Photo Below: Kurt’s uniform button
In the evening, we dined on schnitzel, potatoes, and vegetables, with brown bread. Dessert consisted of delicious Nuremberg Lebkuchen. The fellows drank beer, and after dinner ordered some wine for me, that I felt obliged to sip. Everyone sitting near us asked where I was from and why I was there. When the soldiers found out that I was from America, they would ask if I knew their Aunt Hilda or Uncle Otto in Chicago or New York. I became quite the expert at clicking my wine glass. After leaving that dining tent, we went to a larger tent building where we sang, linked arms, and danced around the table. Eventually, something I had eaten did not agree with me, for I felt quite ill. The fellows were so sympathetic that it made me like them even more. They walked me back to my hotel, and upon arrival, I felt much better. We sat in the hotel lobby talking and laughing until almost Midnight. Since they had to get up the next morning at 6:00, they departed after promising to return around 10:00 a.m. I hastened to my cold little bed. What a day!
Date: September 8, 1938
Place: Nuremberg and Munich
Weather: Sunny, thank goodness!
TIMELINE: British Inner Cabinet meets to discuss the crisis involving Czechoslovakia. They consider appeasement as a way of allowing time for British rearmament.
It wasn’t until I looked at my wristwatch on the way down to breakfast, that I discovered the desk clerk woke me an hour early! I needed that extra time to pack because the fellows arrived a few minutes before 10:00. Incidentally, I am now depleted of the eight packages of cigarettes, I brought from America. Max and Kurt eagerly finished the last pack! After a short stroll, we enjoyed coffee and rolls, then pushed our way through mobs of people, back to the hotel. It is so fortunate that I happen to be in Nuremberg at this time. It is possible to see a cross section of German life that I would never have encountered. People are here from every part of the country — a great many of them in their native dress. The stores are full of picturesque outfits. The girls look adorable, and the men’s hats are adorned with piles of flowers and fluttering feathers.
After returning to the hotel, we discovered that my bag had been taken to the station, so we wandered in that direction. The fellows bought platform tickets, so they could put me right on the train. We took more pictures with my little camera. How I hope they turn out all right. I promised to write and send my pictures and they did the same. In all too short of a time, the train arrived, and we had the dreadful job of saying goodbye.
Max removed an emblem pin from his shirt, and gave it to me. I felt very proud, as soldiers certainly hate to part with those.
Photo Below: 1938 Nuremberg Rally emblem pin from Max
The train would not wait any longer, and I felt like crying when Max kissed my hand — oh dear! Though it seems to be a custom here, this was the first time that someone had ever kissed my hand. We waved good-bye until they were just specks in the distance.
Upon arrival in Munich, a porter asked the name of my hotel. He took my bag, however I lost him in the crowd. I finally found out where the hotel was, and sure enough — there sat my bag waiting for me. The hotel manager seems to be the only one who can speak English. Fortunately, my German speaking ability has improved considerably, due to conversing with Max and Kurt. Now I can make my needs known. In addition, my new German pocket dictionary will be of great assistance. It was too late to take any sightseeing trips in Munich, so after consulting with my map and guidebook, I walked all over town. I lingered in Konig Platz, a huge square over-run with doting mothers watching their gaily-playing children. Dinner at the hotel was a solitary affair, and I feel extremely let down, after all the fun of the last two days. The way Munich appeals to me now, I certainly am glad I stayed on in Nuremberg. Tonight, it’s off to bed early, to recover some greatly needed sleep.
CHAPTER SIX
Munich to Vienna
Train Twosome Ends up in Rathaus
Date: September 9, 1938
Place: Munich to Vienna
Weather: A lovely day
Since I tarried in Nuremberg, I did not spend much time in Munich. After a quick breakfast — it was off again. This day included an eight-hour train ride to Vienna. Among my favorite features of foreign trains are the huge windows, which make it so easy to watch people and scenery. Consisting of one large glass pane, these windows can be raised and lowered with great speed. If you wish, you can stand in the aisle outside your compartment and gaze out of additional windows. When you arrive at a station, you do not carry your luggage off the train and hand it to the porter. You open a window — signal to a porter — then throw your bags out of the window! The trains do not stop for very long. Sometimes there is barely enough of an interlude to throw your bags out then run and jump out the door!
I shared my compartment with two old beret-wearing Germans, who both had such large bay windows they could hardly sit down. They looked like they must drink a lot of beer. They also spoke and read French so they must have come from near the frontier. They grunted to each other, read French newspapers, and dozed off, almost resting their heads on their huge stomachs. Craving companionship, I was dismayed at the idea of spending an entire day with these men. Who should enter, but a nice looking German fellow, who sat down in the seat opposite mine. How long did it take for him to speak to me? It took two hours! After the silence was broken, we laughed at the way we had just sat and stared at each other. Hubert said he was the headmaster at a military school in Berlin and he proved to be an interesting person. He spoke English much better than I spoke German, but sometimes we had to resort to both languages. My little English to German dictionary was now a big help.
Whenever the train stopped, we opened the windows and hung our heads out to watch people at the stations. Both the men and women were wearing beautiful native costumes. At one stop, Hubert got off the train and purchased some delightful blue flowers — Alpenblumen — which he said, grew on nearby mountains. The trip was a journey of stunning views, amidst mountains, forests, and lakes. As is the custom here, women were working in the fields. In those fields lay thousands of rocks topped with hay, which was drying in the sun. By and by, we entered Austria, where we stopped briefly in Linz. I sent the city a little kiss and took a photo for Max and Kurt. I certainly wish I could stop thinking of those fellows.
The ride was so long that by the end of the trip, we knew almost everything about each other. When our train reached Vienna, Hubert asked me to go to dinner with him. After I was all settled in my hotel, I dressed up for a change! We went by tram out to the famous “Rathauskeller” in the cellar of the Town Hall. The locals called it the “Rathaus.” It was quite picturesque and very crowded. We ordered wiener schnitzel and drank the famous Grinzinger wine. The resident orchestra included strolling musicians — a violinist and a singing accordion player who meandered throughout the audience. The music consisted of well-known Viennese waltzes and bits from operettas, which were thoroughly enjoyable. To my surprise, at one point they started playing “A Bicycle Built for Two,” for my special benefit and for an English party at the next table. I sang it for Hubert, to his amusement.