It was a restless night at the Munich Marriott due to our room being way to warm. Paige tried to adjust it, Ken tried to adjust it and I opened the window. All with little effect. So, we sweated and didn't sleep well.  Oh well, we had a long plane ride ahead, so figured we could recoup some shut eye during the flight. In addition to the free stuff the night before, we also had a complimentary breakfast which had some great choices. Fresh fruit, lots of yummy breads, cheese, meats, mueslie, bacon, eggs, etc etc.   

The airport was only a few miles away, so within in 30 minutes we had gotten gas, turned in the car and checking in to our flight to Washington Dulles. While Ken and I had used two of my global upgrades on the flight to Munich, I only had one upgrade left, so I was the only one scheduled to enjoy first class on the way home. When we checked in, I asked the counter agent what it would take to upgrade Ken and Paige. I knew that the first class cabin was less than 1/2 full, and figured it was worth asking. She said the flight was going to be quite full and they were struggling getting some families seats together. I suggested that if they took Ken/Paige's seats they could have two together! The agent wasn't buying it, so they were still seated in the back.  

We got through security and hit the duty free store for some last minute gifts, then the Lufthansa lounge to kill 45 minutes. When we got to the gate, I again checked in with the agent to see if there was any possibility of an upgrade for Ken/Paige. She said no, they had already done the upgrades and they weren't on the list. Oh well, we tried. I assured Ken I would get the ice cream sundae and bring it back to him.  

Right before we boarded, we heard  "Tyrrell Part of Two, please check in with the gate agent". I knew EXACTLY what that meant….it was an upgrade! Not only that, it was right where I was sitting, so we were together. We were all thrilled!   

We got on the plane, settled in and were especially happy to be up front when the captain advised the flight time would be 10 hours due to extreme headwinds. That would have been brutal in the back! We got some sleep, watched some movies and had some good food during our long ride home.

We arrived at IAD and the day started to fall apart. If you have arrived at IAD from an international flight, then you know it is a painful process. Those transferring flights go one direction and those staying in DC go another. We were not transferring, so had to take a shuttle from the plane to the customs area. Unfortunately, the shuttle wasn't ready and there was a mass of people squished into a small area waiting. After what seemed like forever (20-30 minutes) we got on an equally small shuttle (more squished people) and finally made it to passport control.  

Luckily Ken/I have Global Entry, which means we can bypass the long passport lines. Paige didn't have Global Entry, but I thought that she could go with us and not have to stand in the long line. So we did our thing at the Global entry machine, and took Paige with us past the line. Then we waited for our luggage. And waited. And waited. Finally Ken/my luggage arrived, but not Paige's. So we waited some more. Then Ken asked a United rep, who said we needed to wait more. Then he asked again, and we waited more. Finally we found out that her bag went to the other terminal (where the transfer's went) and they had to go get it.  

Now we had the bags, and it was time to go through customs. Except, due to my bright idea of Paige going with us through Global Entry, she hadn't been processed properly. So, they made her go back through passport control, which tacked on another 30 minutes. All in all, it took us 2 hours to get out of the airport after landing. NO FUN.  

The rest of the evening was spent driving to Lancaster PA to stay with Ken's parents. It took about 3 hours, with one quick diversion to grab some food for the road. It was great to finally arrive to friendly faces, a comfy bed and Christmas fast approaching.

While we are in PA for the next few days to enjoy visiting family and the holiday, the Bavarian trip has come to an end. We saw some truly amazing scenery, had great experiences and had a wonderful time. It was a perfect way to usher in the Christmas holiday. 

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well and I look forward to new adventures in 2014!