Our last stop on this summer's trip was Munich. It was kind of an odd fit into the itinerary, given that it was the only night spent in Germany at all, and was tacked onto the end of the trip for basically two reasons: one, it meant a shorter trip to the airport the next morning, and two, it meant we could spend our last night at a Biergarten. I was fine with both.
This also means that Munich is, by far, the single most frequently visited place I've been to outside of the US (and excluding places where I or my family have lived, maybe including the US too). That's interesting to me. To become familiar with a foreign town. To rediscover a place where you have only ever been a tourist.
Anyway, we had a long day's drive before the festivities could begin, but happily it was a drive through very scenic Alp-laden landscapes, including this mountain pass gas station somewhere in Austria:
On trips like these, long bus rides are actually quite a welcome event every so often - but not too often - and even moreso toward the end, when everyone is tired and happy to have a chance to nap throughout the day.
We arrived in Munich late afternoon, and if memory serves, went straight to the Biergarten upon arrival. I believe the place we went was the Englischer Garten, or was in the Englischer Garten, which may or may not be one of the largest parks in the world. Man, I should really remember to write down interesting factoids more consistently about the places I visit.
Anyway, this is what it looked like:
And these are just a few examples of what we got:
Not that that's surprising. Those mugs are all but implied by the term "Biergarten".
Toward the end of the night we did our usual thing and raucously sang a handful of works from our repertoire, much to the surprise of the surrounding Garten attendees. But hey, singing while drinking is basically a German national pastime, right? And technically this means my final performance with the Cardinal Singers wasn't Postojna, it was there, in the Biergarten, celebrating our win and our successful trip all at once.
But it was pretty rough. I won't post the recordings - of which there are many (thanks, Snapchat) - here.
The bus carted us back to the hotel and we made our way to our rooms. The next morning I all but crawled to the lobby for breakfast, then back to the room to tidy up, pack up one last time, and shuffle over to the bus.
A number of people, like last year, were staying in Europe for further exploration, so we said goodbye to those of whom wouldn't be accompanying us to the airport. At the airport, we divvied up a few items to ensure no one's baggage was overweight, then made our way through security to the gate. First flight was to Philly, then there was a brief layover and chance for dinner, then the flight to ORD, then - just like the end of China the year before - the bus back to Louisville, arriving sometime after midnight. And believe it or not, someone carried that giant foam check the entire way.
But then it was over. I returned home and became, officially, no longer a member of this fantastic choir. Part of which means that I may not be traveling again any time soon, and almost certainly not to anywhere big and exciting. But as I've said, it was time. I got my years out of this group, but now it's someone else's turn. And I will gladly move on to a life as not a member, but as a fan of the Cardinal Singers.
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