Sorry for the long absence! I failed to post anything for a while because I spent 10 days in Vienna and Munich. That’s quite a bit to write about, so you can view the entry on Vienna on my other blog. (I somehow managed to start writing for Hilltop Views, which has been a lot of fun but also increases the amount I have to write.) Anyway I saved the best for you guys because Munich was my favorite. I spent almost a week there and I’m so glad I had that time to get to know the capital city of Bavaria!
Of the big cities I’ve visited, I like Munich the best. It has a lot of spirit, scenery, and beautiful older architecture that I’ve come to expect from some of the smaller cities. So what did I enjoy the most about my stay there?
The Food. Bavarian food is something else. Munich is the center for a lot of breweries, so there are a ton of Brauhauser, or brewery/restaurants. Of course the most famous for tourists is the Hofbräuhaus, which I did visit, but there are lots of others–and Augustiner was my favorite. Some of the best Bavarian foods that I had included Schweinshaxe, or pork knuckles; Knödeln, or potato dumplings; and Schweinsbraten, which is pork served in gravy with Knödeln. If you haven’t guessed, Bavarians really like pork. On that topic, Weisswurst is amazing! It’s this fresh wurst they make every morning, and it’s so perishable that you have to eat it (or find it) before 12:00. You also have to cut it in a special way–lengthwise down the middle, and then peel the casing off because you don’t eat that. A lot of tourists try to but the locals appreciate it if you know how to eat their special food! I’ve never tasted such good Wurst. It’s also traditionally served with pretzels and Weissbier. How’s that for breakfast?
Munich has a very interesting beer culture. Weissbier, or wheat beer, is served by the half liter and is what you generally drink with the Weisswurst. It’s my favorite type of beer that I’ve discovered in Germany, and I liked the Augustiner Weissbier best. Helles beer is made strictly from water, barley and hops–nothing else. Dunkles is that plus some roasted malt, which gives it a deep caramel color. These, not the Weissbier, can be served in what they call a Maß, or a giant 1 liter tankard. Wow. When I went to the Hofbräuhaus, they looked at my friends like they were crazy when they asked for a small beer (probably .33 liters, common for Koblenz.) You can’t get that there. It’s either a half or a whole liter!
When we went to the Hofbräuhaus, we sat at a table with a local Bavarian who must have been in his 50’s or 60’s. He was wearing a traditional Bavarian or Tyrolean hat and seemed 
very happy to have the company of 4 young ladies for dinner! Anyway I got to talking to him (auf Deutsch, and hochdeutsch at that, which was a relief because I don’t speak the Bavarian dialect) and he told me a lot about the local culture. He also asked me about America and showed an amazing knowledge of our geography, though he’d never visited. It was really fun, because interacting with locals is always something I like to do but also something that is very difficult to do, just because they don’t stick around very long to talk to tourists.
The Scenery and Architecture. Like most cities in Germany, Munich was almost completely destroyed during World War II. What continually amazes me is how well these people rebuilt everything–and in Munich’s case, with great attention to detail. As a result, it’s a very beautiful city to stroll through, one of my favorite activities while I was waiting for my friends to wake up at the hostel! It also allowed me to see Marienplatz before the other crazy tourists arrived; believe me, it was packed. I enjoyed walking through the Viktualienmarkt, a farmer’s market close to the center of town. They had their own Maypole there, which was left over from last year
because they replace it (of course) on May 1st. You can buy all sort of fresh produce there or get Weisswurst and meat. I’m really excited because when I come back they’ll have changed the Maypole! In addition to that, the churches in Munich are beautiful. I just can’t get over how intricate Catholic churches in Europe are! I’d also recommend visiting the Englischer Gartens–it’s so beautiful there! It’s at least twice the size of Central Park in New York, too. Part of it continues to the other side of the Isar, the river that flows through Munich. Munich is just so unique in that there’s a lot of great old architecture there but also a lot of nature to see within the city. On a clear day, you can even see the Alps in the distance!
More of King Ludwig II’s Castles. My favorite Bavarian historical figure, King Ludwig II, was born in Nymphenburg Palace in Munich. Although it’s not considered one of his
castles since he didn’t build it, it is gorgeous nevertheless! Admittedly the exterior blended in with the cloudy sky a bit too much for my liking, but the interior was fantastic–and I was allowed to take pictures! I also learned a lot about the other members of the Wittelsbach family (the ruling family of Bavaria) since 1664.
