For A Future Vacation: Munich

We have a lot of generalized plans about places we want to visit as a family. Hawaii is high on the list, an American heritage trip through New England is a possibility, and a trip to China to visit my old pals Greg and Kate (who go wherever the State Department sends them) is tentatively slated for next spring.

One place I find myself contemplating is Munich. I think a trip to Europe, if we can manage it, would be a very important experience for the kids, and a lot of fun to boot. I had the opportunity to spend parts of three summers in Munich in the 1980s. I still have a lot of indelible memories. I can still hear the streetcar conductor call out the "Sendlinger Tor" stop. I can see the little glasses of warm Coke they would serve with meals (a thought that came to me just two evenings ago when I observed that the standard drink glass provided to me by Fuddruckers must have been at least 64 oz -- full of icewater, I'll have you know). I would love to find the place on the Marienplatz where we would get doughnut-like pastries right out of the cooker on a Saturday morning.

The city of Munich itself is rich and varied in its history (including a dark chapter as the birthplace of Hitler's Nazi movement), culture and attractions. I would love to show the kids around, and revisit some of the places I saw. There are great little Alpine (literally) villages nearby that would be worth a day trip. I imagine that I might even notice some of the changes that have taken place over the intervening 25(!) years.

More alarming than the thought that it has been 25 years since I visited, though, is the creeping realization that we need to start thinking seriously about taking this kind of trip ... before Kelly leaves home. Only six years left. Ouch.