First three days were busy...

It all started with my ride to the airport getting stuck at the office. So I decided to get to the airport 3 hours early, putting me there 2 hours early. I was also happy that I needed the time to pack, which I left to the last minute! I was sure I had forgotten something…

The airport was almost desolate. I was shocked with less than 10 minutes to check in and get to security.  As I awaited my boarding, I am somewhat ashamed to admit I was looking around the waiting area to see who I would like or hate to get stuck next to for 8 hours? No single person intrigued me enough to make me think, "They would be a good travel companion," but I saw three people who needed two seats and thought, "Please, God, no." It reminded me of my last flight, where I had twice my weight right next to me. If you had not heard, she was the one when I declined my processed meal; she gleefully said she would have it… That was after her skinny-as-a-rail husband gave her his meal as well. 

We boarded on time, and I played a game as people came toward me, stopped, and went into a seat around me. Goodie, I have two seats to myself, maybe not… This continued, and soon, I realized I would be alone! Window seat and the one next to my comfort. So, I started to sprawl out and prepare to enjoy the flight.

The first leg of the flight was uneventful, sort of off… They had movies on demand, so I chose "The Boy in Striped Pajamas." Now, I saw previews for this movie, but I really had no idea the intensity of the movie. The ending was so unexpected! I do not want to spoil it for you, but it is an independent film worth a look!

I slept a little on the plane even though I took my son's advice and took the prescription sleeping pill after the meal. I dozed for two hours and woke from the constant beeps when people pushed the button to call for help. Sometimes, it was simple, like not knowing how to turn on the light. I often wonder if I am becoming less patient or if the disparity in the world of intelligence is getting a whole lot wider. 

We arrived 30 minutes early in Amsterdam when I had originally only 50 minutes for the connecting flight… Well, now 80 minutes made it easier. My connecting flight was on the other side of the airport, and it was a long way to hustle with little sleep… It felt like mile 65 of a 100-mile race.

I did get there without any hassle. We waited for a while when boarding started 20 minutes late. Well, I hate to call it boarding, as we were put on a bus and carted across the runways to a plane in the middle of what seemed like nowhere in the darkness. We sat on the bus looking at the aircraft for another 10 minutes when we were told that the ice made walking to the plane difficult and that we had to board slowly. So we did… It was like Texans driving in a snowstorm. Some people had no idea what to do on ice. Took another 20 minutes to put less than 30 people on the puddle-jumper-sized plane.

Then we sat and sat and sat. The first deicing took a while when the pilot informed us we had lost our spot on the flight schedule, and the control tower needed to find a place for us. Another 15 minutes before we moved. Then the most confusing thing happened… I had never thought taxiing on the runway could take 15 minutes or more, but it did! We just kept moving along at about 20 MPH, crossed 2 interstate highways, and finally, there was this runway. I looked out the window and could not see the airport… Wow!

It was fine once we got in the air, but when we got to Munich, we were told we needed to circle, as we were late and had to wait for the chance to land… For another 10 minutes, we were on the ground.

I had anticipated customs and all those other issues people tell me about. Either I was an idiot, or there was no such thing as customs. I just walked the path to the baggage carousel, got the luggage, and walked out. Jordan was there, and thank God he almost got lost. But we made it to the train.

My first impression of Germany was that it was much like North Dakota. There were many farms and abandoned junk around them. What surprised me was the large amount of graffiti on the farms and so little in the towns. Did it seem odd? Maybe they left it at the farms and have this great graffiti patrol cleaning the city.

We dropped my stuff off at Jordan's place and went to Ulm. It is a quaint village with a church like none I have ever seen before. It is called the Munster, Germany's second largest Gothic church after the cathedral at Cologne. Construction started in 1377 but did not finish until 1890. Yes, 413 years to build! Been a Protestant place of worship since 1530… It had magnificent 15th-century choir stalls with numerous carved figures. The tower is the tallest church tower in the world at 161.53m high and 768 steps. No, I did not get in, but doing that stair workout would have been cool! It looked fascinating. We also took a walk along the Dona River, which was a mix of styles in development. We also came across the redevelopment of a property downtown. The construction materials dated no more than 100 years old, including steel beams and brick. I never found out why it was being removed.

We spent the entire day in Ulm and returned (a 2-hour train ride) to Munich. We went to the grocer and home. I was tired, so I made my bed on the floor and slept hard. I had taken Klomazimpam to help me sleep… Jordan woke me several times as I was snoring, which concerned me a little as I thought I might have a little sleep apnea again. This was an issue in the past when I was over 250 pounds. When I was in the 230s, it was never an issue.

We slept until 11 AM, which was funny, as I had not done that in a long time. But it was 2 AM back home. We spent most of the day at the BMW museum, which was cool. After that, we ate at a student pub called DieBierstube. This is a place where Jordan said it is common. The beer is the first priority, and then the food. I ate a rice/chicken dish, which was quite tasty. It was called Feuertopf. Must find the recipe! We left the restaurant and went downtown Munich. There was some type of protest? Cops everywhere. We did not stay long… We came home and went to bed as we were leaving very early for Stuttgart.

I'm up at 5 AM for some reason, and I'm back home at 10 PM. I did some odds and ends, showered, and headed for the train. The train to Stuttgart was just over 4 hours with the transfers. We were meeting a friend of Jordan's who would hang with us for the day. We arrived at 11:00 AM and went to a place where Jordan ordered me a Doener? Like Gyro meat but dry and less tasty… Been here three days, and we still do not have a great brat… I thought Germany was famous for the brats? We met Christiana at about 1:30 and toured the town before we went to the BMW Museum. This is the second car museum in two days, and I am a little sick of auto history, so tomorrow, we will stay away from auto-related stuff! We left Stuttgart at 8 PM and did not return to Jordan's place until 12:30 AM. Really tired, but I wanted to get a post for the first three days while I have access. No runs but walked at least 4-5 miles each day. I can feel it.

Time to sign off. Carry on!