The one thing about Europe that is very inconvenient is the loo, aka bathroom or washer closet. Public WC costs 50 Euro cent. Sometimes I go in a WC not to pee, but to drink water (tap water is clean almost everywhere in Europe). Or, I would drink and stay for a while and pee out the water that I drank, you know, to make worth of my money. I’m hella cheap in Europe, but there’s one thing that I am not: There are many homeless people in Munich, and I tried to help as much as I can. I even gave a homeless man outside my hostel my sour candy. Now, I am a sour guy, literally, but the Germans take the flavor to the extreme. Munich was a very fun city, and my most anticipated destination because of the Neuswanstein castle (the real Disney castle, sleeping beauty tower).

On my first day here, I went to a bunch of squares and the Deutsches Musuem, which is a museum of technology and science, the biggest of its kind in the world. This place surely lives up to its name, I was there for over 5 hours and did not finish. Coming here is like any nerd’s dream and made me feel really proud to be an engineer. I liked that I was able to apply my basic fundamental to anything that was categorized as “science” in the museum like fluid dynamic, Newton’s laws, kinetics, etc.

For my second day I decided to try the world famous beer restaurant Hofbrauhaus. When I was in Prague, I asked my friends at the hostels: “If there was one thing about Munich that everyone would know, what would it be” and they told me of this place. I bought a liter of dark beer, three breads, and two white sausages and this meal was the most expensive meal in my life! I won’t tell you the price because it would just throw you off your chair. I knew it was costly and stupid for cheap guy like me, but it was something I had to do – it’s like coming to America and not eating a hamburger. Anyways, the beer was so strong. I’m not much of a drinker, but I don’t get drunk easily. I forced myself to down the whole thing as a symbol of my masculinity. By the time I was done my head was spinning, and it was only 11:00 AM! When I was out in the streets, I decided to go to a nearby church that I found the day prior, not for confession, but a place to stay until I sober up, unfortunately it was closed so I was forced to wonder the streets with dizziness. I wasn’t completely drunk though, I knew that because I passed the test. I was able to count backward and walk in straight lines. Well, I misplaced one step, but I blamed that on the wind.

I went to a palace called Schloss Residenz. This was the place Dukes lived in the medieval period and Kings in the classical. It was very nice to see how wealthy and prestigious men lived then. I saw their beds, the dining table, the golden silverware, the bright ceiling. It gave me a good perspective of what a castle or palace is. This palace is so big with over 130+ rooms. If I had something like this, I would cordially invite all the homeless people in the world to come live. Each room can host at least 70+ homeless (with extra leg space). That’s over 9000 homeless I could help! I noticed that the old people and elders like these places – castles, palaces, historical sites. I find that to be very cute. I think babies and old people have a lot in common; baby are brought to the world all winkled up, old people leave the world the same, babies wear diapers, some old people do the same.

The next day was so exciting that I could not sleep the night before. I woke up early to catch a train two hours away from Munich to a town called Fussen, the nearest town to the castle. I chose this day because the weather was forecasted to be “sunny.” When I left Munich it was sunny as ever and I left with a great optimism that the prediction would be true of Fussen. Just 15 minutes away from Munich the clouds started to come out. I told myself that it would clear by the time I got to Fussen. When I actually got there the clouds were more dense than ever and the temperature was less than 36 degree F. I was extremely displeased as I had been looking forward to this day for a long time. Then, I thought maybe when I climbed up the mountain I would rise above the clouds and the sun would be out. When I got to the castle (I had to wait 4 hours for my tour) I asked for the weather yesterday and was told sunny. By then I had just wanted to jump down the cliff (that was how frustrated I was). So for my time waiting I climbed even higher and said “Open Sesame” as a tribute to Alladin, since I was in the real Disneyland, but nothing happened. When I started my tour around 4 PM that day, the sun suddenly appear out of nowhere, bright as ever. My heart was filled with joy and I immediately forgot the cold. The interior of the castle was really pretty. I even climbed the spiral tower that led to the top. I felt like a prince saving sleeping beauty from the fog and depressed weather. When the tour ended I ran back to the bridge as fast as I could to take better pictures. It was truly a blessing. I couldn’t stop smiling for the next two hours. As a traveler, and more importantly, a photographer, I managed to capture the beauty of the castle that satisfied my collection. When I was done, I hiked to the Swam Lake, the very lake that inspired Tchaikovsky to compose his ballad. Not too many people came here because it was another hour hike from the castle so I felt really lucky. It was a beautiful day and I remember how happy I was. I actually liked the turn of events; to start with a cloudy day and discover the experience again with the sunny star.

Overall, my trip was amazing and one that I can never forget. I learned so much in such a short time period. This trip made me think of two things. One, I was contemplating whether I should get FB back because I had made many good friends, in my program and in my travel like Stefan. Two, I was always daydreaming how better it would be if I had “a special friend” to experience all this with. I mean, I saved sleeping beauty and all, but I wonder how great it’d be if I could actually hold her hands and walk down the narrow streets of Europe or drink a glass of wine with her while crossing Charles Bridge. Oh well, maybe she is sleeping under the pyramid of Giza, or Dubai tower, or Manchu Picchu, I’ll find her one day. :)

I think that I am very fortunate to have so many wonderful opportunities and explore this world. My roommate in Munich, a kind 30 year old Australian man from Sydney, told me that he never left the country until half a year ago. That said, I’m only 22 and have been to over 11 countries by myself! I remember coming to America 18 years ago and being fascinated with the flushing toilet, automobile, and a little drink called Coca Cola. Now, I have experienced from horse-back riding to ferries, from eating Currywrust to Portuguese egg tarts, from jetboating to glacier trekking! :)