Summer language programs abroad offer plenty of advantages compared to learning back home. I began my German-learning journey almost two years ago through a summer program offered by the Maximilian Ludwig Universität München (LMU). I joined a second time to do the A2.1 level and had a great time, traveled, made new friends, and of course, improved my German! 🙌

Before getting there 📅

If you are unfamiliar with how it is like to join a summer language program overseas, here is how this one works. You pay a deposit to get your seat reserved and, if interested, a room. I highly suggest to book a room with the university because finding an apartment in Munich is a nightmare. Also it is highly unlikely that someone will rent you a place for just a month. You will end up renting an Air-bnb for 3 weeks and pay 4 times what you would have paid with the university. The dorms are not luxurious but I am highly practical and just need a place to stay. Both times I’ve stayed at the dorms and had no problem as they are located near transport stations and supermarkets. 

Depending on your country of origin, you may or may not need a visa for courses of less than 3 months. I suggest that you contact the German embassy at your country to make sure you have all your documentation in order. 

Servus, München! 🛫

Once you arrive, you need to attend a check-in event where you are given class information and keys to your apartment. The next day and for the next three weeks I would have lessons everyday from 9:00 to 13:00. What I love about this type of environment is that you get to learn alongside people from all over the world. It is fast-paced as would be any other intensive course but the total immersion in the language and culture is worth it. With every lesson, I felt more confident in speaking the language and tried to practice it “on the real world” as much as I could. I would try to communicate in German at the supermarket, coffee shop, train stations and stores. I even went to the pharmacy twice and was able to communicate effectively with the technicians. Most locals appreciate your effort in speaking their language so they are willing to speak slower, make a lot of signs or say some words in English. 

As part of the class excursions, I went back to the Neuschwanstein Castle in Füssen. I had only visited in the winter so the landscape was completely different. It was a very hot day which wasn’t so fun, but I had the chance to go on Marienbrücke and take the best shot of the castle:

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Winter❄️ or Summer☀️? Swipe ➡️ . . . . . #deutschland #bavaria #bayern #castle #neuschwanstein #winter #summer #travel #wintertravel #alemania #germany #fairytale #winterwonderland #visitbavaria

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Augsburg

Want a summer abroad?

If you are interested in knowing more about the summer courses that the LMU offers, you can click here.  There is also the Goethe Institut that offers intensive course in different cities and throughout the year. Munich is a very international city, beautiful and, in my opinion, the perfect size to have an abroad experience for the first time. It is small enough to not make you feel overwhelmed, but big enough to still feel like a modern city. You will learn a lot and find plenty of activities to do. It's a win-win.

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*2018 price

On my fifth day in Munich, I decided to visit the place that inspired Disney’s Cinderella castle: the Neuschwanstein Castle. It is near Füssen, a town around 2 hours from Munich Central Station.

To get there, I followed this guide, which was very helpful. I bought a Bayern ticket for 24 euros and took the 9:55 AM train. Looking back, I should have taken the 11:55 AM train but I was afraid I would be late to pick up my entrance ticket.

Views from my train on the way to Füssen:





I arrived in Füssen at around midday and immediately hopped on bus 78 that would take me to the ticket center in Schwangau. It was so, so cold and there was snow everywhere. I had reserved my tickets online at 12 euros for the 3:35 PM tour so I had plenty of time, almost too much time before my tour. My initial plan was to take the bus -3 euros round trip- to get to the castle, located at the top of a mountain. When I asked the ticket center employee, he told me that the bus shuttle was not available due to the heavy snow but that it was “just a 40-minute walk uphill”. Now let’s be honest, I would have made the walk if I had appropriate shoes, but my feet were already numb by that time. I decided to take the other option: the horse carriage.

The horse carriage costs 6 euros each way. I waited in line for around 1 hour until it was my turn. Standing still on the ice during all that time didn’t help my frozen feet situation. Maybe it had been better if I had walked up the hill.

💡Tip: Wear snow boots if you’re going in winter. If not your feet will suffer, you will suffer and won’t enjoy it as much. Also, bring snow-specific gloves. I was wearing 2 pairs of normal gloves and my fingers were numb nonetheless.

The carriage doesn’t take you all the way up. The drop off area is at around 7-10 minutes from the castle. After taking some pictures, I walked up. Marienbruck, the bridge from where you can take awesome pictures was also closed due to the snow [might be better to visit in Spring or Summer].







I got to the castle at around 2:15 PM, so I had to wait for over an hour. It was probably the worst mistake I did. You have to wait outdoors so I walked around, sat for a while, and then walked around more, hopelessly trying to stay warm.

