On your marks, get set….Munich

Posted on September 15, 2012 Updated on July 7, 2015

An unexpected adventure has arisen this summer for myself and my husband. Our boys have been taken on holiday with their grandfather. Not ones for letting a rare opportunity go to waste we decided we needed to make the most of the situation and do something that we can never do with kids around.

So, we decided to have an adventure around Europe for 17 days.

Apart from the odd weekend away, we have never had a holiday together given that we had our first child when we were young. That, and my crippling fear of flying which left us holidaying in Cornwall and Wales each year.

Thanks to an abundance of air miles that I’ve been saving up, we had a plan, a schedule of cities and we were ready for the off.

Day One
The adventure began on the number 19 bus to Manchester Airport. The journey had me concentrating like a mind-reader as I was trying to hold in a much needed pee and boy did that bus go round all of Wythenshawe before it got tot the airport. I was almost singing when we finally disembarked and got into the airport terminal.

A short flight to London Heathrow where we changed to our connecting flight to Munich. This was made entertaining by being part of a group of passengers sat in front of the tv screen watching Mo Farrah going for gold in the 5000 metre race.

We didn’t see the finish as we got the final call for boarding.

Once in Munich we were treat to a couple of laps of what felt like a journey in a formula one car as our taxi driver- think he was called Franz Schumacher (Michaels brother) dropped us at our hotel. A nice hotel NH Airport-Munchen, a welcome couple of beers and then off to bed we went.

Day Two
The morning started with the husband skidding into the bathroom – a leak in the bathroom made having a shower almost like an obstacle course. However, we got a free shuttle bus ride back to the airport for our troubles.

I had booked us into a very cheap pension which is basically just a no frills room. It was very no frills and was opposite a nice lap dancing establishment which reflected the glow of red lights into our room in the evening.

We spent the day exploring beautiful Munich, taking in the churches, Oktoberfest venue and ended up in a picturesque park in the centre. The park was magical, so different from the parks here in Britain. The major difference being the scattering of middle aged, naked men who were sunbathing in the area. I was a bit shell shocked by the sight – not by naked men, but it was a bit surreal them being within a few metres of children playing football……

After the shock of the naked park, the rest of it was great. Young people surfing in the vibrant, rough area of the river that was running through the park. Mesmerising to watch and certainly nothing like that available to the young people in Wythenshawe – not a whiff of wkd, wacky backy or general anti-social behaviour in sight.

We stayed that night in the city centre in a pension. I couldn’t help but think of Bates Motel that night as I watched the closing Olympic ceremony, thinking that the freaky owner may let himself into our room dressed in his mothers clothes.