Does,.. uh.. Munich...

[Enidigm]

Uh... is Munich a, uh... nice place to visit? Does it have .. uh ... a lot of fountains?

Just... um, wondering.

[Equis]

I... err, don't know... really.

But I was kinda, you know, wondering at your, ... err, odd tone.

Did you just murder someone?

[Enidigm]

I had a dream about Munich last night. I have no idea why (i've never read anything about it, nor was i reading anything about Germany or whatever last night). So i was just checking to see to what degree i am certifiably crazy. :)

[Flowers]

Munich kicks ass. Beer Halls, the English Garden, the beer garden at the English Garden, the Residenz, short train trip to Dachau if you want to see that, Neuschwanstein is nearby. (That's the fairytale castle of Mad Ludwig, the Bavaria George Bush, it's the model for Cinderella's Castle at Disneyworld.)

The list goes on and on, but yes, Munich is awesome. As for fountains, my fiance like to joke that the fountain near St. Michael's is a monument to when several brave animals rose up and cleansed the town of children, freeing all residents of the town from their evil little clutches.

[Matthew Gallant]

There was a time when it numbered among the four major cities that maintained an open dialogue amongst the citizenry concerning pop muzik. Everyone was talking about it. New York, London, and Paris have maintained their notability through other cultural exploits since that time, but Munich has somehwat receded in prominence.

[skedastic]

Munich is creepy. Echoes of the Third Reich everywhere you look.

Plus, the food sucks. But there is lots of good cheap beer. (Disclaimer: you may not think the food sucks if you enjoy German food.)

[Anders Hallin]

It is probably very gemütlich. And as everyone knows, if a place is very pleasant, the inhabitants are probably ready to do all sorts of nasty stuff to people who don't fit with their Gemüt.

[Erik J.]

Woo! My family is from right outside of Munich. And Munich is indeed bad ass. Such a beautiful place to visit, and tons of stuff to do. There are certain things that are necessary to do if you decide to visit, such as grabbing a meal at the Haufbauerhaus, and watching the glockenspiel. Touristy stuff, but everyone stops to watch. If you're in Munich, make sure you take a day trip out to the Alps and do some hiking. There are a few good lookout points and small trails. Also, some cool castles and churches, of course. If you have kids with you, go to the petting zoo in Poing, which is just fantastic. The only things caged off are the mountain cats, hunting birds, and oxen that will trample you like the pig dog you are. Tons of free roaming deer, peacocks, all kinds of neat stuff to check out. Oddly enough, the many times I've been to the petting zoo in Poing, the only thing to attack me was a normal, every day house cat when I politely told him I had no food to give him. He went nuts. So many things to do dowin in Bavaria. Gogogogogogogo!

Erik J.

[Chris Nahr]

I just saw some statistic claiming that Munich ranks as #4 or so among the European cities with the highest quality of life. (#1 was Zurich.) Consequently and unfortunately it's also Germany's most expensive city.

[Greedo]

I've never been, but you can now fly there non-stop from Denver on Lufthansa.

[Chris Nahr]

Munich is creepy. Echoes of the Third Reich everywhere you look.

Plus, the food sucks. But there is lots of good cheap beer. (Disclaimer: you may not think the food sucks if you enjoy German food.)

Your statement that Bavarian food sucks has pretty much disqualified you from having an opinion on Munich, but still... exactly where are "echoes of the Third Reich" in Munich? Other than nearby Dachau I can't really think of anything.

[Flowers]

Munich is creepy. Echoes of the Third Reich everywhere you look.

Plus, the food sucks. But there is lots of good cheap beer. (Disclaimer: you may not think the food sucks if you enjoy German food.)

Let me just say this, I came to Munich from Paris, and upon arriving at the train station, I immediately understood Lebensraum. The purpose of Lebensraum was to spread German culture throughout Western Europe except Italy and Spain. Do you know why?

The German people are consummate tourists. They enjoy travelling and seeing things like Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower. However, in their travels to certain parts of Western Europe, they noticed that the food was garbage. After having several complaints lodged and ignored regarding disgusting French cuisine and English fare, the enterprising Germans took matters into their own hands. They realized, that if there was going to be anything remotely edible or reasonably priced within 50km of the Louvre, those lousy French restaurants had to be shut down by force.

Before you say the war was about economics, or good versus evil, remember this. Italy and Spain were not attacked by Hitler, and their food is delicious. Who was attacked? The Russians, the English, the French, the Dutch. Although some might attempt to undermine my total moral rectitude by pointing out that Hitler allied with the Japanese over the Chinese, this can be explained easily by simply trying some teriyaki sauce.

