Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany (3)

There is this park, Palmengarten that always intrigues me whenever I'm in Frankfurt. It requires an entrance fee of 7 euro which had turned me away everytime I was here. Few weeks ago, I arrived into Frankfurt during the golden autumn week. I would like to capture some golden autumn shots so I made the decision to visit this park. It was the best decision made and money well spent. The autumn color inside this park is really beautiful. I do recommend visitors to come here and see the golden leaves inside the park during autumn season.

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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany (1)
Related link: Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany (2)

Mini Travel Log: Dachau Concentration Camp, Germany

If you have some free time in Munich and have nothing else to do, you can take a short train ride to Dachau to check out the Dachau Concentration Camp used during the WW2. If you go by your own, you'll only need to spend 8.30 euros instead of spending more than 20 euros following guided tours.

From any S-Bahn stations in Munich, hop onto S2 line Peterhausen direction train. You can purchase the XXL day ticket from the ticket vending machine for 8.30 euros. Make sure you choose XXL single day ticket as you'll be most likely offered a single trip ticket at 5.40 euros which you need to buy 2 for the return as well, making it more expensive. Train ride is only about 20 minutes. You can alight at Dachau Bahnhof. Remember to keep you train ticket because this ticket will also include the bus ride.

Right outside Dachau Bahnhof, you can wait for bus 726 Saubachsiedlung direction. You will never miss it because the stop itself has many Dachau Concentration Camp pictures and directions. You can alight at KZ-Gedenkstätte stop. A short walk will bring you past the visitor centre and to the camp entrance gate.

It is advisable to take the early train from 8am onwards so you can reach the camp at about 9am. This is to avoid groups of tourists which will stream in endlessly later in the morning. With almost no one else around, you can really take in the atmosphere, sometimes that eerie feeling in a huge camp.

For more information, you can visit the official website here: https://www.kz-gedenkstaette-dachau.de/index-e.html

Click on the image for picture gallery; First few pictures are from Munich itself

Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (5)

On a lovely summer afternoon, I walked to the town center for some pork knuckles and beer. I normally do not take pictures on a short trip like this. And I will also not bring along my camera. But on a beautiful day like this, I just had to take some. It's just a photographer's instinct. And so my Nokia Lumia 1020 was given the real field test. I had this phone for quite a while already and finally this phone had a chance to step up to the plate to impress me. It didn't fail me. Shots taken at 41 MP are rich in details, very close to DSLR quality. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (4)
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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (1)
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Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (4)

After this time, I can proudly say that I have seen Munich in four different seasons. This latest trip in summer allowed me to see Munich with its beautiful flowers and blue skies. Although I did not take many pictures this time, I experimented with new processing techniques. Thus I managed to create some interesting effects and also bring out a wider dynamic range in the outdoor shots. In such a bright summer sky, I brought back the otherwise over-exposed skies back to life without the need of tedious HDR shots and processing techniques. I also shot a few pictures with my new Galaxy S3 phone. Let's see if you can identify those pictures.

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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (3)
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Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany (2)

I was here last time during the snowy white Christmas. And I thought I had experienced the coldest season in my life. I was wrong. I was here again when the Siberian cold started pounding Europe with bitter cold winds that froze everything along its' path. It brought misery to hundreds of unfortunate homeless people on the street. Hundreds of them were frozen to death all across Europe. On a clear sunny day when it looked harmless, the cold winds were deadly. Even with multiple layers of clothing, frost bit through and left my fingers and feet numb. I had to find shelters every 30 minutes to defrost. After continuous days of subzero temperature and cold winds, even small lakes and water fountains froze up.

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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany (1)

Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (3)

I arrived a little too late into Munich to see the golden autumn as it was into the last week before the start of winter. Nevertheless, I was still able to catch some beautiful sights in the English Garden. I'd really recommend this park if you plan to see some amazing sights during autumn.

