A Rainy Day in Munich

I woke to the sound of soft rain this morning. The rain carried through much of the day. It was very chilly but manageable… I was glad for my umbrella.

We were to meet at 9:50 am for our bus tour of the city so I got up around 8am so that I could have time for breakfast. Breakfast consisted of cheeses, cereals, fruit, eggs and coffee. There were also various breads and toast. A light yet satisfying breakfast. I thought that I’d go for the boiled egg since I guess that one can’t really go wrong in boiling an egg. Right? Well this is what my egg looked like this morning when I slammed it against the table to try to crack it open.



Hmmm… that’s not hard boiled is it? Got duped. Its soft boiled. Surely this must be some mistake…

Anyway, the bus tour was very good. Our tour guide Peter was very knowledgeable about the city so I felt that I really got a good understanding of the history of Munich.



Munich was once part of the Holy Roman Empire among other things. It’s history is full of stories of kings and queens, family and scandal… its very full. 60% of the city was destroyed during world war II (told you I’d get more details about that) so much of what you see has either been rebuilt completely, or at least resurfaced. Some of the building have been left to look “half” damaged and half “new” so that one can remember the history. We drove past museums, through gardens and palaces. We saw the chamber of commerce, churches, high end-shopping districts, and neighborhoods. I found it interesting that Munich is a city of neighborhoods much like Philadelphia. Munich’s American sister city is Cincinnati though I don’t know how that relationship came about.
I also learned that there is only one skyscraper in Munich. It’s currently rented by the cellphone company O2. Apparently Munich folks don’t appreciate the skyscraper.



The tour ended with a stop in one of the city’s best known squares Marienplatz.

It was here that we were given the chance to see the famous Glockenspiel (carillon) , a 43 bell tower which puts on a show of dancing and jousting a few times each day.



After the tour and the Glockenspiel, I spent the day wandering the city alone. Much of the group went to see Dachau Concentration Camp which I believe was the first or one of the first concentration camps. I chose to explore the city since today was our only completely full day free of classes and academic seminars. All of the stores and shopping areas are closed on Sundays by law, however museums and some galleries as well as restaurants and cafes are all open. I spent A LOT of time just walking around the city.











It’s very manageable except for the fact that street names are written in a foreign language so it’s difficult to keep the straight.

I was pretty hungry at first so I went into a few places. One of the first places that I visited pretty much ignored me. Probably because I was obviously an American tourist. (map and bright white sneakers are a pretty good clue.)

I finally found a little café that looked nice.




( Café Ludwig) I had NO IDEA what the menu said. Luckily the waitress spoke about 2 (almost literally) words of English so I was able to get something to eat. I somehow got her to understand that I wanted “no beef, no pork, etc”. She said “ya ya!” and pointed to something that I couldn’t understand on the menu. She said, “Only Cheese!” so I shrugged and said ok.

This is what I got.



It was very good. But definitely just a plate of cheese… I had some bread and butter, kiwi fruit, and a cup of coffee as well though so it ended up being enough. Oh. And yes. Another trickery. A soft boiled egg.



I’m done with German Boiled eggs. They are raw.

After lunch and finally getting my bearings (ha ha mom), I spent some time in the Alte Pinakotek.



This is one of Europe’s best Art Museums. The museum consists of the city’s “older collection”. The famous royal family the Wittelsbachs started the collection at the beginning of the 16th century.

I also spent some time in the English Garden… a beautiful park with running paths, lakes and streams, a Japanese tea house, and lots of other interesting finds. This was the one time during the day that I was very glad for the rainy day since the English Garden is very well known for its nude sunbathers. Thank Goodness they stayed home today!







After coming back to the hotel to rest, and feeling the need for a good meal, I googled “Munich Vegetarian Restaurant” and came up with Prinz Myshkin. I was tired from walking all day so I opted for the U-Baun or the Subway as a means of transport to dinner. My hotel is directly across the street from the Haptbahnhof (The Central Train Station) so I thought it would be no big deal. It really did go smoothly too… After I figured out how to buy my ticked. That took a while since almost all of the signs in the train station are in German.

FYI, in Munich, when you buy your ticket, there is nothing that “swipes” it to ensure that you’ve paid your fare. The public transportation goes on the “honor” system, meaning you validate your ticked with a stamp just before you use it and are expected to stamp it again at the end of your trip to invalidate it. It’s very trusting of passengers and so different from the states. I took the U-baun from Haptbahnhof to Sendlinger Tor, to Marienplatz and walked to Hackenstr.





Oh. Also FYI, The escalators at the train stations don’t move unless there is someone on there. That freaked me out a little bit. I thought it was broken so I took the steps quite a few times before I saw some little kid run and jump on one as it magically started up.

I was smart to dress more “European” for dinner. I took off my hoody, put a scarf around my neck and chose some flats instead of tennis shoes. I received far less “oh she must be American” looks which was definitely a good thing.

At Prinz Myshkin I was pleased to find that my waiter Mike (a guitarist from Hamburg) spoke English and had an English menu! I ordered the Spinach Gnocchi. Again it ended up tasting very cheesy so I also added a plate of zucchini to break up the cheesiness, and also had a glass of Merlot. (I needed a break from all the German beer that the serve you here in Munich.)

Dinner was good. I think I’ll order something else if I ever visit again though.
I planned to go to a jazz club but was tired after dinner so decided to rest instead.

Either way, the night was beautiful, though chillier than last night. A street musician was still out entertaining and the walk from the train station to the restaurant was lovely. I was alone (sorry mom) but I felt very safe. The streets are well lit and I had no problems at all.

Time to sleep. The Academic portion starts tomorrow.

Don’t forget to comment so that I know you’ve stopped in to visit.


Oh Yeah, The books my dad helped me pick out have been a God send. I absolutely would not have survived today without them!




Miss you all!

Auf Wiedersehen