Robot Claw

Today we caught this train to Munich: 

 
The trip was comfortable as we zipped along in first class, but about an hour out from Munich I got motion sickness which ended up lasting for hours! 

 
Our hotel is adjacent to the station and very comfortable. KLS and I got an upgrade into a very fancy room with all wood floors and ceiling and strange wall decor: 

 
We didn’t have any plans for the afternoon (the train took about 3 hours) and K, B and I explored the downtown while J went to the park and dad did a tourist bus trip. 

 
That’s in a department store. Both B and I posed here, and young children had to wait their turn! 🙂 

 
Munich has a large pedestrian arcade surrounded by many old-style buildings (the originals being destroyed in the war). The weather was hot and the crowds plentiful. One particular attraction is the Rathaus (town hall) with its beautiful architecture and decoration. 

 
The front of the building has an animated display called ‘the glockenspiel’ that runs thrice daily. We were sure to check it out. 

 
The crowds were massive… 

 
And B was spellbound: 

 
Or maybe he had just drunk too much for lunch!

Speaking of which… 

    
 
Those pictures show decreasing levels of professionalism 🙂

To end this post, a shot of me rubbing Juliet’s (superheated!) boob for good luck: 

 
And the striking interior of the Marianplatz underground station: 

 
It was another full, tiring and fun day 🙂

I woke at 2 am this morning. Perhaps not a good sign with regards to jetlag! I couldn’t sleep though, so lazed around until the (superb!) breakfast buffet at 6:30.

Dad was arriving at midday, so KLS, BS and I headed to the Frankfurt zoo while JBF hopped onto a train for a day trip to a nearby city on The Rhine. 

 
Frankfurt Zoo is quite good for such an old zoo in the middle of a major city. While some of the large animal enclosures (such as for the hippo) are sad relics of a bygone era, others – including the excellent nocturnal house and aquarium – are worth the admission fee alone.

In particular we loved the following exhibits: 

   
The first are garden eels – tiny and beautiful eels that hide in the substrate and just poke their upper halves out to feed. The other is of course the cuttlefish. Both animals were displayed wonderfully in big crystal clean tanks that really gave us a good look!

After the zoo we headed back to meet dad via the river. 

 
Yes they seem to have picked up the ‘padlock on the bridge’ habit here too!

In the late afternoon we cruised that river for an hour and a half, seeing Frankfurt (at least the river front) for several miles in each direction. Many drinks were drunk and many laughs had! 

   
Conveniently the boat left from a dock right at the same fair we visited yesterday! Once again we enjoyed the many dining options 🙂 

 
Another find day that seemed to whizz by very quickly. Tomorrow we’re leaving Frankfurt for our next destination, but I have to say I’ve found this city quite charming and a good introduction to Germany overall.