HEAVY WINDS, A 0-0 DRAW, AND A GREAT DINNER

Today Red Bulls Reader traveled to Munich with the members of the media that joined the team in Salzburg to take in the 1860 vs. Aachen match at Allianz Arena. The trip only took about 1:30, but the extremelly strong winds did give us some white knuckles and causes for semi-concern, especially since we traveled on the Autobahn, which has no speed limit. But more on that later.

The scenery on the way to Munich was magnificent. With the Alps always looming in the distance, we passed through rolling farmland with the occassional small town breaking things up. The scenery alone made the ride worthwhile, but we still had a match to attend in an arena that was the home of several World Cup matches.

The arena was very easy to find, right off the autobahn more or less, and as we rolled up, Red Bulls Readers' initial impression was that it looked like the areana was either 1) wrapped up in a parka, or 2) covered in bubble wrap. RBR was told that the new stadium at the Meadowlands will borrow a feature of Allianz Arena, which is the home of both 1860 and Bayern, namely that the outside of the arena changes colors depending on who is playing (see image below).



The trip to Munich was arrainged through the help of the New York Times' Jack Bell and the friendly PR staff at the Bundesliga. A parking pass and credentials were left for us, and we made our way into the media lounge for a pregame meal.

The meal was very tasty, a serious spread of all kinds of food. They even offered two local beer on tap, all this at no cost!!

As we made our way to where we would be sitting, RBR took in the sights and sounds of the arena. In another example of how things in Europe are VERY different from the US, there was a kiosk selling cigarettes in the middle of the concourse (I forgot to mention earlier that smoking has not been banned in arenas, bars, and restaurants as in the US, and the locals here smoke A LOT). Before settling in for the match, we made the obligatory trip to the souveneir stand, and several members of our party are now the proud owners of 1860 t-shirts, scarfs, etc.

The match did end in a 0-0 draw, and the serious scoring changes were few and far between, but the experience was a whole was worthwhile, and the atmosphere at the arena, even on a severaly blustery day, was electric.

After the match, the media members spoke with the two Americans on 1860, Gregg Berhalter (who started at left back and played the entire 90 minutes) and Josh Wolff (who dressed but did not play). Both Berhalter and Wolff were happy to catch up with the American media and are enjoying there time in Germany.

On the trip back to Salzburg, the winds died down, which made the conditions on the Autobahn far more normal, which means that cars were flying past our mini-van like it was standing still. We estimated that many cars passed us in the neighborhood of 200 kilometers per hour, which is about 120 miles per hour. Some serious speeding.

Once we returned to Salzburg, our group went to dinner with the team and staff at M32 a Red Bull owned restaurant. The food was equally as amazing as the view, as the restaurant in located on the top of a mountain overlooking the city. Simply a breathtaking view. The team took in this view after polishing off a five-course meal. Here is a view during the day:



It was also confirmed at dinner that the team WILL be making up its match against the Red Bull Salzburg Juniors, with the match taking place Monday. Red Bulls Reader will be there to provide a report on the match.