This is why Hitler's first attempt at world domination started at a restaurant. Hitler was not the only person who sampled the offerings of Bavaria and was then inspired to violently expand the influence of the cuisine, he was only the most successful.

[skedastic]

I don't mean that there're swastikas everywhere or somesuch. We took a tour of Munich. Almost every stop consisted of a history lesson. Of a particular historical era: 1923-1945. For example, I don't know how one could stand in the Konigsplatz and fail to imagine the rallies. And just a quick trip to Dachau! No thanks.

Flowers' theory carries much weight. Recall the first draft of Mein Kampf was a cookbook.

http://www.firstworldwar.com/photos/graphics/sr_german_food_01.jpg

[Houngan]

Munich kicks ass. Beer Halls, the English Garden, the beer garden at the English Garden, the Residenz, the beer hall at the Residenz, short train trip to Dachau if you want to see that, the bar on the train, the Dachau beer ovens, Neuschwanstein is nearby, and has a beer hall. (That's the fairytale castle of Mad Ludwig, the Bavaria George Bush, it's the model for Cinderella's Castle at Disneyworld. Which also serves beer.)




Fixed.

[JD]

Berlin, obviously, kicks Munich's ass in all kinds of ways and also happens to be a cheaper place to stay at. ;)

-Julian

[Erik J.]

Berlin, obviously, kicks Munich's ass in all kinds of ways and also happens to be a cheaper place to stay at. ;)

-Julian

You have got to be kidding me... Berlin is... terrible. Ok, maybe its my southern bias, but generally the north creeps me out. It seems so much more formal in the north of Germany than it ever does in the south. Bavaria is the place to be, and the above poster who thinks there are echoes of the 3rd Reich... what are you smoking? Munich is probably one of the most friendly European cities you could visit.

Erik J.

EDIT: Unless you're from Turkey. That I will grant.

[JD]

It seems so much more formal in the north of Germany than it ever does in the south.
Huh? You got it all way wrong. Munich is one of the few places in Bavaria not governed by the Christian Social Union. Bavaria and its neighbor state are as politically conservative as it gets in Germany.

-Julian

[Rimbo]

Let me just say this, I came to Munich from Paris, and upon arriving at the train station, I immediately understood Lebensraum. The purpose of Lebensraum was to spread German culture throughout Western Europe except Italy and Spain. Do you know why?

The German people are consummate tourists. They enjoy travelling and seeing things like Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower. However, in their travels to certain parts of Western Europe, they noticed that the food was garbage. After having several complaints lodged and ignored regarding disgusting French cuisine and English fare, the enterprising Germans took matters into their own hands. They realized, that if there was going to be anything remotely edible or reasonably priced within 50km of the Louvre, those lousy French restaurants had to be shut down by force.

Before you say the war was about economics, or good versus evil, remember this. Italy and Spain were not attacked by Hitler, and their food is delicious. Who was attacked? The Russians, the English, the French, the Dutch. Although some might attempt to undermine my total moral rectitude by pointing out that Hitler allied with the Japanese over the Chinese, this can be explained easily by simply trying some teriyaki sauce.

This is why Hitler's first attempt at world domination started at a restaurant. Hitler was not the only person who sampled the offerings of Bavaria and was then inspired to violently expand the influence of the cuisine, he was only the most successful.

Hmm. That might also explain his hatred of the Jews. Because, y'know, bacon tastes good.

[Tim Partlett]

Munich is a great city. One of my favourites in Europe. The only fountain that I can remember was the Fischbrunnen (Fish Fountain) in the center at Marienplatz, but whaddya know, google turns up a whole bunch of them. With pictures (http://www1.chapman.edu/~radenski/personal/fountains-and%20-water-in-munich/index.htm).

I wouldn't go there for the beer festival, though, unless your idea of a German holiday is getting drunk with tourists while paying five times the price for the privilege. There are lots of good beer festivals in Germany, and one just north of Munich in Erlangen is one I can recommend.

[Tim Partlett]

Huh? You got it all way wrong. Munich is one of the few places in Bavaria not governed by the Christian Social Union. Bavaria and its neighbor state are as politically conservative as it gets in Germany.

-Julian

Yeah, Julian's right. Bavaria is like the deep south. It's totally conservative down there. They still even say hello to you with "gruss gott", which translates something like "greet god". It makes all the northern Germans I know cringe.

Berlin's not conservative - it has the KitKatClub (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KitKatClub) for god's sake!

[skedastic]

Bavaria is the place to be, and the above poster who thinks there are echoes of the 3rd Reich... what are you smoking? Munich is probably one of the most friendly European cities you could visit.