Nonetheless, the view was spectacular:



I bought a hot chocolate to try to get warmer, but it didn’t work. I was starting to feel really bad, my feet went from numb to pain. At around 3:10 PM I went to the castle to try to cover myself from the wind. I would enter the bathroom every 3 minutes to warm my hands with the dryer. It really felt like an eternity until, at 3:35 PM it was my time to get into the castle.



When you get in, they hand you and audio guide. The tour lasts for about 30 minutes and you cannot take pictures. It’s a very pretty castle inside but I am not sure if it’s worth paying to enter. On the other hand, the ride from Munich is way too long to just go up, see the castle on the outside, and then leave. After the tour, you can visit the kitchen on your own, the gift shop and then leave.

I went out after 4 PM, and after considering paying the 6 euros for the ride down, I decided against it. With all the snow, the walk downhill would be fast and would almost feel like I was skiing. It took me around 15-20 minutes. Walking towards the bus stop, I took some shots, this being my favorite one:

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I also took some photos of the surrounding area, now that I didn't have the rush to get to the castle on time.










When I went to the bus stop, I realized that I had to wait for other 35 minutes to catch bus 78 back to Füssen train station. I was worried that I would miss my train back to Munich but hey, it’s Germany and public transport is perfectly planned. I got to the train station by 6 PM and took a ride back to Munich, getting there at around 8:20 PM. I was exhausted and hungry, so I met with my sister and we went to grab dinner.

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So, do I recommend visiting the Neuschwanstein Castle? Absolutely I do. It’s one of the most impressive castles I’ve seen and getting there itself is an adventure. At just 2 hours away, it’s the perfect activity for anyone who feels like they’ve seen it all in Munich. And even if there’s still much to see, if you’ll be there for a couple days, I suggest that you save one for this.

Would I do go back during the winter? I might not. While it looks like a fairytale, the weather was a little too much for me to handle. Also, during the winter you can’t pass to Marienbruck, which is one of the main reasons to visit because the view you get from there is the most spectacular one.

Nevertheless, it was a great experience and another place that I checked off my bucket list. Until next time, Füssen!

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If you're looking for ideas about what to do in Munich, check out part 1 and 2 of my diary!

After my first two days in Munich, I felt more familiarized with the city. I knew where to have breakfast, lunch and dinner, what to wear, how to deal with the snow. Also, I didn’t get lost between my hotel and the Central Station.

Day 3 – January 5 – Sightseeing in below zero temperatures

My sister -who was taking a Human Rights course- had to do some sightseeing in search for certain landmarks around the city. I joined her but little did I know how bad the weather would be. It was snowing constantly, it was windy and freezing cold. We walked and walked, met some cool people along the way and at 4 PM, I called it quits. Nonetheless, I saw some pretty places.

We walked from Odeonplatz to the Englischer Garten, a beautiful park with rivers and beautiful nature. I can’t wait to go back in the summer.

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The Chinese Tower

Day 4 – January 6 – Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site

On the day of Epiphany, we went to the Dachau Concentration Camp, the first concentration camp opened in Germany by the nazi regime. I advise to anyone visiting Munich to go there and learn a little more about this tragic era. Entrance is free and tours are reserved for groups, but you can pay for an audio guide and walk the whole place.

The awful acts that took place there make you feel ashamed about human history but when you hear the locals talk about it, and how they say that it’s finally their generation (under 40 years old) who are able to deal with the past, talk about it and work towards not letting it happen again, it’s incredible. People often overlook how Germany pulled itself together in such a short period of time. They also have profound shame for the things that happened. Such a big nation got back on track from historic shame, and yet I see smaller countries like mine struggling to pull themselves together with a significantly smaller population.

I took a group tour that lasted about 2 hours and it was very comprehensive and well-explained. The tour takes p;ace inside and outside of the buildings, so there were moments in which we were outside for periods of 30 minutes or more. I was freezing. Then, our guide described to us the type of clothing that the prisoners would wear all-year long: some simple shirt and trousers, with wooden shoes. They had to do forced labor for countless hours during the day. Some would die of hypothermia in winter. Yet there I was, wearing two layers of clothing, a coat a scarf and a hat, double pair of socks, and complaining about cold.

It made me think of how privileged we are, even when we think we are not. What those people went through -and some of them survived- is such an amount of pain no human being should ever experience. Visiting places like Dachau helps us see things from a different perspective.

Russian Orthodox Chapel - one of the various religious memorials

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I spent my next two days in Germany a little far from Munich. I visited the Neuschwanstein Castle near Füssen, about two hours away. On my last day, I went to Salzburg, Austria. I feel like both places deserve a post on their own, so stay tuned for the following weeks!

This has been part 2 of a 4-part series about Munich. Read part 1 here.

January 2nd – Arriving in Munich

I took a train from Girona to Barcelona, and then a flight to Munich, with a layover in Dusseldorf. Yes, there were direct flights but they weren’t as cheap, especially when I bought the ticket less than a week before.

