Chillin' in Munich

Our travels began from Nashville, TN on a rainy, mild winter Wednesday morning (Jan. 15). We arrived at the Nashville airport at 8:00 a.m. Our check-in went very smoothly despite dealing with over 300 pounds of luggage, which included 2 heated boot bags stuffed full of ski boots and ski clothing, one sports tube containing two sets of skis and poles, two large checked bags, two carry-ons, and fur coats over our arms. Remember, we're living out of these bags for two whole months!

We connected through Charlotte, NC with a layover that gave us enough time for long walks, a good crab cake lunch at Phillip's Seafood, and Brock's all-important acquisition of duty-free Bourbon! Once in the air on the way to Munich, we watched the approaching dusk as our plane flew at 600 mph with a strong tail wind along the Eastern shoreline of the United States, past Washington, DC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York, and Boston. Here is a photo Brock snapped from his seat, of the Eastern U. S. coastline:

We look a little tired, don't we? Time to try to get a little bit of sleep!

Around 5:00 a.m. Brock awoke to see an upcoming shoreline from his vantage point. It was still dark outside, with constellations clearly visible in the sky. We were flying over the ocean and coming upon the English coastline. The lights from small towns and villages began to emerge below, then amazingly bright lights over a large area. It was London! It was so beautiful from way above. He could make out the darkened footprint of Wembley Stadium, the Thames River, and even London Bridge. He was so glad that he woke up. After that we flew over Dover, the English Channel, then Calais, France. Our Premium Economy seats were very comfortable, and the American Airlines flight was one of the smoothest and most comfortable that we've ever taken.

Brock snapped a photo of the route we took:

At 6:06 a.m. we touched down in Munich. We breezed through Customs, loaded up a couple of carts with all our luggage, and rolled our way to the Munich Airport Hilton, which is attached to the airport. Easy Peasy! While waiting for our room, we enjoyed a nice breakfast. We were able to check in at 9:00 a.m. which was really nice!

Understandably, we were feeling a little rough. Brock got a few naps in, and we got in a light workout and swim at the fitness center. We had an early dinner and were in bed by 9:00 p.m.

Here are some pretty photos of the lobby of the Munich Airport Hilton at night:

We are happy to be in Munich, starting our Around-the-World Ski Adventure!