Europe 1999 -Germany

My knowledge of Germany was filled with misconceptions, misinformation and prejudices. But as my research intensified, so did my desire to finish this trip in the country that has brought the world so much pleasure and pain.

Germany was the first country on this vacation that presented a real linguistic challenge. I knew I was in trouble when we stopped for lunch at a restaurant in Trier. The entire menu was in German and nobody spoke English. I was in deep "caca" until I recognized wiener schnitzel on the menu. Little did I realize that fried veal would be my main dietary intake for the next next three days!

Shock #2: The Autobahn - Hitler has a good idea when he built this "mother of all Interstate highways" back in 1934. Unfortunately, good ideas die hard when not maintained. Too many cars are trying to occupy too little space. What should have been a 3 hour drive from Karlsruhe to Munich (along the A8) took us nearly 7 agonizing hours. While there were times we cruised along at 120 MPH, too many times we were stopped dead in traffic for more than an hour.

Germany was divided into several mini- trips with us concentrating on two major cities... Munich and Berlin. Helping me with my Munich plans was my Internet buddy Karin Brenig.

Dachau Concentration Camp: Located on the outskirts of Munich, this hell hole is a sobering reminder that atrocities and ethnic cleansing did not go away with the demise of the Third Reich. Truly, the most chilling part of our trip.