BMW World

      Munich is the world headquarters of BMW. So finding an attractions called BMW World was not very surprising.  Here are a few pictures for those who like all things BMW and for those who may not have ventured done from Munich's Old Town.

 

 

Munchen (Munich)

     Welcome to Munich!  Not only is Munich a beautiful, historic city but it is also a major commercial, cultural and financial center in southern Germany.  Home to the 1972 Olympic Games, the 1974 Fifa World Cup, BMW World Headquarters and so much more.  We got a short bus tour and walking tour on Friday, however, it was Good Friday and therefore most of the shops were closed for the day. The kids also had the day off from soccer (no games, no training). They seemed to enjoy their rest day. The final picture through the bus window is Allianz Arena, the home field of Bayern Munich, current leaders of the Bundesliga.

 

 

Prague

     So this post is slightly out of order. On Wednesday morning the teams and parents where given a wonderful walking tour of Prague Castle (Prazsky Hrad), which now houses many of the Czech Republic's government offices.  Guinness lists Prague Castle as the largest of the ancient castles with an area of almost 70,000 square metres.  St Vitus Cathedral is one the most recognizable structures of Prague Castle.
     The Charles Bridge is another beautiful and very recognizable landmark of Prague. Construction began in 1357 and once completed, the Charles Bridge remained the only the bridge crossing the Vitava River until 1841.  It is now pedestrian only and is a wonderful experience, with amazing views of the city.  The bridge is decorated with 30 statues at regularly spaced intervals across the river.
     We all had the opportunity to explore and shop through Prague's Old Town district.  Some of us even ventured back during the evening to see the Old Town and Charles Bridge at night.

 

Nurnberg Friendship Games

     On Thursday we traveled from Prague to Munich.  Along the way, we stopped in Nurnberg for Friendship Games between VFL Nurnberg and FC Nurnberg.  The boys played VFL Nurnberg's U15 squad and the girls played FC Nurnberg's U12 squad.  The matches were fun to watch and there was good soccer on display by all the teams.  The boys were creating opportunities, but were unable to finish resulting in a 0-3 loss.  The girls controlled most of the game.  FC Nurnberg did create a few dangerous moments but in the end our girls prevailed 1-0.
     The best part however was yet to come. Following their individual games the coaches paired the German boys with the USA girls and the German girls with the USA boys.  They then played a game against each other with boys and girls mixed together on the field.  A great experience for all involved parents and kids alike. Thank you VFL Nurnberg and FC Nurnberg for the hospitality and a special thanks to GINO for the wonderful dinner afterwards.
 


 

This is SPARTA!

     Not that Sparta, but AC Sparta Praha.  The men's professional team is currently ranked #2 in the Czech national league.  The boys and girls would both get to play their respective youth teams.  The training facilities for the Sparta Youth Program are located inside the largest stadium in the world.  Built by the Communists for their version of the Olympic games, it was left in disuse for many years.  Now AC Sparta has a stand alone Clubhouse, offices and locker rooms, as well as 8 soccer pitches.
     The boys struggled against Sparta and were outclassed in most aspects of the games.  The result reflected this with a 0-5 loss. The girls started slow and gave up 2 goals to go into halftime 0-2.  They were able to rally in the second half and finished with a 2-2 tie.  I apologize for not having any pictures of the girls match at this time as they played in a separate location from the boys.

 

 

Catching Up with Dukla Praha

     Ahoj (hello) from Prague.  I apologize for not getting updates out yesterday.  Our schedule was very tight and the wifi connection at the hotel was horrible.  That seems to have been corrected so let's get caught up.  Yesterday, we traveled from St. Polten to Prague.  Shortly after checking in both teams had to change and pile back on the buses to head for their respective games.
     The Czech Republic has 4 teams that seem to consistently be in the running to win their national league championship.  One of these teams is Dukla Praha.  (Praha means Prague)  The girls lucked out when they arrived for their game to find that the other team had misunderstood and thought the match was scheduled for Wednesday.  The boys played Dukla Praha's '99 academy team.  They had a rough start and were down 0-4 at the half.  In the second half, we would rally to finish 5-4.  The boys were very excited about the result but Coach Justin knew there was still work to be done.

Vienna

     Today we visited Vienna, the capital city of Austria.  As you can see from the pictures, it was snowing today.  The forecast does not show any signs of improved weather coming very soon.  Either way, Vienna was beautiful.

     We began the day with a tour of Schonbrunn Palace. As the former summer residence of the imperial family, the Palace is rather spacious with 1,441 rooms. Unfortunately, no photos were allowed inside the palace. The grounds and gardens look amazing as well, however, we didn't have much time to fully explore them.
     The statue behind the kids is of Maria Theresa, who was Marie Antoinette's mother.

     We then ventured into Vienna center for some lunch a little self exploration.  St. Stephen's Cathedral is very beautiful and is one of Vienna's most recognizable symbols.  St. Stephen's is the seat of the Archbishop of Vienna and the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna.