Day 1, Part 3: At home in Munchen

I had grand intentions of working on my photo collection on the plane between Amsterdam and Munich, but instead, I slept the whole way through, INCLUDING the snack service. Does anyone know me to sleep through food, especially free? The baggage claim at MUC is inside security, so I spotted my aunt, Elke, and her children through the barrier while I was waiting. I recognized them instantly - and I only remember meeting my aunt once and her oldest daughter, Ines, when she was just a baby. Ute and Elke do not look just like one another, but there’s no mistaking they’re sisters. Ines and Golo are both blonde right now, and Ines looks a lot like the mirror used to when I was her age. Ines is 9 and Golo 7, and they're both very cute. Ines asked me if I brought my dirndl, or equivalent of. I had to explain that since the US has no culture of it’s own, we don’t have an official national dress.

Here in Elke’s house I have also had my first taste of Germany. Since Germans eat their big meal at lunch (as opposed to me, I believe in big breakfasts, lunches, and dinners), dinner is a breads-and-spreads affair. I had Schwarzbrot- the dark, heavy, grainy bread of Bavaria topped with emantaler cheese and something very prosciutto-like. It was delicious. I topped it off with some Radler. I admit I made some grimacing faces in preparation for a drink that is half lemonade, half beer, but it was actually pretty good. I am now curious what true, “homemade” Radler is like, as ours was clear and bottled.