Europe tour day 7-8: Munich, Germany

I don't know how to describe Munich, so let me put it this way. When you travel, there are places you find yourself wanting to come back to so you can explore more of it, or visit a certain place you weren't able to previously. That's not how I feel with this city.

Munich, instead, is the place where, if I had to relocate here for some reason, I know I'd be so happy living here.

From Innsbruck, this was the easiest city we wanted pass thru. I have previously not been interested in Germany, because I'm all about Paris, but Munich changed my mind.

I'm actually not sure what this building is, but it's so grand!

From the moment we arrived in the Munich Hbf, I felt that it was going to be different. On our way to our accommodations, the vibe was different. Despite the old architecture and various parks we passed by, there were also very modern buildings. I was highly fascinated by the tram right in the middle of the road, and the plants.

Coming from Italy and Austria, which felt like life was a bit slow-paced and all about art, which I also loved, in Munich I felt very much in the 21st century although it still had dashes of cultural appreciation -- one that I can only hope for now that we can achieve in the Philippines too.

Tip: If you're looking for rice or Asian food, there's a small kiosk right in the Munich Hbf which, to one who has been craving for a little taste of home, seemed like heaven.

One thing I immediately found out about Germans is that they are so nice and helpful! We were at the train station near the apartment, trying to figure out how to get to Marienplatz, when a German walked up to us and asked if he could help us. Apparently he couldn't speak English much, but he saw that we were very confused yet he still tried to help us. And when he couldn't communicate with us that well, another German on the platform walked up to us and helped us instead.

We reached Marienplatz, but the train station was right below a mall, and so up we went and found ourselves at the topmost floor, where we discovered a beautiful open plan restaurant called Dinea. I was so happy to see rice! and fish! and chicken! and beer on tap.

Their food court already looks like a buffet restaurant in Manila :/

I couldn't make up my mind and ended ordering a lot of food just to try several German food. It kinda blew my mind.

Nom nom from Dinea

Did I mention they have beer on tap? The delicious Paulaner beer, no less.

I couldn't help but also order a pretzel. And their potato gratin and a sausage (not in photo) and some of their rice, because I wasn't sure when I'd get the chance to eat rice again. Thank you, Germans, for eating rice. I can last on pasta and pizza and bread for seven days, but no longer than that. I needed a fix of the Philippines' staple food.

Afterwards, my parents attended a mass at the Frauenkirche, but my sister and I stayed outside taking photos and just generally getting lost amidst the shops and looking at Germans. Have I mentioned how good looking these Germans are? And how tall they are? At 5 feet and 1 inch, I felt my height.

Frauenkirche along Frauenplatz

My sister and I only went inside when the gong sounded. I didn't realize it before that it was the church with the so-called Devil's footprint, but when we went inside, the area with the step was too dark, and they were ushering us outside quickly so as not to disturb those who were still praying. I'm just glad I was able to tick off one thing off our Muenchen itinerary.

The next day, we were supposed to go to Wieskirche, which is a very beautiful church, but we were so exhausted, and my mom just wanted to stay in the apartment. So my father, sister and I went to the city instead. After watching the Rathaus-Glockenspiel, we started walking around and promptly got lost, walking in the English Garden. According to my research, it's one of the world's largest urban public park and is actually larger than Central Park in New York.

I promised them we can find one of those restaurants in the garden and dine al fresco, but after getting lost for a long time, my dad just wanted to get out and go somewhere else.

Temple of Diana in Munich

Along the way, we stumbled upon the Temple of Diana. While papa kept taking videos for my niece Aj, I started walking towards the temple. When I got there, I sat down in one of the benches, and an old man came in and set up his violin case and started playing.

At that time, I had no idea what he was playing. All I knew was that it was so heavenly. You could really see he loved music, and that he could feel the music flowing through him. He was selling his album for 10 euros each, but since I was on a tight budget, I couldn't afford it.

