it a week. Going to sleep and hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Gute Nacht. vermisse euch alle. – die Gauntletts

Completely Green

I woke up feeling terrible, but still got ready for school and started to walk to the U-Bahn with Brad. However, after reaching the station, Brad ordered me to return home, put my pj’s on, and get into bed. He said not to worry about emailing the school as he would take care of it and I should drink plenty of fluids. After a full day of resting and drinking water, my hubby returned home from work with medicine that he promised will fix me right up. Fingers crossed as I do not think I can miss two days of class.

Gute Nacht – die Gauntletts

First Day of School

Yesterday afternoon I was very ill and today I am still not feeling 100%, but wanted to go to the Goethe Institute (name of my German language school) as today is the second part of my exam and orientation. The institute had me do an interview as well as a written examination, but the teacher giving it quickly realized that I do not speak any German and decided that the A-1 course is perfect for me. Afterwards, I met with another individual who provided me information about the school, my class and Munich. Then I headed home and spent the rest of the day sleeping and watching TV. Looking forward to tomorrow and hopefully I feel well enough to attend.

Gute Nacht – die Gauntletts

The Giants Win the Pennant!

GIANTS WIN!!!! We just finished watching the San Francisco Giants win and are looking forward to them going to the World Series. Brad did, in fact, set his alarm for 4 AM to catch Game 6 of the series with the Phillies. The game was in the sixth inning and then I joined him around the computer for the ninth (couldn’t sleep with all the yelling anyway ;-). What a great way to start our Sunday! The Giants are going to the World Series! Of course Brad can't believe the Giants chose this year to move on in the post-season, and is disappointed that we are not in SF to celebrate with all of our friends at the Bus Stop, but hopefully we can watch our Giants at the Marriott next weekend!

Accidental Hausfrauen

I came to the realization today that I probably spend at least two hours a day in the grocery store and only end up with a maximum of five items. I wish a video camera could follow me in the around in there as it must be a sight to see. With my list both in English and German, a translation book and reusable bags in hand, I set off for the store. People must think I am crazy because I first walk up and down all the aisles before even placing one thing in my basket. Then I go back and actually start shopping. I do this because I rarely go to the same place (except for the tengelmann’s right outside our hotel) and like to get the lay-out of the store before I shop.
Off to have lunch with the League of Accidental Hausfrauen (LoAHf) at Café Puck, hopefully I am able to meet some nice women and then going to the Goethe Institute to pay for my class. Then my hubby is taking me the English Cinema to see the Wall Street movie…really looking forward to movie theatre popcorn!!!

Gute Nacht. vermisse euch alle. – die Gauntletts

Ugly Christmas Sweaters

After discovering a local Munich website, which has suggestions on everything from restaurants to shopping, I decided to check out one of her shopping recommendations entitled Kleidermarkt – Vintage Thrift. What originally intrigued me about it was the mention of Burberry Coats and Escada in her write up. So with flats on my feet and map in hand, I decided to venture over to Marienplatz to check it out. As I entered the three floor shop, I got an immediate headache due to the terrible musty odor and knew this was a bad idea. But I wanted to get the full experience, so I flipped through the racks and after about 30 minutes had to remove myself from this establishment. The only word I can use to describe this experience is “disappointing.” However, if we decide to ever organize an 80s or ugly Christmas Sweater Party, I will be returning here for our outfits.

The day was not a complete bust as I did stumble upon Butlers, which carries a wide variety of products for the home. From kitchen supplies to chandlers this store has it all and you do not have to make the hour trek to Ikea. Plus as the Christmas season is quickly approaching (Germany does not celebrate Halloween), the store is covered in holiday goods. Looking forward to bring mom to this place during her visit in November!

After a full day of shopping, I decided to check the toytown website when I got home and realized that the League of Accidental Hausfrauen (Housewives) is meeting for lunch tomorrow in Maxvorstadt. I placed my name on the list and definitely looking forward to having a little girl time.

wir vermissen euch alle – die Gauntletts

Antique Show

Last night was one of Brad’s partners’ birthday dinner and I ended up being invited. It was so nice of him to include me and I actually was the only non-KPMG/wife there. The restaurant was in the city center and get this, it was the same place we went to on Saturday with Matt (Joe’s little bro)…how random. I finally got to meet Steffi (one of the assistants at KPMG), who planned this 9 course tasting menu for everyone. We started with a variety of fresh breads as well as a radish/yogurt dish, followed by a breaded fish dish with a heavy sauce (almost like a crab cake), third was a cheese course, then a spiced bread with an onion type topping, soup was next which was a chicken broth with chives, then sliced piggy with sweet potatoes (yummy), and a bread pudding like dessert with plums. The cheese course was my least favorite as it was just a pile of camembert with chives and small roasted pretzels. A little strange, but I guess Germans love camembert.

