Munich and Dave Matthews Band

So, the end of another week, another amazing week I might add. This trip keeps getting better, just when I think it can't get any better! Last week went by pretty quickly..Thursday our host family went on a mini vacation with some friends to a cabin in the mountains so Kristen and I were on our own! We cooked dinner Thurs and Fri night and we very proud of ourselves :) I finally got to watch some TV for the first time in a month.. Not that the family would never let us watch it but it would just be a bit awkward if we watched TV with them because there are only like 2 English channels here.. But I watched the Olympics which was cool!! The Austrians are pretty upset about all these Americans winning the downhill ski racing.. Woops! We had a field trip to a farm on the outskirts of Salzburg and we got to try all organic products and the schnapps they make there! I didn't like any of it... Friday night a couple girls came over for another card night, we played Phase 10 which is so much fun! We had to rest up for Saturday because it was the big day!!
Saturday Katherine, Lynlee and I hopped on the train at 2pm to Munich and made it there by 4. We walked around the city, which was beautiful I might add. It was the busiest city I've seen so far.. there were hundreds of people everywhere. We didn't get to see or do much because we had to get dinner and find the concert hall. We ate at the Hofbräuhaus, which I think is where Papa told me to go.. Did I go to the right one?? Well anyways it’s this world famous beer house. It was HUGE and so hard to find a table since we had to seat ourselves. We finally found one and ordered and had a beer. The food was alright but the experience is what we paid for. There were people from all over the world. 90% of the people in there were tourists. They had a band in the corner all dressed in old fashioned German clothes and you could hear them perfectly from anywhere in the building, which is amazing since it was so big.
After that we got a taxi to get us to the concert hall called Zenith. It used to be an old railway house, where they would keep the trains or material and stuff like that. It was so small! We checked our coats and made our way up to the stage. Even if I had been in the last row of the whole place, it would have been the closest I've ever been at the Dave Matthews Band concert. But no, I was not in the last row.. we pushed our way all the way to THE SECOND ROW. I was standing legitimately 5 feet away from Dave Matthews himself. DREAM COME TRUE. If I said last Saturday was the best day of my life, I take it back. This Saturday was, hands down. There was Americans on all sides of us, so we met people from all over, studying in places like Barcelona and Florence. But when Dave came on stage, nobody spoke, we were all too busy screaming and singing. It was amazing being so close and seeing the dynamics of the band and how they all interact with each other and the crowd. Dave talked to the crowd (and tried to speak in German which did not come out very well with his thick southern accent, but it was funny none the less). He played some new songs and some olds songs and some I've never heard live before. I met people who have seen him 20plus times in concert. This was my 4th time. He played for 2 hours straight, then did not one, but TWO encores, which is like, unheard of. For being such a small crowd in a small venue, we really showed the band how much we loved them! I will probably never be that close to the band ever again, which will stink when I see them twice this summer, but I will never forget those 3 1/2 hours of my life and how alive and happy I was to hear this live music that I listen to every day of my life, seeing the band right in front of me, with all their different facial expressions and see them dancing and having an even better time than all we were. Again, I could never explain in words how much this night meant to me, especially because many of you probably don't even know who Dave Matthews Band is and even if you do, you're probably not as obsessed with them as me. Just think of seeing your favorite band/artist/musician live, 2 rows away, in Germany, knowing every one of their songs and being able to sing along, only paying 1/3 of what you'd pay in America for those seats, with 2 of your best friends.. an equation of the most perfect night.
So after the concert I met a guy from Ma, who had a Patriots hat on so naturally I approached him. When I see a Red Sox/ Patriots hat here, it’s the most exciting thing! We met all his friends and sister and we decided to go out with them after the concert, since we did have to stay up straight until 630 am to get our train back to Salzburg. (we did not want to spend the money on a hostel since Munich is the most expensive city in Germany) We went to an Irish bar and met some more Americans, but that closed at 2, so we went to a bar called Americanos.. Of course.. so we met a great group of 15 people.. Most of us didn't know each other before this night and some people were traveling alone and just met all at the concert. We were saying on the way home how amazing it is that we can meet people from all over the world one night who are traveling and studying abroad and doing the exact same thing we are, and have amazing conversations with each person and learning something new from each person, yet never see them again. We might not even remember their names yet we will always remember the talks we had and the times we shared and how they made us feel. It was another great experience.
We made it to the train station around 5am, had breakfast, and our train was there so we were able to get on early. We made it back to Salzburg around 9 and I slept all day of course. Staying up all night really wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, I had been dreading it all week. It wasn’t easy, but it also wasn’t that bad. I would do it again over and over if I could see Dave Matthews like that again!! My night still doesn’t feel real, it feels like a dream..
So I'm sorry that I did not update yesterday, on Sunday.. I was just way too tired and my brain was fried and my post probably wouldn't have made any sense at all! It probably still doesn’t.. Anyway.. I didn't think anything could have topped last weekend in Innsbruck, but it did, and now I'm thinking nothing will top this past weekend in Munich, but hopefully it will, I still have much more travelling to do!! Going to Vienna from Fri to Tues with the school, so will not be updating until late next week and also will not have any internet service because I do not want to bring my computer. Today is a beautiful and sunny day in Salzburg, finally warm!! I went for a walk and just loved life!! Sent a package home for you Catherine Emily McGuire since your birthday is in 8 days :) Hope everyone is doing well at home, wherever you may be!! I miss you all, but still haven't been homesick yet! I wonder if it will ever come.. Hopefully not! Love you all, here are some pictures and a video from the concert!!

Also.. the girls and I discussed how there have been many moments we’ve had while on this trip that we cannot put into words. We decided to call them “wild moments” you know, like some is just so cool, amazing, breathtaking, things you’ll never forget, people say it’s “wild.” So here are a couple wild moments I will share with you..

- The day I say goodbye to my parents, went through the airport security, and was all on my own.
- Being on the grounds of the Nazi Party Rallies where Hitler himself had been and brainwashed thousands of people.
- Sitting at dinner with my host family, talking and laughing, and realizing I had become a part of their family already.
- Running along the river in Salzburg on a sunny day.
- Sitting of the top of the mountain in Innsbruck looking out onto the entire world.
- Hearing Dave Matthews playing my favorite songs, arms length away from me, making eye contact with me.
- Walking down the busiest street in Munich during the day, with hundreds of thousands of people around, then walking on that same street at 4am with not a soul but the group of us.
- Watching the sun rise over the mountains while on the train back to Salzburg.