Paul says Germany may be his favorite country so far, and I have to agree that we had a pretty awesome time there. Just some of the many reasons why Germany rocks include:
1. There's a lot a green space. While we spent some time in bustling Munich, we didn't have to go very far to find lovely parks and green areas. The other two locations we visited were a bit more remote and therefore also quite green.
2. Germans seem to love the outdoors, which makes us feel like they are "our peeps." It also means that they are often geared up for hiking and biking, and thus not overly concerned with fashion, unlike Italy, France and others. That means we fit in better as well, being the rather untrendy sort (well, I can't speak for Liz, but Paul and I certainly don't think of ourselves as trendy).
3. The trains are great! They are well-labelled, both on and off the train. They are in great shape. The same trains always depart from the same tracks. And it's easy to avoid trains that require reservations - very nice for us Eurail pass holders.
4. Germany is affordable. It was pretty easy to get a reasonably priced meal. Water does seem to be more expensive there than elsewhere, but maybe that's just because 3 Euros for a bottle of water seems proportionately more expensive when your meal is pretty cheap.
5. We had almost no problem getting around (minus a little confusion in the main Cologne station on the way to Belgium) even though we don't speak German. Of course, Liz does speak some German, so maybe that's skewing our perspective a bit.
6. Lack of pickpockets. In reality, there probably weren't any in Austria or Switzerland either, but it's so nice not to have to be on your guard - unlike Italy and Barcelona!
7. Castles! Gratuitous castle photo:
8. Biergartens! Who wouldn't love those? :)
9. Good food. Although maybe a few too many sausages... However, I did love the curry ketchup they use for some of the sausages. I'm going to have to start putting curry in my ketchup back in the States. Yum! It's good with french fries as well.
We definitely recommend visiting Germany. :) Look for more posts about Germany soon!
1. There's a lot a green space. While we spent some time in bustling Munich, we didn't have to go very far to find lovely parks and green areas. The other two locations we visited were a bit more remote and therefore also quite green.
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| English Garden in Munich |
3. The trains are great! They are well-labelled, both on and off the train. They are in great shape. The same trains always depart from the same tracks. And it's easy to avoid trains that require reservations - very nice for us Eurail pass holders.
4. Germany is affordable. It was pretty easy to get a reasonably priced meal. Water does seem to be more expensive there than elsewhere, but maybe that's just because 3 Euros for a bottle of water seems proportionately more expensive when your meal is pretty cheap.
5. We had almost no problem getting around (minus a little confusion in the main Cologne station on the way to Belgium) even though we don't speak German. Of course, Liz does speak some German, so maybe that's skewing our perspective a bit.
6. Lack of pickpockets. In reality, there probably weren't any in Austria or Switzerland either, but it's so nice not to have to be on your guard - unlike Italy and Barcelona!
7. Castles! Gratuitous castle photo:
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| Photo by Liz |
9. Good food. Although maybe a few too many sausages... However, I did love the curry ketchup they use for some of the sausages. I'm going to have to start putting curry in my ketchup back in the States. Yum! It's good with french fries as well.
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| Apple Strudel and Beer! |
*cough cough* AHEM. Methinks you forgot reason number 11...ME!
ReplyDeleteJust kidding, of course. ; ) Anyway, I'm really glad you guys liked Germany! Let's go back anytime.
Right, reason 10 = hanging out with Liz. You could talk us into going back at some point, I bet. :-) More biergartens!
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