Today we got up late to recover from the marathon of sight seeing we had yesterday. We made our reservations for our next two destinations and picked up another metro pass. We started this time at the Pantheon taking a look inside.
We continued to Piazza Navona where we had a drink and checked out the market. This day they had some kind of procession of fire fighters and emergency workers marching through the piazza.
Next, we hopped a bus to the Vatican where we had a gelati.
Here they had no beer stands, I miss Oktoberfest. The Vatican was closing soon and Rae didn't want to mess with the guards in the striped pajamas, so we went back to the hotel and went for supper.
At supper we had mussels, drank wine and at the end, the waiter gave Rae a rose so I punched him in the face.
Today we got a metro pass for the day and started out at the colosseum. Then we hit every tourist spot in Rome by foot: the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Roman forum from across the Circo Massimo. By the end of the day it felt as though we had walked through the entire Roman Empire.
Colosseum
Trevi Fountain
Spanish Steps
Near Circo Massimo
We ended the evening at a nearby restaurant. I had a pizza, Rae had the lasagna and we shared a great tiramisu that had to be prepared using a pound of butter.
This day was spent on a train, the longest thus far, heading from Munich to Rome. The Alps were beautiful and we were treated to the rare September snow caps.
Wanting to see the Alps up close, we took a day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. I guess technically it was a palace and not a castle because it didn't have much fortification. This place is said to be the inspiration for Walt Disney's Snow White Castle in Disneyland. We took the train to Füssen and a bus to the castle area. The Marienbrück (bridge) over the waterfall gorge was a great vantage point to photograph the castle. The boards on it were springy and there were loads of people wanting to take photos. I got off of there as soon as I got the shots I wanted.
We went to another vantage point where you could see five lakes below the castle.
Then to the castle tour. This was a prime example of German efficiency. You have only three minutes to go through the gate when your ticket group's number is called. Otherwise, your ticket expires. The visit to each room is timed down to the second. As you enter one room, the group ahead of you is exiting. No photos inside are allowed...except directed outside through the windows. Each room was themed on one of Richard Wagener's operas, except the throne room which has a Christian theme. Ludwig died before the throne was built so there was none but the grand flushable toilet with it's leather seat was fit for a king. After the quick tour of the castle and two gift shops on the way out, we returned to our bus by way of the waterfalls in the gorge (beautiful).
Once we arrived back in Munich, we returned to Oktoberfest. On the advice of our tour guide, we checked out the traditional fairground and beer tent. This one felt more family oriented and was likely much as Oktoberfest was like in earlier times.
Doug shot a cross bow dart gun in a little shooting range and rode a goofy bike (which didn't have the axles in the middle of the wheels) in the Velodrome. Check out the video of it at http://www.flickr.com/photos/theorangekid/6167913061/
This morning another guest in our hotel right next to the fairgrounds of Oktoberfest greeted us as we sat down for breakfast. "Are you guys here for Oktoberfest?" he asked in a Rhode Island accent. We replied with "Yes, It's our first one" to which he responded "I'm not looking for any money for anything, but I got two reservations for the Hofbräu tent on Sunday and I can't use them. You want em?" "Yes!" I said before could finish his sentence. "What you got there is the golden egg." he said as he handed me the printed copies of the reservation. After breakfast we head out to see the parade and see if we could get into a tent.
