Munich 2009
Friday May 22/Saturday May 23
Wow, what a LONG day. So, Sue was freaking out about how long it would take to get to the airport for the flight, since it was the Friday before the a holiday weekend, but we wound up getting from our house and through security in about 45 mins. We decided to check out our gate (C20), then went back to Tuscany for an adult beverage and some bruschetta. Their wine prices really aren't that bad - $35 for a bottle of Ferrari-Cerano Siena.
When we got back to our gate, the flight was full. We decided (and I'm sure the bottle of wine helped) to upgrade our seats to business class, since our seats were in the middle of the 777 configuration in coach (which is 5 people across). So we moved up to business class and really enjoyed our flight. We were able to get 2 seats by ourselves and have a window seat.
The flight itself was pretty uneventful. We had some (okay, who am I kidding ) we had a lot of wine and watched Marley and Me, then slept on and off the rest of the flight.
We actually arrived in Munich one hour early! Hope we don't have the same tail wind going home. We took the S-bahn to our hotel. Public transportation in Munich is very efficient and easy. The S-8 train took us straight from the airport to our hotel (stop at Rosenheimer Platz). We purchased an "entire network partner day ticket" for 18 Euros which allows up to 5 people traveling together to travel anywhere in the public transportation system all day (until 6am the next morning). You just need to be sure to validate the ticket prior to boarding.
Because we arrived so early, the room wasn't ready yet. We were originally going to go to Dachau, but we weren't quite up to it, so we walked into town (about a 20 min walk). We got to the Marianplatz right when the Glockenspiel was going. Mark was immensely underwhelmed, he just didn’t get it. We walked around and wound up stopping at Bohne und Malz for lunch. We split Gebrachtenes Schweineschnitzel mit Pommes Frites (fried pork cutlet with french fries). It was pretty good. We also had a couple of Franziskaner Dunkles Weissbiers and a couple of Lowenbrau Dunkles before we moved on. We decided to head back to the hotel, thinking a shower might help wake us up. Unfortunately when we arrived, the room still wasn't ready, so we went up to the executive lounge for a little while until it was ready. It was really rough staying awkae while up there as it was very warm up there. But after about 20 mins our room was ready.
After a shower and change of clothes, we took the train to the English Garden. The directions from the MVV was to take the U6 to Alte Heide and then take a taxi. That seemed dumb, since the signs said it was only about 1.5kms, but in reality it was about 2 miles as it took us 40 minutes or so to walk. However the weather was gorgeous and the walk was through a very peaceful neighborhood so it was very nice. Once we finally made it to the Englischer Garten (English Garden), we walked along the Kleinhesseloher See (Lake) for about 20 minutes then headed out to catch the U6 at Giselastrasse. The walk was only about 5 minutes, definitely a better choice to get to the English Garden in the future.
We got off at Marianplatz where would have changed trains from the U6 to many of the S-Bahn trains and decided to try to find a restaurant, Nuernberger Bratwusrt Gloeckl am Dom; Sue read they had the best sausages. It was about a 20 minute walk that should have been 5 minutes if we would have known where we were going … ah, the joys of being a tourist! It was located at Frauenplatz 9 just past, or before, the Frauenkirche (Church of our Lady) .
The restaurant was crowded put we found seats next to 5 Germans. We got the "Gemischte Gloeckl-Platte mit 4 Rosbratwuerst'l, ½ Stadtwurst und 1 Kaesekrainer mit saurkraut" (4 pork sausages, ½ city sausage and 1 sausage with cheese with saurkraut) and one of the evening specials "Kalbswurst with saurkraut", which were veal sausages. The veal sausages were good, not a very strong flavor and very "soft" for lack of another word, although we both preferred the mixed sausage platter. We had a few beers and and talked a little to the Germans sitting next to us. One of them (a woman, no less), ordered something that Mark and I have decided to nickname the "Art Niemaszyk special": "Frisches zurbereitetes Tartar mit Ei und Butter" aka minced rare sirloin with raw egg and butter. It is served as if a raw hamburger with some trimmings around it and a raw egg on top. She mixed the trimmings and raw egg with the meat, then spread the mixture on toasted bread, as if it were a pate. We weren't that "adventurous", especially since we only have 3 days in Munich.
It was nice sitting there as the people watching was fantastic. One of our "neighbor" tables had an amazingly stylish outfit. Fire engine red pants (that were tight, of course) that sported suspenders, a navy blue and white vertically striped shirt and a lime green sweater, worn tied around his neck/shoulders. Sehr schoen!
