Munich city tour and Christmas markets

Traveling with someone that I have known longer than my brother !

Gail and I became neighbors over 60 years ago in Glendale, California before my last sibling, a brother, was born . Over the years we have met up in many places but have seldom had the pleasure of taking a trip together (one can’t really count the odd night at my place or theirs).

As usual having fun together

The first night we dashed right back out after the briefing, so quickly in fact that I totally neglected taking a camera (now how often does that happen?).  An hour at one of the city’s 20 Christmas market had us enjoying not only the sights, but the smell and taste of Germany. My friends had been here three days so opted for a vegetable crepe, but I had to have a hotdog (had meant to have a grilled sausage until I discovered that the hotdog came with roasted onions, pickles and condiments!).

It is 100 steps from the elevator to my room on the 20th floor

The sun coming up through the fog

Then this morning after a wonderful German breakfast (I still maintain that the hotels in Germany do breakfast like no one else in the world) we set off on our first official event – a city tour.

the Sheraton Arabellapark has the cutest little pastry cups for the jams and jellies

Ah the comfort of group travel : we were able to see so much more and so many different areas of the city in just a few hours. Doing it on one’s own is possible, but would have involved many bus, tram, metro rides and again only the knowledge that we would have gleaned from formal guides. Our local guide, Karolina, was one of the best that I have ever had, so kudos to Grand Circle Tours for their organization as the tour guide accompanying us throughout – Mihai (pronounce « me high ») – is also very clear not only in speech, but in his instructions.

The weather is also being very cooperative as still shining sun once the fog burns off.

A kaleidescope of sights starting with the BMW (Bayerische Motor Wagen) plant. BMW stands for the Motor Cars of Bayern – this particular region of Germany and they have added in recent years a glass elevator so that new owners have the total experience of not only seeing their car-to-be on the lot so to speak, but once they take delivery it is via several halls and the glass elevator before it rolls out in front of the museum : hundreds a day says the guide !

BMW headquarters in Munich, Germany

More of the BMW plant

The architecture of the BMW plant is amazing

They even have a museum, although this may not be it

On the opposite side of the street is the Olympic Park : built in only just six years on land where rubble still remained from World War II, it was the making of Munich as a major city as they had to build roads and everthing. The fact that they had a large enough piece of land to put the Olympic Village and all the necessary stadiums, lodging and event’s parcels in one area was what won them the nomination, but they use it all still today making it an exception in the world of cities that hosted the Olympics.  Of course it is also more sadly known as the Olympic games where jewish participants were murdered by terrorists (Sept.5, 1972).

The Olympic park spire - now has a revolving restaurant at the top

Part of the 1972 Olympic park buildings

Part of the 1972 Olympic park buildings

Leaving behind the Olympic terrains we traveled along the English gardens until be crossed the Isar River and arrived at Ludwig the First’s castle (grandfather to Ludwig the II who built Neuenschwanstein – the « mad king » whose castles were used to represent those in Disney Land – the fairy tale castles) of Nymphenburg. Ludwig I was married off to an Italian princess when they were both only 14. They finally met when they were 16 and although the marriage didn’t get off to a good start (they were both too innocent), they first had a girl, followed three years later by a boy. This netted the princess an Italian palace and Ludwig built the castle to honor her. As one of my traveling companions said when he saw the lawn in front of the castle : « I have seen a lot of weird things in front of or behind castles, but never had I seen a Royal Gophorium » – i.e. the lawn was torn up by gophers).

part of the Nymphenburg castle and grounds

part of the Nymphenburg castle and grounds with the "Royal Gopherium" in front

Then it was on to the Royal Square where the former Nazi buildings are being used by the Academy of Muisc. Our guide gave an excellent description of nazism – Munich was the capital – and to their credit they have maintained three of the buildings that Hitler used as headquarters in order that we not forget.

After this great bus tour, we then had a walking tour of the Old Town which ended at the Marienplatz where the Christmas market was founded in 1410 in order to watch the figures turn in the Glockenspiel (Clock tour) at noon. The sun then deigned to come out and turn all into light.

(Follows a series of photos of odds and ends throughout our walking tour) 

The local "bath house" which was turned into a public swimming pool

A "Stammtisch" is the regulars normal table, very German

The Hofbrau hall

one of the weather vanes down a side street

The old "tax house" belonging to the reigning Wittelsbach family

A bike parking lot near City Hall

Two delightful door knobs

Wall painting in the HB hall: "to be thirsty is worse than being homesick"!

A quick trip back to the hotel to re-charge the camera batteries and we were off to the newest of Munich’s 20 Christmas Markets – out on the fields that host the famous Oktober Fest (beer drinking festival in October of each year). On top of all the outside stalls and sights (the Christmas tree is made from plastic bottles), there were many tents with various themes. The idea was to be not only ecological, but to also represent many nations from around the world. Successfully I might add.

Tollwood the organisor of the Oktober Fest also does a Winter Fest

Loved the juxtaposition of old cathedral and more carnavalesque park

Plastic bottle Christmas tree

part of a series of large statues with very tongue-in-cheek sayings

Many tents: this is the music one

Pipe saxophonist

The plastic tree lit from within as night fell

photos projected onto a playing space in the "discussion" tent

Same "discussion" tent

a wheelbarrow seat

HA Schult's installation "Trash People" http://www.haschult.de/action/trashpeople

By the time we were to meet the bus, we were all tired and chose to stay in tonight. So I went down to

check e-mails, post a blog and have a glass of beer (after all I am in Germany and Munich to boot !).

