I was really tired on this day. I did three consecutive night shifts with little sleep. And I did not sleep on the night before because I was worried I might oversleep and miss the early morning flight. Arrived in Munich at 9am. Bought a day ticket at euro10.80 (cover train/tube/tram and bus). Munich has excellent public transport system and I took a while to understand how the fare system works. Airport is located 4 zones away hence single ticket alone to the city cost more than euro 8. If one is going to do more sightseeing after going to the city from the airport, it is more worth to buy the day ticket. The ticketing machine has option for English language which is so user friendly.
Munich is a capivating city. Modern, vibrant with state of the art buildings and perfect landscape garden it is easy to forget it is also very rich in history. It is after all a city Hitler named as the Capital of Movement (Die Hauptstadt der Bewegung)…shiver…I planned this tour from Munich to Berlin and then to Hamburg…mainly because the airplane ticket is cheaper this way. But I would suggest travel in opposite the direction because Munich is very close to Salzburg in Austria. It is also better to travel to the Bavaria at the end of April instead of March. The famous Romantic Road tour by Europa bus that covers medieval and lovely towns of Bavaria only start after 18th April. One can purchase the tour ticket and opt to hop on hop off any town along the Romantic route on any days. The Bayern ticket (Bavarian – day ticket) also allows one to go anywhere within Bavaria and Salzburg at the price of only euro21 for single. Family travel can be inexpensive because there is group card that allow group travel up to 5 people at the price of one ticket. Other option is to rent a car and drive around Bavaria because the scenery is so breath taking that you might just want to park your car aside and take in the beauty of the Bavarian Alps. If travel by train, one can still experience the spectacular scenery but cannot stop to snap a photo. Luckily, my Sony Nex 3 still able to take some photos along the way using the antimotion mode. I would advise not to travel from Munich to Berlin via trains unless it is an express train. The cheap option via three changes lasting more than 8 hours sent my head spinning and nauseous…never again! Worst, my train from Hof to Dresden was delayed by 10minutes and I missed my connecting train to Berlin…I had to wait for another train and arrived at near midnight instead of 9pm original schedule. One can either get an ICE train (Intercity Express, more expensive) or just fly.
The Euro Youth Hostel is conveniently located very near the hauptbahnhof (central train station). After putting down my luggage, I rushed to the main station to board a train to Dachau which is just about 20min away. Outside Dachau train station, switched to a bus to Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial. The bus stop is very well signposted as KZ-Gedenkstatte Dachau. Dachau itself is quite a lovely town but I had no time to explore. The memorial itself took me more than 3 hours to finish and by the end of it, I was wasted. At arrival at the memorial, I was surprised by how peaceful it looks. I bought an audio guide but on the hind sight, it was not really necessary because a lot of information on every significant building and the museum in the centre has extensive information about the history and happenings in concentration camp, evolution and rising of the Nazis under Adolf Hitler and the liberation of the prisoners. The Dachau concentration camp was first established in March 1933 mainly for political prisoners and it became the model for other concentration camp. It was initially built for the capacity of 6000 prisoners but by 1945, about 30000 prisoners were found in barracks during liberation by US army on April 29, 1945. During the period from March 1933-1945 (Third Reich) , more than 200000 prisoners from 30 nations were imprisoned and more than 43000 died. Besides political enemies, the Jews, homosexuals, Polish, Russian and some religious figures were targeted. When one first enter the Jourhaus, the first thing to notice is the gate's inscription “Arbeut macht frei” which means “Work will set you free”. Once prisoner enters the camp, he is stripped of possessions, dignity and human right. It is horribly disturbing to visit the bunker (place to torture or execute prisoners), the gas chamber, crematorium and the reconstructed barrack. Worst of all is probably to watch the documentary that is shown at certain time in the museum. Piles of dead bodies were being carted away and faces of men who were suffering. It was also very moving to listen to the accounts of the survivors of the camp via audio guide. The dead victims were disposed via crematorium but when there were coal shortage in 1945, the bodies were buried in mass graves in Leitenberg and Waldfriedhof cemetery.
After Dachau, I took train to Olympiacentrum. BMW Welt is the first building I saw as I exited the station. It is an impressive futuristic building that functions as a show room, marketing and sales center. Seductive sport cars, convertibles and super bikes are in display here. It is indeed a car haven! There is a walkway that connects Welt and the BMW Museum. I did not go for the museum exhibition as there is only 1 hour left before closing hence not worth paying the full fees. Instead, I took photos of old BMW models (the sort of cars your father would drive in the 70s...he he he). I walked around the Olympiapark passing by Olymmpiaturm (Olympic Tower) and Olympia Halle.
Before sunset, I hopped into tram 16 to visit the park in Nymphenburg Palace. By the time I reached, the palace is already closed. The palace has a massive and well designed park with Pagodenburg (Chinese teahouse), Badenburg, Amalienburg (hunting lodge) . There is a large Neptune fountain too. It was a very refreshing walk and I really enjoyed it. A great venue to end a perfect day…
Back in central train station, bought curry wurst for dinner before retiring to the hostel.
BMW Welt
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