While doing some research on line yesterday, I realized that the Auer Dult was going on this week, which is an outdoor festival in Au. The neighborhood of Au celebrates with a traditional market three times a year (May, July and October) at the foot of the Mariahilf church. The name changes according to the time of year: May – Maidult, July – Jakobidult, October - Kirchweihdult, however the name Auer Dult (meadow festival) encompasses them all.

I have to admit that I was rather disappointed as everything I read online talked about the beautiful antiques. Instead, I found myself distracted by the German carnival foods, fair rides for the kids, and people selling everything from ‘As seen on TV’ products to women’s lingerie. However, once you move past some of the bizarre things for sale you realize the magnificent array of ceramics, antique furniture, jewelry, and teapots that really make the Auer Dult special. They do have numerous stalls that contain a wide variety of kitchen tools and may have even found a Christmas present for someone.

Each of the Dults lasts for 9 days, so if anyone is interested in checking the festival out please plan your visits accordingly.

vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. – die Gauntletts

Let the Travel Begin

We booked our first European trip, destination: Prague. Cannot wait to show my hubby around the city and visit Kristin. Off to hit the gym and then get ready for a birthday dinner for Brad’s work.

vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. – die Gauntletts

P.S. – If you know of a must see place in Prague (i.e. restaurants, bars, small shops) that are not found in travel books, please let us know by posting a comment.

Second Visitor

We had our second visitor in Munich today. Matt Clarke, Joe Clarke’s littlest brother, works outside of Frankfurt from time to time and decided to head to Munich for a day before returning to the US. We had lunch at a great German restaurant near the city center, then tried to scalp tickets at the Allianz Arena for the Bayern Munich game. Turns out the process is not at all the same in the US, and it is remarkably difficult to accomplish this (especially if you don’t speak German). We cut our losses 15 minutes before the game and headed to a bar to watch the game. Bayern beat Hannover 3-0.

Lunching with a Fellow Housewife

Today I met Cheryl, a fellow KPMGers wife, at Bagel Brothers (almost exactly like Noah’s in San Francisco or Einstein’s in Chicago) in Maxvorstadt, which is very close to our new flat. It was great getting to know her better and I loved hearing all about their experiences. I did learn something very interesting today and thought I would share it with all of you. According to Cheryl, Munich does not have any brown sugar or chocolate chips. I was completely shocked and my face must have showed it as she followed it up by saying that she always requests visitors bring these products with them when they come to Munich. Plus, friends and family members have even sent brown sugar as birthday presents…so random! I guess I should have done my research a little more before coming here and stocked up on these. I wonder what other products are hard to find here?

After lunch, we went for a walk around the area and I was able to show her the outside of our new building. It was a great afternoon, until I tried to get back to the hotel. I got on the U2 and then hopped on the U1, which would have been correct; however instead of getting on the U1 towards Olympia-Einkaufszentrum, I got on the other one towards Mangfallplatz. Oops…oh well, I made it work and finally got back to the flat. Brad got home from work and we decided to check out the German restaurant down the street. It was delicious!!! Brad got the pretzel soup and some type of sausage dish and then I had my first spatzle dish with crispy onions on the top.

Everything was so yummy!!!

Gute Nacht. Viel Liebe – die Gauntletts

Shopping Shopping Shopping

Brad and I had kaffee together again this morning and I really enjoy this part of the day. I am really happy Brad is taking time to have a cup of joe with his wife in the morning instead of just leaving for work and hopefully this will continue, but only time will tell.

After mapping out my shopping day (Karstadt, H&M, American Apparel, BioMart), I head to the Gern u-bahn and took it to Karlsplatz. I spent all day in the city center shopping and just exploring our new home. I had wanted to purchase a black coat prior to leaving the states, but ran out of time and decided that I would just buy one here. So after visiting about 15 different shops and probably trying on over 35 jackets, I found one at Mango. I then went to the BioMart, which is Munich’s version of WholeFoods. It was actually really nice and had a variety of health foods, but still no hummus and I think I will just have to start making my own. I also found a home goods type store called Depot as well as a cigar shop, which I know Brad will be excited about. I stumbled upon the open market, which was huge and filled with fresh flowers, meats, cheeses, wine, beer, vegetables, fruits and more. It is here every day and there is even a food tasting tour on Fridays and Saturdays.