Last sight of the night : the city at my feet with a crescent moon to watch over us all.

A crescent moon rises over Munich - view from my balcony

7 hours … across Switzerland and into Germany

Or the train from Geneva to Munich.

Due to the higher terrorist level in Geneva and the fact that the last time I tried to take a train to Germany I ended up turning around and coming back once I had done the 3 hours to Zurich, this time I decided to put more than the usual luck on my side. R took me to the train station early enough so that I could have an extra hour in Zurich just in case.

Of course having taken all those precautions, both trains went off without a hitch. Not only, but arriving in Munich I went out the correct door, got a taxi within seconds and was across town in my hotel in time for the 18:00 briefing ! Ran into the tour guide just leaving my room key in an envelope with my name (spelled correctly even – that’s once in a row) on it at the reception desk, so I was able to reconfirm the time as well as where the briefing was being held.

Although inside a train all day was able to get a few pictures out the windows once I had left the fog of Geneva, Fribourg, Neuchatel, Olten and Solothurn behind.

Now it’s on to Christmas markets galore with a childhood friend and her husband, first here in Munich, secondly on our cruise down the Danube from Nuremburg, Germany to Vienna, Austria.

Just a slight note of caution : in the fancy hotels wifi is paying, on the boat we may be out of range so the blogs of this particular trip may be a wee bit out of sync and slow in being posted.

Never mind, rest assured that fun will be had, photos will be taken and news will arrive albeit perhaps at a slower pace than usual.

sun through the fog looking down from the Geneva train station

double and sometimes triple suns through the windows

The Swaroski tree in the Zurich train station

Niki de Saint Phalle's "protective angel" sculpture in the Zurich train station

Into Lindau

Out from Lindau

Along the lake and the border

close up of the square rainbow in the picture above

In a fog…

And in the fog.

I have, as I said more than once these past few days, weeks, been running not at 100 miles an hour, nor even at 120 miles an hour, but more like 150 miles an hour.  This has created a bit of forgetfulness and stress as I dash from one errand to the other, from one event to another : last weekend I described the state of my mind as « I had three neurons, one left and the next to the last one is on its way out as well », so not only have we had some real physical, weather-type fog, I have been in a fog as well.

Today the sun broke through, both physically and figuratively. Most things have been accomplished or can be put off until my return from a lovely, relaxing trip to Germany and Austria.

My housemate and her husband will move back in to take care of the cats who need more than just food a couple of times a day : with the cooler weather they are more want to follow me around and want to sit on a lap or curl up around my head (if I’m foolish enough to bet in bed with my eyes open).

And I’ll be off to remove the last wisps of mental fog : hopefully the physical fog will also cease and desist.

Fog at sunrise - covering the Jura mountains

Sunrise on fog towards Mont Blanc

Fog in the vineyards

More fog in the countryside

a layer of fog hovering in between lake and mountains

Weather’s wonders

Although rushing to and fro these days, I do try and take the time first thing in the morning to walk up to the village for my coffee as well as to pick up my mail.

Time allowing I wander back through the vineyards – if not I head straight back down the road. Each route has its own charms and reasons for being.

Yesterday was our first true frost (there had been sunny, clear skies and nothing to interfere in between

Sun and earth with the result of horefrost.

First a lot of droplets where the sun had already shown

blades of frozen grass - in the shade

heavily frosted leaves in the open fields

some kind of hunting bird...huge but at a distance

 Then as I was driving back from taking my younger son home in the early hours this morning was rewarded shortly before reaching home with a half moon just coming up – so large, so present – a thing of glory that I alone (or at least there were very few of us !) witnessed.

Later this morning as I drove up to the village (yep a very short night and plenty of fog left me without my usual « need » to walk it), parked then did a few errands on foot came across one tree that has it’s seasons completely mixed up : my calendar says December, the tree thinks it’s spring !

mixed-up tree

Trivia

Life is a tad hectic these days and I don’t seem to have much time to reflect or otherwise produce interesting photos (the November gray may have something to do with that as well) so I have chosen to concentrate on trivia – the bits and pieces of interesting, entertaining or otherwise different items printed in daily papers.

• An irascable cow tore down the fence of her pasture then charged two 80-year-old women on the grounds of the local EMS (medicalized home for the elderly) before wandering its corridors ! Although shaken the two woman are o.k. and the cow who fortunately didn’t run into any more pensioners in the corridors was anesthesized before being taken back to her pasture.
• Pears for the future : Switzerland, believe it or not, can count 840 different varieties of pears – all of which will be inventoried and seeds kept in order to face coming climate changes
• Several stores in Geneva celebrated « Black Friday » (why ? who thought of this ? and above all why use the words in English ?). The world of commerce is struggling obviously.
• They are going to have to add something to electric cars so that they make more noise instead of sneaking up on people.
• A treasure of over 4'000 pieces from the Roman emporers Aurelian and Maximien (3rd century) was found in an agriculteur’s fields.
• 4 poisonous snakes were stolen, but according to the police « they aren’t dangerous as they aren’t agressive" … right – wouldn’t want to step on one anyway!
• The oldest person in Europe is an Italian woman : Emma Morano. She says that the secret to her long life was leaving her husband in 1938 !
• How to know that you have been robbed ? Run into someone on the streets wearing your clothes (this happened to someone here in Geneva)
• We have just started the last month of 2015 – and already I am wondering where this year went.
• There are only 21 days until the days start growing longer – a day we all greatly look forward to even though this November has been warmer and sunnier than many.
• And the best of all: yesterday there was a rainbow over my home as I was walking down after picking up the mail !

November 30, 2015