...............................................................................and Ethan, we'll take him too! Oh yeah, after two weeks of hand wringing, talking to British, American, and German Embassies, and a lawyer (a free one), I decided to give it a go and visit my friend Claudia in Munich. Seemed like a good strategy. I got my ticket moved to be out of Munich as well, and a letter from Miss Claudia affirming my story, and a letter from my old firm, saying I had a job, and bank statements, credit card statements, inoculation records, and proof of insurance. I virtually had to get another suit case just for my evidence, I was going to prove I was the best tourist these Germans had ever seen! Then the long flight, longer this time, through Dubai with a wonderful 4 hour lay over. I can't tell you how hard my heart was racing as I neared the immigration desk in Munich, the third time I had been to that airport in two weeks! The man took my passport, asked me, "on holiday?" "Yes" "How long?" I fly home in a month." Ok! He flipped through the passport looking for a place to stamp, damn, it was too full! I almost started to explain before he got to the last page with the dreaded stamp, but then he did, and flipped on, but then back, took a second look, then back to another page and stamp, I'm in! I couldn't believe it! I almost felt let down, I had put so much hard work in, someone should hear the speech I had written! I would soon regret these thoughts, but for now, I was on my European Vacation! First stop, Beer Garden!
Claudia showed me a great four days in Munich, a city I love. We were able to borrow a bike from her godmother, and we spent most of our time cruising around seeing the sites in the perfect Bavarian summer weather. It seemed like that was the mode of transportation for half the city, something I would have expected in Beijing or Hanoi perhaps, but not in Europe. The weather was so nice it was the perfect way to appreciate the city, perfect that is, until I happened to glance over one fine morning to witness about five buck naked guys in the park, lounging, chatting, picking apples from trees, you know, typical. The shock of it almost sent me careening into the river on the other side of the path, but luckily, I righted the ship and made it out of there with my eyes closed. I could hear Claudia laughing at my conservative American sensibilities, which I used to guide me. Speaking of the river, just after that incident, I witnessed one of the cooler things I've ever seen, river surfing! Ja, right where the river passes under a bridge, a big rip current creates a permanent wave that about five surfers in wet suits were making full use of, it was incredible! Claudia was such a good tour guide, and at the end of each day, she would go drop me off at her flat and head over to her boyfriend, Jurg`s place. Then, each morning, Miss Claudia would show up with fresh Bavarian bagels, cheese, and cold cuts and make me coffee for breakfast, wonderbar! I was also able to see my old friend Eva on her birthday, at least her birthday bar-b-q. The highlight of that night was seeing a bunch of German girls dancing on a table to Kyle Minolge. Reminded me of the night I had spent dancing in a hut outside of Sapa, Vietnam to the same tune, same same, but different. On my last day we caught a ride out to one of the beautiful lakes that surround Munich with a couple of Claudia's friends. Pulling into the parking lot at the park, a guy sitting on a folding chair charged us to park. Now I was taken aback, because if I hadn't known better, I would have sworn he was from White River with his amazing mullet and sleeveless tartan flannel zip up. Claudia must have seen me gawking because she asked me later if I had people like this back in the states. I replied that I had just been appreciating his style, and I guess you can find hicks just about anywhere. The lake was huge and framed by the Alps in the distance, not too bad. I layed there getting burned thinking that it couldn't get much better, thats when Claudia's friends took their tops off. Claudia abstained, said she didn't want to hurt my fragile sensibilities. People must have thought I was the luckiest man in the world surrounded by three gorgeous half naked women, or more likely that I was their gay friend. That's OK though, I'll be their gay friend any day. Before I knew it, I had to say goodbye to my Bavarian friend and tour guide, had to escape the sun for the cloud otherwise known as the UK. I was again armed with my bag O evidence, and felt more confident that I would get in admitted this time around. I was also really looking forward to the opportunity to see my dad, who was in London on business. This turned out the be quite fortuitous indeed.
