19 hours in Munich
I never did get around to writing this at the time…
While planning our summer holiday and needing to be in Greece, in a specific part of Greece on a certain date, there was much brainstorming done. Do we go to London for a few days and fly direct? Milan doesn’t fit into the itinerary at this point. We can’t crop the initial Northern France and Belgium portion of the plan either. So, rather than flying from Brussels to Athens, arriving at 9pm at night and needing a hotel room that would largely be wasted since we’d be up the next morning at 6am to catch a bus to Kalamata, a little impetuosity took over: why not spend a day in Germany? And that’s how we found ourselves in Munich for 19 hours.
Munich felt liveable, charming, self-assured in a way only those slightly smaller cities feel to their large capital city siblings. Its layout is walkable and easily links up one street with another, a city it would be difficult to literally get lost in. With streets branching off from the central Marienplatz – home to the impressive New Town Hall – you find the sights are all relatively nearby. In our brief stopover, my particular highlight was the Hofgarten, the former gardens of the Royal Residence’s court in the 17th century, which has since been developed into an urban park.
The morning after we arrived, I ran a loop from our hotel through the gardens, taking in the peace of the locals also out on their runs or perhaps commuting to work, with the Hofgartenstrabe a thorughfare for one of the steadiest streams of bicycles I’ve ever seen outside of the Netherlands. Seriously impressive.
Nearby to this is the Haus der Kunst art gallery and the Residenz Museum, home to several royal collections, alongside the Englischer Garten, which I understood to be an impressive, immense park. On the route back, I took in the Frauenkirche cathedral, restored after bombing in 1945. Also note, impressive door handles were also found along the way, a favourite past time I usually only find reactivated in Rome.
What struck me about Munich was one thing in particular: the people. How friendly they were in the street to us, complete strangers, and others too. Upon arriving in the city via train, we stood with luggage, doing the dance of zooming in and out of Maps to see just what direction, what exit, what escalators we needed to take to set off in the right direction. While doing so – and probably looking like absolute caricatures of tourists – an elderly woman approached us and asked, “where do you need to go?” When we explained we were trying to find our hotel, she told us to follow her. And so we went. She took us under her wing, commentating on what we were passing as we walked by, what bierhaus to visit and what café to choose for breakfast, until she could point out the signage of our hotel.
I’ll admit, there were a few times where I glanced at Damian wondering, “is she going to ask for payment? What’s the catch here?” but there wasn’t one. This was simply a genuinely nice person, one of several I was to encounter, like the delivery men cheering for me while out on my morning run, or the jovial cashier at Lush who, after I apologised for not speaking German, simply exclaimed “ah, that’s alright, German is too hard. I like English anyway.” What a people.
As one would expect, 19 hours in Munich, where at least eight of those hours were spent sleeping, was nowhere near enough time to get a proper handle on the city, but we did manage to gain a basic read on the top layer of its surface. Munich is a place we have unfinished business with.
Notes for your consideration:
Hotel Mio by AMANO – Here is where we stayed overnight, a handy location not quite in the centre of it all but close enough. And a room with a bath when not even requested? Always a place to return to in my eyes.
Hofgarten – As mentioned, the green space in the city where I ran and ran in the morning. Also a place where it appeared many locals met up for Pétanque after work.
Sparkassenstrabe – A charming street lined with shops worth strolling along.
Buchhandlung Lentner – Always make time for the bookstore when you walk past. This one is handily located off the Marienplatz.
Cinnamood – I think all the Europeans probably roll their eyes at a recommendation of Cinnamood, but this was my first encounter with the chain and, as a cinnamon bun enthusiast, I was extremely impressed. I am not ashamed to admit, I miss Cinnamood!