Arrived home to an email from Brad that had the lease for the flat, super exciting!!! We have both reviewed it and I told Brad to sign and send it to the owners. I hope all of it works out and we are able to move in on November 1st. Heading downstairs for dinner with Brad, so tired of eating out and cannot wait to cook dinner in our new flat.

vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. – die Gauntletts

SF Coffee Company?

I just got back from walking around Schwabing and it is freezing out, my feet are a shade of blue. Brad received a bunch of our bank stuff and of course it was all in German, so I had to bring it into Francesca and ask for assistance. After getting all of it taken care of, I stopped for a kaffee at the San Francisco Coffee Company and then went to the shop where Brad and I went on Saturday. Everyone keeps asking us if San Francisco Coffee Company remind us of home. We don’t have the heart to tell them that we don’t recall seeing a single San Francisco Coffee Company in San Francisco. After purchasing a super cute vintage hat, I decided to head back as I was not dressed properly (tory b flats without socks). Time to put the laundry in, call home and make dinner for my hubbie…we are having cucumber salad, a frozen bean/veggie thing and instant rice, I know so gourmet.

Still no word from the owners of the flat, but maybe something tomorrow.

vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. – die Gauntletts

Date Night!

My husband is so wonderful! Last night he told me that Tuesday was date night and we were going out to dinner by Allianz. We met by his office, which is located in Schwabing and looks like a neighborhood rather than an office complex. Prior to meeting Brad, I had to go to Maxvorsadt to see our relocation agent as she was able to get our visas finalized and return our passports, which means we are official and able to live in Munich! YEAH!!! We also learned that getting a drivers license may take a little more effort than we originally thought. It appears that California driver licenses are not recognized here and if I want one, I will have to take driving lessons, spend a full day in first aid training and then take the two tests (written as well as driving). However, we may have found a loop hole, which is getting an Illinois driving license as it is accepted here. More to come on this topic.

Brad received some suggestion for dinner from his co-workers and we decided to eat at a Mexican restaurant where we had margarita’s, chips and salsa, yummy burritos and wonderful conversation. He is so sweet and wants to take me on dates at least once a week…I am the luckiest girl in the world! We are still waiting to hear about the apartment, but our relocation agent said it looks good and is just waiting for the lease. We will keep you posted and let you know as soon as we here!

Gute Nacht. Viel Liebe – die Gauntletts

Brad’s First Day at Allianz and My First Day Home Alone

Today was Brad’s first day at Allianz and my first full day alone in Munich. However, I was still feeling a little under the weather and decided not to do too much. So instead of heading into Munich, I decided to just stay around Gern and do exploring. First, I went to the hotel gym for some treadmill time and I know everyone says things are smaller in Europe, but this is taking it to a whole new level. One treadmill, no bike or weights, I cannot wait to join Body Up Diva and start taking classes again. Afterwards, I walked around Gern and found a nice park with a pond in the middle of it. I am looking forward to showing it to Brad this weekend. Then I went to the market (my German translation book in hand) and picked up a few things to make dinner. I had a good day and now it is time to call the family and wait for Brad to come home from work. Can’t wait to hear what he ate for lunch!

Vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. – die Gauntletts

Waffles anyone?

James and Cheryl, the couple who is on rotation from the Richmond office and will be returning to the states next March, invited us and another couple over for waffles, mimosas and delicious apples. They went to an apple picking festival in the country yesterday and spent the rest of the weekend making apple treats –apple sauce, muffins, etc. It was a wonderful afternoon with great food and company. I did learn something very interesting this afternoon about water conservation in Europe. While showering, you turn the water off during shampooing/conditioning your hair and soaping. I think I will try that the next time I am in the shower.

However, on our way back to the hotel, I started to feel ill and believe it is the same thing Brad had right before we came to Munich. Therefore, I spent the evening in bed watching “Arrested Development” (a hilarious show) while Brad did Rosetta Stone and prepared for his first day at Allianz. Hopefully it will be a quick recovery and I will feel better by tomorrow.

Gute Nacht. viel Liebe – die Gauntletts

House Hunters International – die Gauntletts (Day 3)

Last night we went to the ToyTown beer garden meet up in Haidhausen and was able to meet a few great people. Toytown Germany is an English-speaking website for Germany and a place where people can post events, jobs, apartments, etc. We plan to attend next week and hopefully start making some connections.

