It’s a Long Way To the Top!
When my friend Kasia said, “Hey! AC/DC is playing in my city just a few days before Metallica,” the gears started turning. I had only considered seeing Metallica in Munich, but this opened the door to seeing another legendary band on the same trip! This is how the adventure began.
Tired after a long flight, I finally landed in the beautiful city of Frankfurt. There, with open arms, two of the kindest Germans, Tina and Thomas, welcomed me. Not only did they pick me up from the airport but also offered me a home to stay. They showed me the usual tourist spots but most importantly, the hidden gems only known to locals. Meddes, a fellow St Germany friend, joined us later on. We finished the night in one of those hole-in-the-wall restaurants, where the food, drinks, and atmosphere were fantastic. A truly local experience!
The morning after, I said, “See ya in a few days,” to Tina and Thomas, before jumping on a train to Gelsenkirchen. Several stops and landscapes later, I arrived. Standing there with a sign was Kasia, one of the most energetic and positive women I know, who quickly ran and hugged me. About a year had passed since we last saw each other in Hamburg, and it felt wonderful to see another familiar face on the other side of the world.
The next day after some sightseeing, we made it into Veltins Arena. The Pretty Reckless kicked off the show and it didn’t take long before I fell in love with Taylor Momsen. A couple of beers later, the mighty AC/DC came out, and tore the place down! These so-called “old dudes” had so much energy, they played over 2 hours! Rain poured as we left, foreshadowing a bit of the weekend ahead.
I was overjoyed to reunite with Nina and Alex the day after. It had been a decade since we last met in Los Angeles. Thanks for showing me around, I had a wonderful time!
Friday came and with that, another city. Munchen’s architecture, history, and sheer beauty left me breathless. I wanted to absorb as much of it before heading down to the show. My heart melted once I set foot on the show floor. All those familiar faces, the road warriors, the Metallica gladiators, hugging you all felt so good. Without you, Metallica shows wouldn’t be as special. Speaking of special, what a show! The return of Wolf, and the heavy rain on Puppetz were my night highlights. Despite the downpour, I decided to risk exposing my camera to the water because the rain added a lot of atmosphere. The droplets shined brighter through the spotlights, creating an even better backdrop for the show. As beautiful as that was, I grew anxious, my pants and my shoes were wet, and my weatherproof jacket started giving up. I had no choice but to put my camera away and pray it would survive inside my jacket. The boys said “Good Night,” and the worst part of the night was about to begin. The train stations faced disruptions due to the heavy rain, this led to hundreds if not thousands of us having to wait about 2 hours outside, drenched and shivering, it was a challenging end to an otherwise remarkable night.
Saturday was devoted to waking up late, more sightseeing, and mingling with our pals from Saint Germany at Backstage. This is where I would like to thank all the St. Germany chapter, I’ve admired you for several years. I can always count on following the green shirts if I get lost. Thank you for your remarkable hospitality and energy! We were also there to see one of the best Metallica tribute bands, My’tallica! These guys go all out! Their attention to detail in both sound and visuals truly set them apart. Huge thanks to those who made these events happen.
Sunday Funday! Munich is filled with tons of beautiful and interesting places, one of them being the “Alte Pinakothek” which I would highly encourage you to visit. It is one of the oldest galleries in the world showcasing Old Master paintings spanning from the fourteenth century to the eighteenth, truly breathtaking. After being mesmerized by such wonderful art we returned to Munchen Olympic Stadium. It was hot and the skies were clear, we fist-bumped as we wished each other a good show to the sound of “The Ecstacy of Gold.” The boys rushed to the stage and kickstarted the show with the energetic “Creep,” no surprise there, but a few minutes later, the unexpected happened, the live debut of Inamorata. It was as magical as we all thought it would be, eleven minutes never felt so short! The boys looked thrilled to have landed it well. Let’s not forget about Breadfan, because it was another surprise, it is so fun live! Pyro shot up to the sky with Sandman, bringing this wonderful week to an end. We laughed, cried, and embraced as we all said goodbye, hoping to see each other soon.
I landed a couple of days later back home in LA, tired, hungry, and with that post-Metallica depression. Then I smiled, reminiscing on this wonderful week, wishing to do it all over again.
Grinding, saving, planning, traveling, barely sleeping, and saying goodbye to friends is hard, but this is what it takes to pursue my happiness. I tell you, folks! It's harder than it looks.
It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock 'n' roll!
