We got the very efficient tube train straight into Munich’s Altstadt (old town) this morning. What a shock when we emerged into the Marienplatz full of striking buildings. There were loads of people around but it just seemed so calm and quiet. Maybe because all the shops were closed,but more likely, as Guy thinks, it was more to do with the acoustics of the square, it being surrounded by really tall buildings.
The gothic Rathaus is an amazing building , made even better by the clock’s display of dancing figures, musicians and jousting knights. I tried to film it but it went on for nearly ten minutes – I kept thinking it had finished when the tinkling bells would start up again!
We stuck our heads inside quite a few churches – some of the most decorative we’ve ever seen, especially the Asamkirche, which in the middle of a street, looks nothing much from the front but inside it’s another story. Every inch of it is covered in gaudy opulence.
By contrast, the Frauenkiche, with its twin towers was plainer inside. I think we caught the end of a service though and the organ player was belting out what sounded to me like the soundtrack to a horror movie. 😬
The fairly new Jewish synagogue was a completely modern cube shaped building built out of stone and mesh – a replacement for the one destroyed in 1938. It was inaugurated on November 9th 2006 – the 68th anniversary of the Kristallnacht.
Looking for somewhere for lunch we happened to walk into the Hofbräuhaus – not really knowing what it was. It was an absolute riot inside and actually very famous. Trestle tables and steins of frothing beer everywhere – what a fab place but the food looked revolting and we needed to eat. Not liking beer wouldn’t have helped either. 😂
When we did finally find somewhere for lunch we didn’t fare much better anyway. I thought I’d ordered a tomato and mozzarella salad but it was a thin pizza and Guy, well… two anaemic sausages arrived in a bowl of water with a few snipped chives, a couple of big pretzels and the traditional sweet mustard which came in a sachet. It all tasted ok but the sausages looked uncooked – I suppose we’re not used to boiled ones! 😂
All in all, we really liked Munich though – brilliant place!
Moved on mid afternoon and now we are parked up in Augsburg with quite a few others. The twenty minute walk in to town will have to wait until tomorrow.