Today, we are scheduled to view another flat in Maxvorstadt, but prior to meeting with the owners, Brad and I decided to check out the area again as we still have not located the market that our relocation agent mentioned yesterday. Well, we found it and the place is huge (much different than the other ones we have been seeing)!!! I was very excited to find tofu, .1% fett milch and several other American products (popcorn, kettle chips, hot chocolate). Brad loves the giant meat section and pasta aisle. Needless to say, we were both happy with the grocery store situation by the flat. Afterwards, we decided to time how long of a walk it was from the flat to Schwabing and were pleasantly surprised that it only took about ten minutes at a rather slow pace. We checked out the open market and a vintage store (found black over the knee Christian Louboutins boots, but decided against it), prior to heading to Kaisergarten for lunch. We love this place and believe it will be our favorite biergarten. I know, this maybe a little premature, but it has such a great atmosphere with delicious Bavarian cuisine, tasty beer for Brad and bubbly for me, excellent people watching (a young mother chasing her children around in the gravel wearing suede Louboutins…love it), and just a wonderful place. As we were leaving, Brad and I turned to each other and said “I cannot wait to take all of our visitors here.” (http://www.kaisergarten.com/)


We then headed back to the flat in Maxvorstadt to meet with the owners and after touring the apartment, we think it is a good fit for us. It is small (of course it is larger than our studio in San Francisco, we will have to get used to having doors again), but they used the space well and it comes fully furnished. The area of town is great (close to shops, restaurants, bars, markets, etc.) and it is not too far from where Brad will be working. Allianz is in the “Schwabing” area of Munich, which is directly North of Maxvorstadt, the area this apartment is in. The only reason we call it “potential” is because our relocation agency needs to finalize the paperwork with the owners. Hopefully, we’ll be moved in around November 1st. More to come on this front, but we did have kaffee with the owners afterwards and they seemed to really like us.

Viel Liebe – die Gauntletts

First Day at KPMG Munich

Today was my first day back at work. Between the wedding and our relocation to Germany, I had taken 7 weeks of personal time this summer, so it was certainly time for me to get back to work. German businessmen dress far more formally than those in the US. Before leaving the US, I had to purchase a few suits and ties (I’ll need those each day, even on Fridays).

I found my way to the office (easily located via the U-bahn) and located the IT department where I received my computer, badge, etc. I checked email for the first time to realize that all office-wide emails are in German (of course). How do I know if I even need to respond? I couldn’t be more thankful for Google translate until I improve my German skills. The office is much bigger than I expected, roughly 1500 employees work in KPMG’s Munich office. Everyone was very gracious and happy to show me around. I’ll look forward to getting to Allianz on Monday.

Going to meet the wife at Café Lotti in Maxvorstadt, hopefully she had a wonderful morning!

Veil Liebe - die Gauntletts

Our First European Purchase

The Gauntletts had a big day as we headed to the largest MediaMart in Munich and it definitely puts Best Buy to shame. We bought our first European electronics (an iron and hairdryer) and are looking forward to not having to use ones in the hotel for the next month. We also found an extremely large market, which contains several American products as well as .1% fett milch (Munich’s Skim Milk). This mart also had whole wheat pasta, so we decided to make his favorite dinner, spaghetti. After getting a few more items, we headed back to our hotel in Gern to drop off our purchases and then walked around Maxvorstadt. We had lunch at a Turkish fast food place (again), where Brad got a Döner and I had the falafel. Afterwards, we walked around the area and then headed to the BMW museum for a bit prior to heading back to our hotel. Time to make dinner in our amazing kitchen!!!

Vermisse euch alle. viel Liebe. - die Gauntletts

House Hunters International: die Gauntletts (Day 2)

Dinner was wonderful and Brad’s team is terrific! However, I am so glad we took the time to look at the menu online prior to going as it was all in German. I had the Lachsfilet (Salmon Fillet) and Brad had the Schwertfisch (Swordfish). It was delicious and we already plan to take all of our visitors there.

Flat hunting did not go as well as yesterday and I am starting to get very concerned that we are not going to find anything. Brad keeps telling me to stay positive and that we will keep looking until we find something we like. Also, it is not looking so good for the flat we saw yesterday, there is one other applicant who claims to be a carpenter and willing to do work in the flat while he is there. So frustrating and we wish we could speak with the owner as I would have no problem putting some work into the place.

