Riding Rotterdam. Where the hills are built for sprained ankles.

So I arrived in Rotterdam as planned to end my European tour. Eva and Marnix were my former guests from Rotterdam. They were the main reason I was making a small side step into Rotterdam instead of Amsterdam. And from the get go they didn't let me down. I was off the train and with bike in hand within 5 minutes.

How awesome is Rotterdam once you have a bike? I must say it's really, really awesome if you have a busted up ankle. Because Rotterdam is as flat as a tack. The biggest hill is the incline of one of the bridges over the river bisecting the city into two. Don't worry true to form I let Marnix know I hate hills. He just smiled.

So upon arrival into Rotterdam I had merely dropped off the bag and we were off. Off on the the roads of Rotterdam where cars actually not just respect bikes, they treat them with kid gloves. Whether you're going the wrong way on a one way street, or crossing at an intersection cars know to give way. And bikeriders rely on it and hence I loved it. There was no angst from cars. They just accepted this was Rotterdam.

Rotterdam I'll remember for many reasons. For starters the architecture is profound. Everywhere there is a building designed to out do the previous. To be boring in Rotterdam would be a crime it seems. We started in the markets area which is also home to the cube houses. All of this is near the pretty harbour area.

And then there is the Port. The biggest in Europe, and 4th largest in the world I was explained. Behind a few of the ports in China. Having grown up on the bayside of Brisbane I am aware of ports and shipping containers. I've seen a few in my time. But this was something special. The sheer size of the port is thought provoking. Just how much "stuff" goes around the world. Going by the miles and miles of shipping containers the numbers must be staggering. It also makes what I can only describe as the "Shipping Container Cruise of Rotterdam" seem normal. Everywhere elseI would scoff at a cruise that highlighted the shipping container terminals. But in Rotterdam it makes sense. Several times a day tourist boats take tourist on a tour of the ports and Rotterdam. The residential and commercial side of the tourist is but a small section. And then you end up in the Port. Inlet after inlet of shipping containers. The largest coldstore with juice from South America followed by the largest blah blah blah...you get the picture.

After the tour we road over to the other side of the city and a micro brewery. We indugled in a tasting platter of cheese and meats whilst partaking in some local brew. And then in the evening we cruised on over to a local traditional meatball restaurant before retiring to a local pub to watch the local FC Feyenoord battle in the local version of the FA Cup. What a day. That was as good as it gets really for a planned touring day.

The 2nd day included a Dutch pancake breakfast before I farewelled my friends for a few hours to myself. I stumbled around before retiring for the night and the long journey home. Ankle and all.

Bunkering down in Munich

After the disaster of a ski day I needed a new plan. Of course I could have stayed with my friends in Austria but then in some ways I didn't want to feel like a burden being injured, and well I was half way across the world. I needed to see and do things. And as skiing wasn't an option I decided to return to what I know and what I felt comfortable with. Hence a return to Munich was inserted into the agenda.

I've visited Munich twice before. Once on a Contiki tour which in included Oktoberfest, and once after as a destination as I hadn't seen Munich. So this time I knew I didn't necessarily need to do the free walking tour. This was good as I could neither walk fast, nor far. Alas the weather also came to haunt me on my arrival into Germany. All of a sudden it decided to get cold after such a mild winter and it was snowing in Munich. Not so welcoming when the day before you've sprained your ankle and you're carrying a backpack.

After a slow snowy walk on slippery sidewalks from the bus station to my hostel accommodation I wasn't up for too much. I wanted comfort food. I wanted warmth. Which was in part why I chose Munich. Home to the Oktoberfest, and the traditional beer halls. Nothing better for a moaning traveller than comforting beer and pork knuckle in a beer hall. So it was off to the Augustiner Bräustuben for Dinner.

I had asked the accommodation staff to suggest a convenient beer hall, different to my previous Munich Beer Hall experiences of Hofbräu and Paulaner. It was though a familiar name none the less having visited the Augustiner brewery in Salzburg just days before.

The next full day I had investigated a trip to see Neuschwanstein Castle. However that proved to be me dreaming of days when I had full mobility as it was confirmed there would be a lot of stairs and walking. So instead I laid low with a trip to the city centre and a return to the Glockenspiel in Mairenplatz.