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However the same cannot be said for excursions out from Munich. As the winter starts, many tour operators will not operate out from the city. Only a few popular tours are offered like tours to Linderhof, Oberammergau and Neuschwanstein. I joined this tour with my wife but left a little disappointed because I couldn't see the full grandeur of the Linderhof Castle due to many parts being covered up in preparation for the snowfall. Even the Neuschwanstein Castle was undergoing exterior restoration works as they do not expect many tourists during this period. So any nice pictures of this castle is out of the question. Nevertheless, my wife and I had a romantic time doing this excursion, enjoying the tranquility of the countryside; especially around Swan Lake and the quiet town of Oberammergau.

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Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (2)
Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (1)
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Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (2)

What will a person do on a cold day? Snugging beside a fireplace and sipping warm coffee would be perfect. Unfortunately for a restless person like me, I just couldn't sit still. On a freezing cold morning, I got out from the hotel to brave the cold. Bad decision. I couldn't stand it and ended up in a warm restaurant. I had one of the best Bratwurst for my lunch. Feeling warm and comfortable now, I decided to change my sight-seeing plans into indoor activities. So I headed to the BMW showroom and museum for some fantasy shopping. If I cannot afford one, at least I was there to touch and smell the leather seats.

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The BMW Mega Challenge: To all the Beemer fanboys out there; it's time for you to prove your worth. See if you can identify all the models in this album. =D

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A very cool show from moving balls.

Related link: Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany (1)

Mini Travel Log: Frankfurt, Germany

I never liked spending christmas in a Western country. And this is the 2nd time in a row I'm doing it. The reason is christmas is a family reunion day for them, so the whole city will be shut down while everyone is at home cosying up by the fireplace. I had a hard time finding food and stores to stock up on basic necessities. As Europe was lashed with snowstorm just before I arrived, it was very cold and was still snowing. At night, temperature dipped to as low as -22 deg celcius. Walking in the deserted snowy city provokes an eerie feeling, as if a bunch of zombies will suddenly lurch out from the alleys to feast on you. As all stores were closed, I chose an unconventional route instead in my sightseeing walk. To my surprise, I came across a T-rex let loose in the park. Following its path, I was led into a museum which surprisingly was open. And boy, inside it was full of interesting stuffs to see. If you have watched the movie "Night At The Museum", then this is the better version of it.

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As a last post for the year of 2010, I would like to wish all readers a Happy New Year!

Mini Travel Log: Munich, Germany

Munich is a very old city dating back to as early as year 1158. With a legacy of over 800 years old, this city is full of histories as with its' many well preserved medieval buildings. Parts of the city were destroyed by world war bombings but Munich rose from the ashes and was rebuilt to its former glory. I was really intrigued by the wonderful architectures here. The city is so clean and I was virtually breathing fresh air from the Alps. I arrived on the weekend and boy this city is alive with carnivals and concerts. I enjoyed open air classical orchestra right up to the latest pop music from so many different venues. I was in for a surprise initially when I came across a colorful carnival and parade at Marienplatz. I thought it was cool to see so many people dressing up in fancy clothes. Hey, so they do have cosplay here too like the ones in Harajuku Japan. To my horror, I found out I'm right smack in the middle of a Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. Holy cow, on closer inspection, I realized all those dressed up ladies were actually men! And so the parade started with the gay version of PopeMobile leading the charade; throwing out condoms and gay clubs leaflets. Oh gawd my eyes!!! Ughhh!!!

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Mini Travel Log: Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

Finally, my childhood dream to visit the real Disney castle had come true. This castle is the Neuschwanstein Castle which is about 1-2 hour drive from Munich and home to the late King Ludwig II of Bavaria, Germany. Neuschwanstein is translated into New Swan Castle in English and this magnificent castle is perched on a peak overlooking beautiful Bavarian landscape with surrounding lakes which one of it is called Swan Lake. To the south of the castle is the towering Alps forming the border between Germany and Austria. Disney copied this castle all over the world. This castle is the real deal, not those copycats. Thank you SQ for realizing my dream.

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