The best part of today was stumbling upon the ALDI and it made me think of my mom!!!

Wir werden dixh vermissen. Alles Liebe - die Gauntletts

House Hunters International: die Gauntletts

We found an amazing flat this morning and had our relocation agent turned in all of the paperwork this afternoon. Brad and I really hope we get this flat as the area is amazing and we both felt at home the minute we walked in. It has 2.5 rooms, two balconies and plenty of room for all of our house guests. Fingers crossed!!!

We also found out how small Munich really is because after taking pictures for our visas we noticed that the partner Brad will be working with was waving at us. We quickly found out that he lived just right around the corner and was stopping at home to pick something up. This made us feel extremely comfortable about the area we had chosen to live in and made me feel good about the research I had done prior to completing our housing form. We are now off to Brenner Grill to have dinner with Brad’s team, hope everything goes well!

Wir werden dixh vermissen. Alles Liebe - die Gauntletts

2010 Oktoberfest

Prost, Prost, Prost!!!

We spent our first day in Munich celebrating the 200th year of Oktoberfest and man, what a party! After consuming a German breakfast, which includes slices of meat, pretzels and more meat, we headed over to the festival via the U-bhan (Germany’s transportation system). Once we arrived at Oktoberfest, we noticed that our regular clothes were not going to cut it next year as everyone was wearing the traditional lederhosen (men) and dirndls (female). Note to self, learn how to make lederhosen and dirndls. After walking around for a few minutes, we found ourselves in the Spaten tent and learned that in order to obtain a beverage or food, you must be seated at one of the tables. Therefore, we began to walk up and down the aisles until we found room at a table. Aisle 5/table 86 appeared to have room, so I decided to ask them and we ended up spending the whole day with people from Germany, the US, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand.

We also realized that the Oktoberfest at Fort Mason in San Francisco is a fairly decent replica of the original…..yes, they sing John Denver here as well. We lasted 6 hours or so then needed to retreat after drinking the strong German Oktoberfest bier. We are looking forward to visitors next year for the festival, it is certainly worth seeing.

Wir werden dixh vermissen. Alles Liebe - die Gauntletts

Greetings from Munich!

Brad and I have arrived in Munich and checked into our corporate housing hotel. The journey was long and tiring, but also quite humorous. After arriving in London, we had to travel to Terminal 5 (when I say travel, I mean a 15 minute walk through the terminal, 15 minute waiting in line for a bus and then a 25 minute shuttle ride) where we had to go through security again before even making it to the new giant terminal. Note to self, never go through Heathrow again. After almost missing our connection to Munich, we finally find our seats on the aircraft and just as Brad and I are about to fall asleep, we notice that the flight attendants were walking down the aisle passing out cans of Heineken to all the passengers celebrating Oktoberfest. We both turned to each other and said; well, I guess we picked a great weekend to move to Munich.

After 18+ hours of traveling, we finally arrived in Munich and wanted to find our baggage claim area as we had checked over 400 hundred pounds of luggage at O’Hare and were anxious to see if all of it made it here. From afar, I noticed that one of our suitcases was on the turnabout, which made me very excited as this bag contained a pair of ruby red shoes that I love! But then, as we get closer, we noticed that the cardboard boxes we had packed did not make it all in one piece. Of the three we checked, only one was in decent condition and the other two were missing one whole side. Luckily, Brad had place garbage bags inside the boxes to protect them, so we do not think any items fell out, but we will only know for certain after we unpack everything. If you ever find yourself moving across the pond, the use of moving boxes can be a good idea, but don’t be clever and cut holes into the sides for handles.

After collecting our life, we loaded all of the bags onto a cart and walked passed customs (who did not even look twice at us) in hopes of finding a cab. Since it is Oktoberfest, large cabs/vans were hard to find, so at first they tried to talk us into two separate cabs (one for me and then one for Brad), which was not going to work. Then all the men (including Brad) thought it would be okay for our luggage to go into one cab and then us in another. After giving Brad the worst look ever, we did everything to make our 9 large pieces of luggage and three people fit into one tiny cab. After a few minutes of struggling, we were finally off to our hotel. Now, Brad and I must do everything possible to stay awake for the next few hours as we hope to fully adjust to the time change by the end of the weekend. Hope all is well and we are looking forward to our first Oktoberfest!!!

Wir werden dixh vermissen. Alles Liebe - die Gauntletts