Germany and what not.

I left you in Prague. I was pretty excited about the place, but since then things just keep getting better! So far we have been to quite a few places and I have just been a lazy blogger! tsk tsk.

Sorry about the lengthy read!
I think I will write about:

• Berlin
• Munich
• Nurnberg, for those who are geographically challenged (my sister, B this is you) these top three are all Germany.

I am currently in Hvar, Croatia.... Paradise!! It is apparently a bit of a party island and you see that for sure, but it is so beautiful that there is heaps of other things to do here too! 

GERMANY!

• BERLIN:
  First of all... be warned... If you go to Germany, it is 100% certain that you will gain at least 5kg. I tried to tell myself that I was just overreacting, and then my shorts didn't fit... it's real.... As I've mentioned before meals here are mostly meat and carb.... vegetables are a myth. I don't remember the last time I had some, and I am seriously CRAVING them!
  
  Back to business... Berlin was a really cool place, HUGE. This city has so much to offer and plenty of history. I won't go too much into the history, because honestly I don't know much of it accurately enough. We had three nights in Berlin, it was enough to see the basics but you could definitely see more if you have the time. The main area of Berlin is Berlin Mitte, which is around Alexanderplatz... (the main train station.)
  The Berlin Cathedral is a beautiful place! It is huge and a complete stand out in the city, you can't help but notice it. We went inside, as the Gman loves a good old look in a cathedral. It was only a couple of euro. The decorations inside were elaborate and it was probably the most impressive one I have seen.
  We also did a day trip out to the concentration camp, Sachenhausen. This horrible place wasn't a used for mass executions, but more of a work/labour camp. The conditions were awful, and predictably overcrowded. Most of the camp was demolished so it was a little hard to get a feel for the place, there were about three buildings standing. We did an audio tour which was really informative but not very interactive. We also did the holocaust memorial in Berlin which is underground and I felt that was more informative than the camp.

East Side Gallery, Berlin Wall. 

Berlin Wall.

hiya

Berlin Cathedral

If only pictures did this place justice...

Holocaust memorial.

Food... if you want to see why the shorts don't fit...
We went to a German restaurant called Dicke Wirtin, which is in the district of Charlottenburg (a cute neighbourhood with plenty of restaurants and bars). I had a really yummy german meal of roast pork, potato dumplings and red cabbage *hallelujah* veg! The portion size was huge, but I managed... I do like food! (obviously)
We found this restaurant through trip advisor... my new besty. Such a handy website, so easy to find good restaurants if you want to try a particular cuisine.

German meal at Dicke Wirte.

• NURNBERG: We went here because we wanted to see another place in Germany. I am so glad we did because we both really enjoyed it. Nurnburg is also infamous for various war time movements, but I don't want to focus on that because these days the city has so much to offer. Nurnberg is known for its Christmas market, and I love Christmas! I would love to go to the market in winter, it is apparently beautiful, and what's more... they serve hot wine there... We went out for meals on the canals, drank at local pubs and weren't surrounded by too many flocks of fellow tourists aka "ozzies". 

Opting for salad. HUGE tuna salad! nom.

Where we had dinner.

Overlooking Nurnberg.

The rain stopped for five minutes!

Castle.

Munich... our last stop in Germany! 

We arrived in Munich and were overwhelmed by the size of the place. We had no idea how big it was... Nurnberg was a much smaller city. Munich is in the state of Bavaria which is totally different from the rest of Germany. Bavarian people have their own traditions and pride themselves on Beer! 

We checked out the city on another free walking tour, they are everywhere you just google free things to do in the city you're in and you find heaps of options!! 

We met up with our German friend J, who lives in Munich and he showed us around. He took us to a German bier garten which was really nice, very busy and had live music. I even drank beer! I am becoming a new person...I don't like this new voluptuous version of myself, if it depressing! I want to be this again ( I miss the six week challenge.) Boooooooo. It is just so hard to enjoy the culture and try new things without gaining weight. 

Sorry for the whinge... 

Moving on...

Our friend J also met us the next morning as he insisted we have to try a traditional Bavarian breakfast... This breakfast consists of a big pretzel (which is traditionally German, not American!) steamed Weiss wurst (white sausage) which you take the skin off and eat with a sweet mustard... of course you drink it with beer... traditionally you have to eat this meal before 12pm as the sausages are quite perishable. J said that traditionally in villages they had a bell that was rung at 12pm to say that weiss wurst were no longer available.... I love Germany and their traditions! I wish we had weird traditions like this. 

Next stop Neuschwanstein Castle!! What a place!! This is the castle that the famous Disney castle is based on. It is a beautiful castle in a picturesque village. King Ludwig II built the castle, he was an eccentric man who was infamous for spending enormous amounts of money and one day mysteriously disappearing... their are lots of theories behind his disappearance, but most think it was foul play. When you walk through the castle you feel like you are in Beauty and the Beast. The ballroom and the library are like straight from the film! I really enjoyed our day trip there. We got some great photos and even got to walk down a waterfall. This tour is a MUST, but it is a lot easier if you go on an organised tour as you don't have to line up for hours for a ticket. 

The famous castle!

The walk after the castle, the waterfalls were beautiful.

Beer Garden.

Bavarian breakfast!

I hope that reading didn't exhaust you!!

Just so you know, I won't be able to post for at least a week! We have booked an organised tour for a week check it out Balkan road trip. I am so excited for it! Speak soon lovelies.