Frankfurt is where we started our journey, and today Frankfurt was where we would return. Another hearty breakfast and we packed up to depart Munich on a day when it seemed everyone wanted to get to Munich. Game day. Chants for Bayern competed with cheers for Chelsea. The red shirts (Bayern) outnumbered the blue, but both sides were well–represented. The drinking had already begun at 10 a.m., but then again, maybe it never ended.

A bit of souvenir shopping and we were back on the train. The 3-hour ride was comfortable. I wish that plane seats (on one now, on our way home) were as comfortable and spacious as train seats!

Arriving in Frankfurt, we were surprised to see quite a number of police there were patrolling. Not only that, but they were dressed in riot gear! At the hotel we discovered that the reason is that the Occupy movement was active in Frankfurt that week, trying to shut down the banking centre of the city. The police presence was there to keep order and they looked well-prepared for the worst possibilities. Back to that in a moment.

I booked our hotel online just a couple of days before and what a pleasant surprise! Easy to get to as it’s directly across from the train station. It’s in a 100 year old building and so the rooms are big with high ceilings. Free wi-fi. Free snacks and drinks in the lobby. Free drinks in the room bar fridge. And relatively inexpensive too.

Knowing that almost everything closes Sundays (as North Americans, we often forget that businesses other than just banks close Sundays), we decided to spend the afternoon getting in some souvenir shopping and wandering around the city. Plus, we were curious about the Occupy group happenings. Once again, our luck for stores was poor as many of them were closed because of the police barricades due to Occupy. So, we stood and observed.

The police looked relaxed, smoking cigarettes, drinking from bottles of water, hanging out in their vans and armored cars. They were strong in numbers and equipment. They didn’t seem to feel the need to look and act tough. When we asked questions, we were answered easily and politely, whether we were asking for directions or asking what was happening.

Finally able to find our way past all that, we found a busy and lively shopping strip. Seemed ironic to be there now after watching the Occupy movement. This shopping area had McDonald’s, expensive clothing stores, department stores, Starbucks, and 3 (yes 3!) H&Ms spaced out within just a few blocks of each other.

The feel of Frankfurt is totally different from that of Munich. Though we did see some groups of men cheering and singing chants for their team, the crowd was much more diverse. Much more international. Much more easy going, yet cosmopolitan. We didn’t feel like sore thumbs. Yes, it seems appropriately nicknamed Mainhattan and Bankfurt, but I could still feel the German culture in the mix of old buildings amongst the highrises.

There were all kinds of different kinds of live music being played, from what sounded like Peruvian windpipes, to Indian music, to classical duets on xylophones. All kinds of food too and we chose a little döner (i.e. donair) place with a super nice waiter.

During our walk, before calling it a night, we came upon the Occupy camp area. The streets all around were strewn with litter, broken and tossed alcohol bottles, empty cigarette cartons, and more. The participants, however, we’re in celebration mode, dancing, singing, and drinking. I believe the cause is a good one, but I wonder if they are representing their cause in a good fashion as all I saw was a mess that others were needing to clean up.

On our way back to our hotel we found out one reason why our hotel is probably cheaper than I would have expected. It’s not in the nicest area of town. We hadn’t really noticed before, but the streets heading back toward the train station are lined with sex stores and stripper shows with sad looking, heavily made up women sitting on stools outside. That, along with the homeless people and stumbling drunks, made for an interesting walk back.

Back just in time to watch the big soccer (I mean, football) game, we took advantage of the free bar fridge and each cracked open a beer. Big drinker that I am, I didn’t even finish half. I also barely watched the game as I was focused on getting my packing done. After watching 3 hours of the game, they were tied 1-1, so we gave up and went to sleep.