Violinist Vladimir Turchinsky playing in the Temple of Diana

His name is Vladimir Turchinsky, and how I wish I bought his album. People started drifting into the temple, lured by his music. He played so beautifully, I actually had tears in my eyes. I think we lost ourselves there for a good 15 minutes, just listening to him play with so much passion.

Eventually, we had to keep moving because papa was getting hungry. Thankfully, there were so many trees, it kind of felt like a forest in some parts because there were no concrete roads. It felt like an oasis. Then we stumbled upon one of the coolest things I have ever seen.

River surfing in English Garden, Munich

The river's current was so strong that people actually go there to surf. I've read about it online in forums during my research, but I didn't think I'd actually see it. It was so thrilling to watch, that we temporarily lost our dad because he got so close to the water's edge.


Excuse my outfit, but it was just so, so, so cold that day. And because we are such tourists, we actually asked one of the surfers for a photo when she emerged from the water. I was surprised she knew about the Philippines, and she was so friendly. The Germans were really nice.

Really, our second day in Munich was one of the things that taught me that being part of Team No Plan is also a good plan.

After that, we proceeded with our guest to find the restaurant somewhere in the Garden. My dad was about to give up. We took a couple of turns then dun dun dun, we finally reached it! It felt like an oasis.


Of course, what is Germany without beer? There were a lot of people, both Germans and tourists, milling and buying food. It was just such a nice day out.

St Peter's Church in Munich

After we had filled out on schnitzel, potatoes, and pretzels, we finally left to go back to the apartment to fetch our mom because we had to go to mass at Peterkirche, the oldest church in Munich. Outside, the Church looked so ordinary, but the inside took my breath away. It was light and airy, a stark contrast to the plain exterior.

The mass felt so solemn, and I actually felt shivers down my spine while attending mass. It just felt so surreal.

Afterwards, we had dinner and went home, ready for our early trip the next day to Zurich, Switzerland.


I hope you'll enjoy your trip! All photos are unedited. I don't know how to use Photoshop! Please don't use my images without permission.

Read about my Eurotrip!
Rome day 1
Rome day 2
Florence day 3-4
Pisa day 4
Venice day 5
Austria day 6

Other links you might find helpful:

Getting ready for Europe  |  Preparing your Schengen visa requirements  |  Booking your hotel and plane fare  |  Filling out the Schengen visa form  |  How to apply to the Italian embassy thru Via  |  Cross-country train travel in Europe

Europe tour day 6: Innsbruck, Austria

Surprising, beautiful, lovable Innsbruck

I'm so behind on my travel posts, so here I am playing catch-up!

Coming from Venice, we went straight to Innsbruck, Austria, using our Eurail train pass. It was quite a long train ride since we only used the regional trains, but we had so much fun seeing the influence of different cultures as we moved through Italy, closer to Austria.

Buildings from Italy to Austria reminded me of Russia

Innsbruck is the kind of place where gingerbread houses wouldn't seem out of place. It was just so utterly charming. We were only there for an overnight trip, and I think I should go back and stay for at least two days.

The buildings are less ornate than the ones from Italy, but no less artistic. It was definitely chillier up here than when we were in Italy, and we were all freezing to our bones. We visited Europe around the end of summer, just before autumn, but to our bodies used to the tropics, we felt like it was winter. So if you're going to Europe around end of summer and you're not used to the cold, wear thick jackets and leggings.

We took a bus ride to our hotel, and I think it was one of the more expensive bus tickets we have bought throughout our Euro trip since it was about 3 euros for one ride only. The hotel manager said it was cheaper to get a taxi from the train station to their hotel since there were four of us. Unfortunately, because of what we experienced in Rome, we decided to buy our tickets beforehand.

We stayed in the quaint Hotel Tautermann, which cost 130 euros for one night for four persons. It included a buffet breakfast; the food was so fresh and felt like a real European experience. We were the only Filipinos in the hotel, and during breakfast, it was so exciting to be surrounded by hotel guests from different continents.

Respite for the weary travellers

Breakfast spread :)

They have WiFi but only a limited number of devices are allowed to connect at any given time, so we took turns going online at night.

