Since the Munich
Olympic Games, in which
Israeli athletes were murdered, the city of
Munich has taken it upon itself to make sure nothing of the sort ever happens again. So they have a special
terminal for
flights to Israel. It's called
Terminal F.
If you are ever in Munich and need to fly to Israel, drive elsewhere (such as Berlin, Bonn or Shanghai), instead of taking a flight from Munich.
Terminal F is separated from the rest of the airport. It is about 20 minutes away, walking. It is small, and has only a tiny duty free shop. But that is okay. The problem is they really want to make sure you are not carrying a bomb. I've heard that the following description is not always the case, but this is what happened to me:
They scan your luggage. Then they open all of your luggage (well, actually, you do, but they look through it). All the suitcases and rucksacs and bags are opened and scrutinized. They open your hand luggage. I'm not sure if this is done to everyone, but it was to me and to a 80-year old lady, who had actually been in the holocaust. Whereas in most airports you go through a metal detector, they do it by hand metal detectors in Terminal F. My girlfriend had her breasts touched, and also they make sure that you aren't hiding any explosives in between your legs. And they don't make sure by asking you about it.
Of course they don't speak English.
A wonderful end to any vacation.