Berlin, Munich, Maria Gern, Salzburg, Krakow and back! Enjoy 🙂

Berchtesgaden/Salzburg

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If I had to choose one place to retire in the world that had to be gorgeous, simple and somewhat of a hidden gem – Berchtesgaden would be it. The best place to stay is by far Hotel Maria Gern. It is situated up in the alps and is a two story family owned hotel that also includes a restaurant. The food there is my absolute favorite in the entire world! Be sure to order the Rahmschnitzel (pictured above) and pretty much any beer on their menu and you are good to go! Everything is homemade, fresh, and rich. Also, they make a great version of an ice cream sundae that has wafer cookies in it that are to die for. As per usual in Germany, nothing is too sweet, but just right. In the morning you are welcome to a buffet traditional Bavarian breakfast with lots of meats, cheeses, and breads.

If you are in Berchtesgaden, and a history of buff of any kind, it is worth the short drive up to see Eagle’s Nest and Obersalzburg. Obersalzburg is a museum and also an old World War II bunker that you can tour. Creepy? Yes. But if nothing else, the view and observation deck shouldn’t be missed. Go up the hill a bit further and you will be at Eagle’s Nest which was Hitler’s infamous lookout and hideaway during World War II.

Next stop would be Lake Königssee situated in the heart of Berchtesgaden National Park. Königssee is a gorgeous emerald gem that I can’t wait to see again. When you arrive be sure to buy your tickets for the boat tour right away so you won’t have to wait too long for the next one. You are able to take  a half tour or a full and we opted for the half. In the “half” tour, you ride the boat around the lake with a guide giving a full tour and half way you stop at the beer garden and souvenir shops. It is a great chance to have a beer, pretzel or snack and relax with some shopping for  Königssee souvenirs to take home. Your guide will tell you how long the break will be before you will head back to where you started. Once back at the docks, take advantage of more shopping – this is where I found my furry hat that I just adore.

Being so close to the Austrian border, it would be a huge mistake to not make a day of Salzburg. It is home to the largest fortress in Europe and has never been “taken” by an enemy. You purchase your tickets at the bottom and take a lift up the side of the hill to the fortress. Once inside, you can go to several restaurants as well as walk around. Optionally, you can take a guided tour which I’d recommend that will take you to the very top to get a great view of Salzburg in a 360 degree view.

Last but not least, make sure to snap a photo at the Mozart statue, the fountain from The Sound of Music and Mozart’s birthplace. There is tons of shopping in the city and a lot of great Mozart themed souvenirs to be found. A beautiful city with many musicians playing on the street (probably music students from University there) is really a great stop even for  a day trip. Happy travelling!

MUNICH/OCTOBERFEST

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When we touched down in Munich, the first thing we had to do was pick up our rental car. I am forever ruined from rentals in the states after this. Everyone in Europe seems to drive a Mercedes or a BMW and they are seen everywhere. Our chariot for the Autobahn was the Mercedes CLS 350 . Driving on the Autobahn is infamous for not having a speed limit – spoiler alert – it’s not like that everywhere… just in marked zones that are pretty wide open. Driving 120 MPH was a thrill I’d recommend to anyone, car enthusiast or not! Going that fast in a sweet ride is amazing – going the speed limit at home just doesn’t do it for me anymore!

After picking up our rental cars, we went to the BMW Welt (museum) which was very cool. The obviously have tons of cars and at the time had a motorcycle display like Tom Cruise’s in Mission Impossible.  The Welt is a great place to check out the cars, some of which aren’t available in the US, grab a quick bite and pick up a few souvenirs. Even if you don’t care about cars that much, it’s still a pretty cool stop. We then traveled to Maria Gern (I’ll post about that separately) where we would be staying over Oktoberfest’s opening weekend.

We took the train into Munich again for Oktoberfest… and let me tell you. Going is a must and I will definitely find a reason to go again! We were there the opening weekend and it was insane. There were at least 10,000 people there in many tents set up by each brewery. The tent idea freaked me out reading online until I got there and realized they are basically buildings with row after row of tables. I highly suggest making reservations in advance, especially if you are in a group and/or getting there early. We didn’t have reservations and never got to sit down, but it was fun either way. You MUST tip the waitresses to even get their attention and generally order as a group… bring euro! It is so much fun and everyone dresses up in lederhosen or dirndls. I ordered mine from Bavaria so it was authentic, but you can also rent them at the festival.

ASHBEARS TIPS FOR OKTOBERFEST

1. Wear an authentic dirndl or lederhosen to fit in… please don’t be the tourist in a trashy Halloween version. EVERYONE will notice and not in a good way!
2. Tip the waitress closest to you FIRST THING. They will treat you as if you were invisible otherwise. Tip well and they will serve you well.
3. Eat while you drink – pretzels and the roasted chickens will hit the spot! And drinking a liter of beer at a time will catch up with you…
4. Make reservations if you can – the tents fill up almost a year in advance! Otherwise, sneak in and try to grab spare seats.
5. Get in line for the restroom if you even think you have to go – the ladies line is always long!

BERLIN

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I don’t consider myself a “Negative Nancy”, but more of a “Realistic Rita”. So with that said, I will always be keeping it real on this blog. My first dose of real is that of all the places I saw on my first trip abroad, Berlin I could go without ever visiting again. It’s city comparable to NYC, either you will love it, hate it, or only want to go once.

With that said, I do think everyone should go at least once. If you are a history buff, this is definitely the city for you. I appreciate history but don’t completely nerd out on it, so once I’d seen the major sights, I was kind of over it. Spending a ton of time on the train there was a pain for me… mass transit just isn’t my style. I recommend going to Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, Checkpoint Charlie, the Berlin Wall museum, Charlottenburg Palace and the Berlin Cathedral (basically every place a simple google search will tell you).

Charlottenburg Palace is absolutely stunning and was undergoing some renovations while we were there. You can go inside and tour it, which we didn’t do, or simply enjoy the grounds and gardens. With the weather being so nice it was perfect to walk the grounds and then enjoy a snack at the restaurant out front on the patio. Patio dining is my favorite and if the weather allows, always sit outside abroad when I can.

For the ladies – you must go to KaDeWe. It is Berlin’s version of a Neiman Marcus on steriods. I’ve never seen anything like it. There are specialty shops of all kinds, food counters with gourmet chefs and my personal sweet spot – the Veuve Cliquot Bar. OMG – it was completely worth a splurge on a couple of glasses of champagne after picking out German chocolates to take back home and exploring all of the levels of the store.

Finally, the hidden gem of this city that was the most charming in my opinion was the Tiergarten. This thing is HUGE… definitely use the maps around because it would be quite easy to get lost. We went to one of the beer gardens next to a pond and had cappuccino and beers to take a break towards the end of our stay there. When you are walking the gardens, be sure to take a peek into the Berlin zoo which is visible from some paths in the garden.

ASHBEARS TOP TIPS/FACTS FOR BERLIN
1. Beer tends to be cheaper than water – cheers!
2. Wear comfortable shoes – you might need to run to catch a train! … but don’t wear sneakers, you will be automatically branded a tourist/American and made a target for pick pockets.
3. The transit systems run on the honor system – abuse it at your own risk.
4. Pay attention to the ground – there are bricks where east and west Berlin used to be divided – see picture below.
5. When ordering water, you must ask for stilles wasser to get tap water – otherwise it will be fizzy water.