The place was very clean and comfortable. I am in love with those quilts because they were so warm. If we didn't have blaring alarms and an early train to Munich, we all would have been content to sleep longer.

After a quick change into warmer clothing, we were off to our number one itinerary in Innsbruck: Hungerburg Funicular!

One thing I've learned about Europeans is that when they say it's a five minutes' walk, it usually took us ten minutes longer to get there. But since the bus was expensive, and the manager said the Funicular was nearby, we decided to walk. Thank you, HERE Maps, for being so functional and useful, even offline.

We walked along the river, which made me feel like my blood was turning into ice. When we finally got to the Funicular, I handed our money to the teller to buy tickets to the topmost exit. She gave the money back and bluntly said, "no".

I blinked and stared then tried again. She returned my money again and said the Funicular was closed! We arrived at the exact closing time. Such a bummer. We were only allowed to go up to the Nordkette, which still provided a view of Innsbruck, but we really wanted to get to the topmost and experience the Austrian alps.

Aboard the cable car up to Nordkette

It was quite an experience riding the cable car by ourselves, with our backs to the mountains, and have Innsbruck slowly revealed to us as we went higher and higher.

From above, Innsbruck looked just like any other metropolis, albeit surrounded by green mountains and so chilly.

We wanted to explore the village but it started raining, and it was getting dark, so we went back to the town proper and after just walking around aimlessly, we found ourselves at the Old Town. Sometimes, when I look back to our Euro trip, I really marvel at how we were able to get to places by ourselves.

View of Innsbruck from the Nordkette

We just walked around trying to find the plaza we saw on our way to the hotel. We walked along alleys, saw a few trinkets we were so tempted to buy, but I soldiered on, taking pictures here and there.

Then we reached the Goldenes Dachl (Golden Roof)! It was built in 1500 and is considered Innsbruck's most famous symbol. According to Innsbruck.info, the roof was decorated with over 2,000 fire-gilded copper tiles to mark Emperor Maximilian I's wedding to Bianca Maria Sforza.

Goldenes Dachl (Golden Roof)

This is located in the Old Town, where there are numerous buildings still decorated in the old European architecture.

One thing I noticed about Innsbruck is that they usually have flowers hanging on their window sills. It makes the building so much prettier and just adds to the charm of the place.

I'm telling you, if you have the chance to pass through Innsbruck, take it.

View from our hotel's window

The sunrise in Innsbruck took my breath away. I love to sleep beside the window because I love looking out to the sky, and despite the cold, that night was no exception. And I was rewarded with such a beautiful view. Rolling clouds over hills and rooftops, while we were surrounded by mountains. It felt like a dream, so I had to take a lot of pictures. I just had to, because I might start to think that I just imagined the beautiful scene I witnessed!

After breakfast, we headed off to Innsbruck's Hbf, and off we went to Munich, Germany.


I hope you'll enjoy your trip! All photos are unedited. I don't know how to use Photoshop! Please don't use my images without permission.

Read about my Eurotrip!
Rome day 1
Rome day 2
Florence day 3-4
Pisa day 4
Venice day 5
Munich day 7-8

Other links you might find helpful:

Getting ready for Europe  |  Preparing your Schengen visa requirements  |  Booking your hotel and plane fare  |  Filling out the Schengen visa form  |  How to apply to the Italian embassy thru Via  |  Cross-country train travel in Europe

Blog design overhaul

Since I've been taking online classes, one of the things I learned was the importance of having a well-designed blog. I mean, yes, I knew that a long time ago, but this was the first time in over a year that I've taken a step back and looked at my blog critically.

How do you like this new look?

I think I've spent five hours tweaking all the codes and figuring out which part of the template I needed to edit to get what I wanted, such as the sub-menus and the icons and deleting fixed/locked widgets. Thank God for the internet!

And I just found out after five hours that HTML5 doesn't support bullet points (HTML <li>) tags anymore. Bummer. I now have to use the CSS code (which I have dutifully applied to this post).

