My dad and I arrived Munich and everything was good. The first night, we went to a typical German restaurant and ate food that was bad for us while drinking beer that was similarly bad for us. I decided I love street performers, especially ones who play the accordion. I took videos but I am not technology inclined enough to know how to upload those, but maybe I'll figure it out eventually! Munich's center was really nice, although the area around our hotel was kind of shady and under construction and very, very dark. This would become a significant issue later.
I had always wanted to go to Salzburg, Austria because Sound of Music was filmed there and Mozart was born there and such. My choir in high school went my senior year, and I didn't go, but all the pictures were amazing and I wanted to see the city for myself! So, the next day, my dad and I decided to go. Salzburg (only an hour and a half train ride from Munich) was indeed beautiful, although I still wished I was in Switzerland. My dad and I were tired, starting to get on each other's nerves (go figure...), and really wanted to have a good night's sleep. Still, though, the views were beautiful and we went on the Sound of Music tour, which was interesting (minus an obnoxiously singing tour guide, but hey, what can you expect?). It was interesting to see a new city for sure, even though Salzburg was a small one. As we were leaving, a couple approached me and were speaking a combination of German and English, and since I looked super confused, the girl started speaking to me in rapid Spanish. It took me a moment because 1. I was surprised to hear Spanish and 2. why is she talking to me? but then I realized she was telling me that if we bought tickets together, it would be cheaper. So we did that, and she was for some reason shocked I was American. She thought I was Spanish, and her boyfriend thought I was Italian (as does everyone). I'll take it. On the plus side, I understood her Español and was able to answer her!
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| Dad and I and a nice view! |
After the EMT-type man told us an ambulance would cost 530 euro, we opted to take a taxi to the hospital. The EMT seemed to be highly qualified as well, since he had gages in his ears, low riding pants, and looked to be around 16. He was also utterly convinced my dad's nose was broken, although I tried to explain that my dad's nose always looks crooked. Very little English was spoken, minus the phrases "could be internal bleeding" and "don't speak very good English." Since apparently my study abroad experience includes tours of European hospitals, I was entirely thrilled to see another one. The doctor at the hospital (who assumed my father was drunk) was a little weird but I guess he did his job okay. The CT scan showed no broken nose (contrary to the radiologist's opinion, who said my dad's septum was broken which...no, it's just weird looking) and no other problems, but the crazy doctor felt my dad needed to be admitted anyways. I spent the night alone in the Munich Courtyard Marriot, which is very nice if you are looking for somewhere to stay, but its a place that I hope to never return to again. Hey, I always like being independent, so here independence was smacking me in the face (kind of like how the pavement smacked my dad in the face...ha ha get it? Ok, bad joke). Like the good, perfect, sweet, kind, caring, amazing, beautiful, and intelligent daughter that I am, I went back to the hotel and got my dad's things for him. A sweet, overly hairy, and possibly homeless man greeted me at the cot diagonal from my father's upon my return, as he asked me, "Is that fadda? Him, you fadda?" Uh...yes, that's my father. He then told me I looked very nice, and that he really wanted to speak to me more. Ohh, how I love overly forward, disgusting, and, most significantly, OLD European men. I told him some choice words, none of which he understood. The nurse laughed, as if I was telling some funny joke (yes, all my jokes end in "leave me the hell alone"). She didn't understand either. I was in a really happy, joyous mood.
Ironically, the person who seemed to be the most content in this situation was Carl himself, even though he was bloody and was developing a large, attractive lump on his forehead. When I went to give him his things, he was joking around with the doctors and telling them all about his day in Salzburg. They were asking him questions and he was answering them in his usual roundabout way, combined with hand gestures and laughter at his own (not funny) jokes. I was relieved he was being his (not funny) self. Anyways, I doubt the doctors cared about his day, or even understood what he was saying, but it was nice of them to humor him, which is way more than I ever do.
Ok so I did not mean to make the last two paragraphs so long, because really who wants to know details about my dad's bloody nose? The point is he was okay, no broken bones, although he had two black eyes, a swollen nose, a bruised rib, and general pain. He looked like he got into a really bad fight with Mike Tyson, minus the bitten-off ear.
The next day I woke up and decided I needed a nice, emotionally uplifting day. I decided the best place for this would be to visit Dachau, which was the first established Nazi labor camp. Ok, maybe not emotionally uplifting.
...I am going to continue this on a new post, because I have divided this "vacation" into different parts in my brain, so it's only fitting to do so on here too. Plus, I have too much to say and I am going to start to bore everyone. I know everyone's on the edge of their seats, but try to contain yourselves.
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