Day 3

Today we headed out of Munich to Dachau for some history. We took a guided tour through the Dachau concentration camp located in the suburbs about a half hour from downtown. Our tour guide was an American guy who moved here 35 years ago. He was pretty knowledgable and interesting, and lucky for us, was pretty patient with our kids. Our group was comprised of three other people – one from Finland, two from Scotland. Our kids slowed us down a lot and we even got scolded in one of the rooms when they were playing – “This is not a funny place!” was what the Dachau employee told Mary with a disapproving look. The concentration camp was pretty eery and sobering to think about. It was strange to be there where such an ugly part of history took place.
Mary’s note: I was sickened by the feeling at the creamatorium where so many’s remains were namelessly burned, and by the room just before that titled “Brausebad” (meaning shower room) which was really a gas chamber. Our tour guide told us that Germans won’t use that term for showering because of the cruel interpretation it meant for those in concentration camps.

"Work Makes You Free"

After getting back to Munich, we found a really cool place called Durnbrau that had traditional Bavarian food and waitresses dressed in traditional Bavarian outfits. The place was nice and loud so the yelling and crying from the girls didn’t bother anyone. Our waitress was really nice and let Abby take a picture with her because Abby thought her outfit was so pretty. To eat, I had roast pork with potato dumpling and some sort of cabbage and vinegar mixture. Abby and Livi devoured some German potato soup and Mary had some sort of pasta. For dessert, we had traditional apple strudel with custard cream sauce and a plate of Bavarian cream with raspberry sauce and whipped cream. (Note: The food is listed in detail because Mary wants to remember every detail of what we eat while we’re here.)