But there are a few things I still don't know how to do, such as:

Turn my header name from black to a gold color

How to fix that search button

How to make all the labels of my post appear

How to make some of my images not blow up

How to make the clickable links stand out

How to make visited links turn into a different color

I love this new theme a lot, but tweaking this wasn't easy for someone who doesn't really have a background in coding/programming. Everything I was able to do, I learned from a basic HTML class I took in high school and a whole lot of GIYF moments.

I know I could have hired someone but (confession) I actually love to code my blog. I always learn something new, and I feel so accomplished. Programming has always been one of those things I'd taken way back in college, so I dabble in it whenever I can.

If anyone has problems with drop down menus and sub menus, the Java2s website was the most helpful tutorial I could find, and believe me, I looked through a lot of links. This was the only code that also worked for my blog, too.

If you have any suggestions on how to fix the problems I listed above, that would be so welcome.

Dreaming of the Kingdom of Bhutan

Taktshang (Tiger's Nest) Monastery Image by: Douglas J. McLaughlin - Own work, CC BY 2.5

Since I fulfilled my Paris trip dreams (soon to be up on the blog!), I've been looking for a new major dream I'd like to fulfil.

This year, I have completed several domestic trips (which I should write about!), and I have several more lined up, but I feel hungry for more, something out of the ordinary.

Paro Valley, Bhutan Image by: jmhullot / www.flickr.com License: Creative Commons License (By SA 2.0)

My parents and I plan to visit Jerusalem in the near future – although that's dependent on my mom getting her pension when she turns 60 next year. And of course, I need to save up for that because I've been paying for my own travel expenses since I graduated from college, even when travelling with family.

But I wanted something more. So I planned to go to Machu Picchu, but that would depend on my being able to visit the US, too, which is within my five-year plan. That seems so far away.

Enter Bhutan.

I accidentally stumbled upon Daphne's blog post about her trip to Bhutan, and aided by Johnny's posts about Bhutan, and it instantly fuelled my wanderlust. Beautiful vistas, warm people, and just a chill trip all around? Sign me up.

I looked it up immediately and found it would cost me maybe about P100,000 to P150,000. I guess it will cost almost as much as my Euro trip, but this time I'd only get to stay in one country for a week. But there are some things worth paying for, and I think the relaxation and inner peace Bhutan could give me just might be worth it.

Listing down the major trips I have to save up for...

• Jerusalem / Holy Land / Istanbul / Jordan
• Cambodia/Vietnam
• New York & Machu Picchu (have to do it in one go to save up on air fare)
• Kingdom of Bhutan
• Japan
• Iceland -- I want to see those auroras!
• Scandinavia

Haa Valley By No machine-readable author provided. Greenmnm69 assumed (based on copyright claims). - No machine-readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 2.5

*All images have been sourced and credited, as I haven't been to Bhutan. If you are the owner of any of these photos and want it/them removed, kindly let me know. No copyright infringement intended.

Europe tour day 5: Venice

Sunset in Venice -- one of my favorite photos from our trip

Day 5, fourth region, we arrive in Venice around 2pm, and after some confusion with the instructions, we took the expensive taxi ride to our hotel.

We did not stay in Venice Island, but in Mestre, where the Venice main train station was situated, because we had an early train ride to Innsbruck the next day. That, and because it was way cheaper to stay in Mestre than in Venice itself.

We took the bus to the island, and we arrived during sunset, which seemed like the most romantic time to be in Venice. This was both good and bad. Good, because the view was ridiculously picturesque; Bad because the streets were dark already, and we weren't able to go further inland.



We didn't ride the expensive gondolas nor the slightly cheaper little yachts. We walked around the island instead and had dinner al fresco, right beside the water. Since we were right beside the water, we definitely smelled the oil from the boats. It's not as bad as Pasig river, but it certainly didn't make for appetizing eating.


What surprised me about Venice, though, is that the Italian-made leather goods are cheaper than the ones in Rome. The quality even seemed better.