After we left Nuernberger, we stopped at the Metropolis bar in the Hilton for a nightcap, before heading up to bed. Mark had Oban 14 year old and a prosecco grappa. Sue had a cosmopolitan and a Remy Martin XO cognac. We wound up making it until almost 9pm (CET). We were exhausted, but we slept fairly well, finally getting up a little after 8am.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Originally, we weren't sure what the weather was going to be like, but in the morning, it was slighly cloudy and humid. So we decided to go to Dachau. We took the S2 to Dachau and there took the bus to Dachau. There were quite a few people who got off the train and were going to Dachau at the same time. Since we hadn't eaten yet, we decided to find a local place to eat and wait for another bus. Across from the bus stop was Hotel und Tafernwirtschaft Fischer. The waitstaff spoke english and even had an english menu available for us. It was just after 11am and the kitchen didn't open until 11:30, but we were able to sit on the patio and enjoy a beer while waiting, so that's what we did. We drank Paulaner dunkel. When the kitchen opened, Mark ordered the suckling pig in a brown beer sauce with a potato dumpling. Mark thought it was the best meal he's had so far (in Germany, of course, not from home). Sue ordered the Bavarian Sausage Salad. This was good too. It was sliced cold sausages (almost like Mortadella but smaller and a little thicker), with cheese, pickles, red onion, in a vinaigrette sauce. We had ordered another beer, so we decided to get some more food. We ordered a small order of Spinach cheese spaetzel with ham and friend onions on top. This was really good too. The whole time we were there, Mark kept saying that if his parents wanted to stop in Munich for a couple of days before going on to Spain, that he wanted to take them there. It was really nice sitting there watching the locals coming and going for lunch. Also of note, they do take credit cards.
After the lunch, we crossed the street and waited about 5 mins for the next bus (726) and went to Dachau. A very sobering experience. It's impossible to even try to imagine the atrocities that occurred there as it is now set in a beautiful parklike setting. Green trees and singing birds. There are plenty of signs up (all with English translations), to explain what everything is. We walked around for about an hour or so, then headed back to the bus stop. This time the bus was very full and really warm. There was very little circulation and it was pretty humid out. We made it to the train station in about 15 mins, then took the train back to Rosenheimer Platz and back to the hotel. If you head out towards Gasteig, there is the entrance straight to the Hilton. We headed up to the room to cool off and figure out our next plan of attack.
It wasn't quite dinner time, so we decided to take the train to the Hauptbanhof and then walk down Arnulfstrasse about 4 blocks to the Augustiner Bier Garten. It was another beautiful evening and it was nice to sit there and drink a small (1L) bier and have a pretzel. It was peaceful and the beer was good. Afterward, we decided to walk back and find someplace for dinner. Mark came up with the idea that we should just go to the main train station and jump on the next train that comes and get off at some stop and find a place for dinner. We got on the S6 and took it to Starnberg Nord. It was basically as far on that train line as our XXL ticket would take us – about 30 mins outside of Munich. We got off the train and walked around (in the direction of the See) until we found a Bier Garten open to serve us dinner. We found 2 places, one right next to the other. One was called Mellows, which was an American Bar the other was called Gasthaus Turtzingerhof. We chose Gasthaus Turtzingerhof since we really didn’t need to try American food in Germany. Mark had the entrenbrust (duck breast) with asparagus & potatoes in a port wine and orange sauce. Sue had the Medallions of Pork in a cognac pepper cream sauce with vegetables and potato knudel (potato wrapped in pastry crust). Both meals were good, but we both liked Sue's the best. After dinner, we walked back to the train station and caught the train back into the city. Again it was still warm out, but we still decided to stop off for a nightcap at Metropolis. Sue had a beer, Mark had 2 glasses of grappa.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Today we got lucky again with the weather. A beautiful cloudless day, albeit a little warm. We decided to go see the Nymphenburg Palace. The grounds, which are beautiful are open to the public, free of charge. If you want to take a alook inside the buildings, there is a fee. You can either pay by building or save a little and pay 10 Euros to take in all the buildings, which is what we did. It's really hard to get a feel for the grandeur and size of the place. It's really, really big. We took the train to the Hauptbahnhof then took Tram 17 to the palace. The palace was originally built as King Ludwig's summer/country home, but it is now part of Munich proper, so it seems weird to see such an attraction in such an urban locale. It took quite a while for us to walk around. We didn't go to see the Pagodenburg or the Magdelenaklause. We were getting very hungry as it was now 12:30 and we still hadn't really eaten yet. We did go through the Palace, the carriage house, Amalienburg (queen Amalie's hunting lodge) and Badenburg. It took us over 2 hours.
We headed back to Marian Platz for lunch. We headed to Altes Hackerbraeuhaus. We started off with Obatzter cheese plate as an appetizer, then Sue had the Nuernburger sausages and Mark had their version of the suckling pig in brown beer sauce. The Obatzter is made from camembert cheese and is served with bread and is really yummy. Both main meals were also good, but Mark thought his suckling pig was better in Dachau but the potato dumpling was better. It was quite warm sitting there, but the three beers we had helped refresh us. And it was nice to people watch.
We finally decided to head back to the hotel. Between all the walking, the sun, the full meal and the beer, it was time for a quick shower and a short nap.
After our nap, we headed into town again. Surprisingly, we were actually hungry again, so we decided to go to Spatenhaus for dinner. It is a bier garten in front of the opera house and Residenz. Mark had the veal goulash and it was his new favorite meal on this trip. Sue had crispy pork in a brown beer sauce, which was also very good. We originally started out with a couple of beers, but because the meals were so good, we switched to a bottle of wine, a 2004 Chateau Beauregard-Ducasse, Graves. It was a little light, but still pretty good.
After dinner we walked around a little a took a few pictures, before heading back to the hotel bar. While at the bar we met a man who now lives in NY, but is originally from Hamburg. We sat talking to him until after 11pm. We actually didn't leave the bar until around midnight.