I arrived in snowy Munich at around 6 PM. After meeting with my sister, we took the S8 train to the central station.

Airport-to-city tip: The cheapest way to get from MUC airport to the city is by train (S1 or S8.). The airport is out in zone 4 so if your hotel is in the inner city, you need to buy a 4-zone ticket at 11.60 euros one way. I suggest that if your flight lands early in the morning, you get the Airport-to-City-Day Ticket instead. For around 1 euro more, you get unlimited trips inside zone 1 which is what you will most likely visit on your first day in Munich. You will save a lot of money this way, especially if you travel during wintertime and walking around isn’t as fun with below 0°C temperatures. 

Our hotel was around 5 minutes from Hauptbahnhof. After getting a little lost -as always- we found the hotel, checked-in and started planning our next day.

Day 1 – Jan 3: Nymphemburg Palace and the city centre

Our first day in Munich welcomed us with a chilly -6°C, the coldest temperature I had ever experienced (yet). The city was covered in snow yet the sun was weakly shining a bit through the clouds. We planned to visit the Nymphemburg Palace and then on our way back, go to the city centre.
I bought a One-Day Ticket at around 7 euros because it was the cheapest alternative. It covered the inner city zone so it was good for the day. Then, we took the tram. Our first stop: the palace.

Nymphemburg Palace was built in 1664 as a summer residence for the former rulers of Bavaria and where Ludwig II was born. At first we planned just to see it on the outside but the temperature was too cold to handle so we went in. It was a great decision. With my student ID, the entrance only cost me 5 euros.

Tip: Student discounts everywhere – If you’re a student, make sure to carry your student ID with you all around Munich. There are discounts that will help you save a lot of money in the end.

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 After seeing the palace on the inside, we went to see the gardens.

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We headed back to the main station to take the U-Bahn to Marienplatz and walk around the city.

Neues Rathaus

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Around Hofgarten.

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This was during my complete first day at München. The city is definitely on my list of places to go back during spring or summer to experience it on a different light, literally.

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Tip – Eating in Munich (and paying in cash): I am used to the prices in Barcelona, so I found eating in Munich a little expensive. Calculate not less than 20 euros/day. Thankfully I was with my sister, so we would usually buy one plate and split it in two. Also, we saved money by drinking just water (free from the hotel lobby!). Something that annoyed me was that lots of places wouldn’t accept credit cards. I really dislike carrying money around and especially withdrawing money (bank fees are the death). 

Breakfast: Definitely the best alternative would be to cook it yourself, but if you’re not staying at an Airbnb place, you are most likely stuck with eating out. There’s a place called Coffee Fellows, it’s similar to a Starbucks. You can eat a decent sandwich and a nice cup of coffee for 6 euros. 

Lunch and dinner on a budget: Central station has lots of places to eat. It was an option so we wouldn’t have to travel to Marienplatz every night.

Day 2 – Jan 4: The Allianz Arena

As a Bayern fan, I had to see the Allianz Arena, home stadium of the Bavarian team. I dragged my sister with me (spoiler alert: she had a great time) and we headed to the Allianz.

Getting there: From Senlinger Tor or Marienplatz take U6 until Frottmaning. It has a football ball in the train signs to indicate the line that goes to the arena. An inner-zone ticket works.

The wind and snow were insane that day. It’s a 10-minute walk from the train station to the stadium. I could barely see with the snow falling on my face. The wind was so strong that I felt I was being pushed. None of it mattered in the end because, there I was:

Behold the world's most beautiful stadium, home to the world's most beautiful team. 😍

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We wandered around and took some pictures before I finally decided to go in and ask for the tour prices. At first, like always, I was planning on seeing the stadium on the outside only. But I was there, and who knows if I could ever go back. Why wouldn’t I take the tour? I found out the prices weren’t outrageous, and with a student’s discount, I bought two tickets, one for me and one for my non-football-fan sister.

We took the English tour at 12:15 PM that would show us around the stadium, the dressing room, the press room, the tunnel and the museum. Needless to say, I was like a kid in Christmas.

Inside the Allianz Arena 🔵🔴

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Dressing room 🔴

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Mia san mia

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After being blown away by everything, I entered the store which again, is like a dream for any Bayern fan. I managed to stay in budget and only bought a Thomas Müller mug and a lanyard.
The tour is very well prepared, it’s entertaining even for non-football fanatics. I really recommend any sports fan to visit the stadium and take the tour. It will make you love -or at least respect- the team for everything they’ve accomplished.

I went back to the city with my head up in the clouds and bragging rights about saying I walked the same tunnel that my Bayern boys walk every home match.

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On my next blog post, I’ll share more about other city sights, the Dachau Concentration Camp, and the Neuschwanstein Castle.