We were still walking around the winding streets of Venice when it got too dark, and we became afraid, so we just walked back to the pier. I think I kind of looked European when we were there because numerous tourists and locals would come up to me and ask for directions or simply have a chat with me in their native tongue. It was fascinating.

Venice at night

A friend of mine who visited Venice a few years ago told me I should have ridden the gondola. I hope I can come back someday, and maybe this time with my future partner, and we can ride the gondolas under the numerous bridges of Venice.


I hope you'll enjoy your trip! All photos are unedited. I don't know how to use Photoshop! Please don't use my images without permission.

Read about my Eurotrip!
Rome day 1
Rome day 2
Florence day 3-4
Pisa day 4
Innsbruck day 6
Munich day 7-8

Other links you might find helpful:

Getting ready for Europe  |  Preparing your Schengen visa requirements  |  Booking your hotel and plane fare  |  Filling out the Schengen visa form  |  How to apply to the Italian embassy thru Via  |  Cross-country train travel in Europe

Europe tour day 4: Pisa

Beautiful bridge in Pisa

Pisa is one of the most beautiful cities I've seen at from dusk to night. People always marvel about the Leaning Tower of Pisa, but no one ever mentioned how beautiful the place is at night.

Since our schedule was messed up during the morning, we had to move our trip to Pisa after the wine tasting in Chianti, Tuscany.

We had to visit the Leaning Tower of Pisa, as this was one of my parents' must-see places, and I think we were only in Pisa for two hours, and that already included the trains to and fro. We got to Pisa so late that we haven't been able to eat dinner until we got back to our apartment in Florence by 11pm. And we almost missed the trains, and only got to the Pisa train station in time for the last train back to Florence. Woooh!

Sunset over Pisa

When we got to the Pisa train station, we were advised by the train station staff, and Filipino OFWs sitting outside the plaza after work, that we could just walk to the tower instead of taking the bus.

Using my Here maps app, we walked straight to the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We crossed a bridge and several lights. One thing I noticed is that there was barely any traffic and few people were out and about that weeknight, at around 7pm

When we finally emerged from the streets, we were met by a huge plaza with a huge Church, a separate domed tower, and finally, the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa was definitely leaning!

Since we arrived too late, we were not able to go up the tower of Pisa, but that was okay. We were just happy to look at it.

There were a lot of tourists and some Italians. One sweet Italian couple also asked me to take their picture, but I couldn't understand Italian and refused at first. They approached me again, and I replied in French this time, and we finally had a semblance of understanding.

I hope you'll enjoy your trip! All photos are unedited. I don't know how to use Photoshop! Please don't use my images without permission.


Read about my Eurotrip!
Rome day 1
Rome day 2
Florence day 3-4
Venice day 5
Innsbruck day 6
Munich day 7-8

Other links you might find helpful:

Getting ready for Europe  |  Preparing your Schengen visa requirements  |  Booking your hotel and plane fare  |  Filling out the Schengen visa form  |  How to apply to the Italian embassy thru Via  |  Cross-country train travel in Europe

Cross-country train travel in Europe

Train station in Zurich, Switzerland

I've had a lot of questions on how my family and I traveled across Europe during our trip. Two words: Eurail pass.

If you're doing the trip on your own and want to experience Europe's marvelous train system (it was pretty easy and efficient once you get the hang of it), there are numerous websites out there who can teach you. Some will also tell you not to get a Eurail pass, as buying point-to-point tickets are cheaper.

But here are the reasons why we chose to buy a Eurail pass:

Roomy and comfortable train travel across Europe

1. Flexibility

We were going to travel through seven regions and five countries, and since we didn't have any guide, we wanted the flexibility that a Eurail pass allows. A Eurail pass (for regional or trains that don't need reservations) gave us the option to get on and off any train stop we wanted, especially since we have a Global pass, which meant our train pass can be used in 28 EU member countries.

Since I knew our travel plans would keep adjusting, as self-planned tours do, I wanted the time flexibility that the pass allowed us. We weren't so stressed to miss a train because we can always take the next one, or take an earlier one if wanted to do so (which definitely happened a lot of times).