In one of the museums on site, they had King Ludwig II’s carriages, which were incredible! I couldn’t believe how detailed they were, how incredibly fancy and overdone. It’s a
wonder they were even functional. They also had his sled that he used for night trips to Neuschwanstein Castle during its construction. There are famous pictures that depict that so it was really cool to see them in person. Every time I see more that belonged to him, I become more and more sure that he really was the Fairy-Tale King.
Just two hours from Munich is Schloss Linderhof, a small palace that Ludwig II built and the
only one that he lived to see completed. Of course I went to see it! Unfortunately winter had stuck around and there was still snow on the ground that weekend so the gardens were underwhelming, but the palace and the grotto were amazing! The palace itself was built in the French style–Ludwig II like Versailles very much and one room in Linderhof was covered floor to ceiling in mirrors. Details on the walls were coated in 22-24 carat gold. It was lovely! 
One of my favorite things at Linderhof was the Venus Grotto. It’s the largest artificial cave in Europe, inspired of course by Wagner’s Tannhäuser. It’s really technologically advanced, with lights that change the color of the cave to green or blue or red and man-powered machines that would generate a current for the boat if Ludwig II wanted it. Apparently the water could also be heated if he wanted to swim, which would indicate that he could swim even though he drowned later in Lake Starnberg. Well that adds to the mystery a little, I think. Anyway it was a very impressive cave and I would have loved to have been there for a private performance of one of Wagner’s operas–word is Ludwig II had a few operas performed for him in that grotto, and they honored it fittingly by playing music from Wagner’s operas as we walked in.
Learning and exploring the City I scheduled the trip for 6 days so that I would have time to see as much in Munich as a could and not feel rushed. I just like anything in Bavaria and I knew I would like Munich. One day, I went on a bicycle tour if Munich with a friend of someone I worked with at the International Office. It was one of the best days in Munich because I learned so much that I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t been with someone who knew the city. For instance, there’s an alleyway by Odeonsplatz with a bunch of gold bricks that weave their way through the regular pavement. You don’t pay much attention to something like that–there’s no sign and people walk over them every day without knowing what they mean. But apparently during the Nazi era, there was a statue in Odeonsplatz that you were required to salute or the police would arrest you, and they were watching. So anyone who objected to that would cut through the alley to avoid the statue and still get to their destination. Thus, the route is honored with gold bricks today. It’s little things like that that are so very interesting.
I saw Schwabing, an area of town where artists used to live and where Rainer Maria Rilke and Thomas Mann once had apartments. I saw the University and the Sophie Scholl and White Rose memorials where they once dropped anti-Nazi flyers. (Members of the White Rose were arrested for protesting the Nazis and distributing flyers and letters speaking
against the regime. They were all killed.) That was something we learned about in Taos and it was really interesting to actually see all that in person. I explored the Englischer Gartens, beautiful even in the winter. I saw Königsplatz, once the center of art and culture in Munich and then later the home to Nazi rallies and book burnings. Now it houses Egyptian and Greek museums, which I unfortunately did not have time to visit (I think you’d need a lifetime to see everything in Munich, really.) I visited some churches, and one rococo church that was absolutely gorgeous. It seemed to be more of a castle than a church on the inside. It looked like it was meant for royalty! I wish we had churches like that in America. I also saw the church where King Ludwig II is buried and visited the crypt, which was a little sad but worth it. They really do have nice coffins for kings. I saw the new Synagogue and the Bavarian Opera House. I learned which
routes were best to get from one area of town to another, and I really do recommend taking a bicycle through Munich sometime. You see so much of it! Just avoid Marienplatz; after about 10 in the morning it’s so full of tourists you can’t get anywhere. I learned that there’s a weird Michael Jackson memorial (left) in the middle of the city. Apparently the Michael Jackson fans took over the statue of a classical musician and the police tried to clear it away but it didn’t work. Now it’s a big draw for tourists. I’m a little confused and I suppose the original musician wouldn’t like that but it was interesting! I saw quarters of Munich designed in an Italian style and quarters designed in a Greek style. I saw an old graveyard and learned that graveyards are much prettier and peaceful in Munich, and people go on walks through them with their dogs. I even found an English movie theater and saw a film there because I’d been dying to see something on the big screen that wasn’t overdubbed and I had the time. I went to a medieval art museum (the Alte Pinakothek) that had so much art in it from Dürer to Raphael and da Vinci that it was exhausting to try to look at all of it. All in all, this was one of my favorite cities in Germany! One of the luxuries of being a student on vacation is having the time to wander about a beautiful city like Munich for a week, and it’s a week I won’t soon forget.