Munich

Mom and I flew into Munich enroute to Venice, where we will board a Costa cruise ship to the eastern Mediterranean. This is my first time taking a cruise ship tour. The ports of call are all histornic cities such as Olympia in Greece, Ephesus and Istanbul in Turkey, Dubrovnik in Croatia. This will be my first time visiting all of these countries.

Munich was relatively easy to navigate. The city is clean and joyful, in Marienplatz there are tons of people in outdoor cafe chairs drinking beer and watching the crowds. The central market place was bustling. We visited the Residenz palace, partially restored former home of the Bavarian kings, the Nymphenburg palace, an immitation Versailles, and the Englische Garten which had tons of people doing all kinds of activities, from picnicking, boating, bicycling, beer drinking, ball playing, dog-walking, running, and reading. People were friendly and relaxed.