If you went to Dachau you'd be creeped out, yes? Is that because the location reminds you of what occurred there or because the staff who currently work at the museum are unfriendly? Similarly, the tactile presence of many locations which were key to Nazi history makes visiting Munich itself, for me, creepy. Nothing whatsoever to do with how friendly the current residents are.

[spiffy]

I had a dream about Munich last night. I have no idea why (i've never read anything about it, nor was i reading anything about Germany or whatever last night). So i was just checking to see to what degree i am certifiably crazy. :)

I just had a dream about participating in a threesome with two hot bikini models. should i .. uh .. hmmm... y'know...

[Lum]

I think there's a law about hot threesomes and Dachau being adjacent to each other in the same post.

[Jancelot]

Munich kicks ass. Beer Halls, the English Garden, the beer garden at the English Garden, the Residenz, short train trip to Dachau if you want to see that, Neuschwanstein is nearby. (That's the fairytale castle of Mad Ludwig, the Bavaria George Bush, it's the model for Cinderella's Castle at Disneyworld.)

The list goes on and on, but yes, Munich is awesome. As for fountains, my fiance like to joke that the fountain near St. Michael's is a monument to when several brave animals rose up and cleansed the town of children, freeing all residents of the town from their evil little clutches.

Agreed wholehearedly. I visiting last year for 2 days and it was beautiful. I was there on Sunday and Mayday so a lot of stuff was closed as well. But I spent a good part of one day just in the Englischer Garten. It's 3x the size of Central Park and there is a lot to do on top of just enjoying the musicians, etc. The food is fantastic and the beer is divine. I had a fresh brat on a bun and and a Paulaner first thing off of the train.

Also, look in to the local monastery just outside of town as well. They, of course, brew their own beer and it's supposedly fantastic (also closed when I was there). Grab a "Let's Go" book from Barnes & Noble for some great ideas on places to visit with a map of the city.

Here are a couple pics.

Englischer Garten:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v430/Jancelot/Germany/Munich-EnglischerGarten2Medium.jpg

Rat House:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v430/Jancelot/Germany/Munich-AltesRathausCloseupMedium.jpg

[Flowers]

I think there's a law about hot threesomes and Dachau being adjacent to each other in the same post.

There's not. When I went to Dachau, there were two frat guys and two sorority girls there using the camp like a singles bar.


Hmm. That might also explain his hatred of the Jews. Because, y'know, bacon tastes good.

I still remember how offended my Dad was that nobody wanted to try his acorn and fish soups. He even accused my mother of turning his children against him when we wouldn't eat a dish he made from things he collected from our front yard. So yeah, German people can be a little pushy when it comes to trying food. I guess after a couple hundred years of having their wursts politely declined, they snapped.

[DennyA]

The thing we liked best about visiting Munich was that it's possibly to accidentally drive into Austria, which is much cooler than Munich.

[Gordon Cameron]

disgusting French cuisine

.buh?

[Ch. Hasslbauer]

(...)
Rat House:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v430/Jancelot/Germany/Munich-AltesRathausCloseupMedium.jpg
Lollercoaster! I never thought about translating "Rathaus" as Rat House. That is pretty ingenious. The proper translation of "Rathaus" however would have been "town hall". :)

[Tim Partlett]

What's worse is the restaurant in Munich's town hall. It's called the Ratskeller...

[Chris Nahr]

Is that another of your imaginary German restaurants where they put pork and too much salt in every dish?

Bavaria is like the deep south. It's totally conservative down there. They still even say hello to you with "gruss gott", which translates something like "greet god". It makes all the northern Germans I know cringe.

"Grüß Gott" is a traditional greeting with no more religious connotations than someone saying "Christ, that was dumb" on a message board. Assuming it's an affirmation of conservative religion is just ignorant. I wish you were as tolerant towards Bavarian customs as you are towards Arab customs...

Also, I don't know how the hell you and Julian got from a remark about northerners being stiff and formal on a personal level to the political conservatism of Bavaria. Those are two things that have nothing to do with each other, and North Germans being rather more cool and reserverd than South Germans is hardly a novel observation.

[Chris Nahr]

Similarly, the tactile presence of many locations which were key to Nazi history makes visiting Munich itself, for me, creepy.

After you went on a tour where they were all specifically pointed out to you, because you wouldn't otherwise know, and despite the fact that these places usually existed one or several centuries before the Nazis came along...

Maybe you and those tour guides should just try obsessing a little less about Hitler?

[Rward]

The surfing in the river in the English Gardens..
blew my head slighlty seeing a girl ride past on her bicycle with a 5 foot under her arm..