When in... Munich?
We did it - we took our first weekend trip! This is a big part of why we decided to move to, and yet, it felt so difficult to accomplish. We’ve already gotten so busy; me with work and trying to get into a routine, Michael with school - so much school! But we did it. We arranged a sitter for Sage, I booked our flights… and then I forgot to research where we were going.
I chose Munich for our first trip. Why? Cheap flights. We spent a little over €130 round trip - that includes bags and seat selection (if you’ve not flown Ryanair, you need to pay extra to bring a carry on on-board. It’s like the Spirit of Ireland. You have to pay €55 if you don’t check in online!!). But like. Besides the fact that we’ve never been to Germany and there were cheap flights… there was nothing to that decision. Still, it was exciting to visit a new city.
Day 1 - we left our flat at 4:30am to get to the airport. We left Saturday morning so we didn’t have to stress about missing class or work or anything. It was going to be a rainy, chilly weekend and I packed accordingly. Dudes - seriously - I’ve never been prouder of a packing job. Super efficient, everything fit perfectly, no stress at all. Until the rude guy at airport security took my face lotion because it was over 100mL. Ugh.
We got to Munich, worked together (yay, teamwork) to figure out how to get to our hotel (see - I was totally un-Paige… didn’t even plan on how to get to the freaking hotel!), and got on the bus for €11. There was a bunch of traffic so we didn’t end up getting to Munich from the airport until a close to 1pm. We were soooo hangry, we couldn’t even make it to the hotel to check in (which wasn’t until 3pm, so we had time). We stopped at the first stereotypical Bavarian looking restaurant right across the street from the bus stop - Wirtshaus Rechthaler Hof. We were given an English menu (also, should have learned some German before we traveled), and we ordered. Dark beer for me, cellar beer for Michael. That was the theme - you just order beer. Dark or light sometimes. Anyway, Michael ordered himself a plate of meat. Literally at least 3 different kinds of meat, plus sausage, plus schnitzel. I just ordered schnitzel with horseradish and potato salad. The potato salad was surprising - it was not super mayonnaisey like us Americans are used to - and it had a bunch of cucumbers in it. Not too bad!
Headed around the corner to our hotel - booked through HotelTonight (thanks for getting me hooked, Freda), got a king sized bed (OMG OMG OMG), took a nap, and then Michael had a call at 3pm for school. From there, I was not taking no for an answer - we were GOING to the night bazaar that happens every other Saturday night. But first - more beer. Went to Augustiner Keller. Pretzels and beer. We (and most people here) were at a somewhat communal table - in that we were sitting at a table of four and there were only two of us, so a gentleman was sat next to us. He didn’t speak English, so we were useless.
Then the night bazaar - Nachtflomarkt. I’m basic AF and I’m totally embracing it, but I’m obsessed with markets, food, and drinks. Those are my top attractions when traveling. Let me live. Anyway, we of course headed straight to the bar, and then got to browsing. We are always on the hunt for cufflinks for Michael, and I’m just looking for anything shiny. So many rows of tables overflowing with clothes, shoes, records, everything you can imagine. We even saw a table covered with Super Nintendo and N64 games! I bought some rings for €2 and then Michael helped me barter for a pair of pretty crystal earrings for €20 - I hate bartering. Makes me so uncomfortable. Michael got himself a pair of cufflinks. We drank. Too much. And didn’t eat at the food trucks. And then, while I was in the bathroom checking on Instagram (basicAF), I came across the most random post. Our friends, Matt and Lauren, had arrived in Munich earlier that day. WHAT IN THE WORLD?! These are our friends from Virginia. In Munich. The same random weekend in October.
We met up with them and my memory is limited for the rest of the night. When in Munich - don’t forget to eat dinner.
handsome at the BMW museum
Sunday morning, Michael and I got up earlyish - considering my throbbing head, you should all be impressed. I had compiled a list of places to go from the interwebs, and one of the things that’s traditional in Munich is the weiẞwurst. So we headed on a 20 minute walk down towards Marienplatz to get to Schneider Brauhaus (I read that it’s the only place you can get beer on a Sunday before noon - but who knows if that’s actually accurate). I got a little giddy when we were walking through Marienplatz - this is when it really struck me that we were in Germany. It’s gorgeous and so impressive. So at 10:30am, we were eating our weiẞwurst, drinking our beers (literally, just ordered “beer”), and I was stuffing my face with all of the pretzels - not a bad hangover remedy. Michael also accidentally ordered a full cheese board because he thought that’s what I was pointing to. I was just pointing to the obazda - a traditional cheese spread made with camembert and paprika and some other stuff. I’m not going to lie to you, I was not about that sausage, but I was all for the obazda that came on our cheese platter (I feel like my life should be sponsored by Lactaid).
From our very Bavarian breakfast, we took the U-bahn to Olympiazentrum - the stop right outside of BMW Welt and across the street from the BMW Museum. I’m the best girlfriend - I knew this was very high on Michael’s list of things to do in Munich. I struggled hard through it, even though it was definitely very cool to see. We headed to the BMW Welt after just so I could down water because I thought I was going to die. I also got a coke. I don’t know if it’s a European thing, but I’m just best life living over here because everywhere I’ve been they’ve served coke out of a glass bottle (my fave).
new car for meeee :)
In the very grey, wet weather, we ambled across the overpass to Olympiapark. The best way to describe it is it’s like a massive fossil - just bones coming out of the ground. It’s huge and imposing, but kind of sad-looking. Futuristic and ancient at the same time. There was a bike race of sorts happening on the grounds, as well as what we think was some sort of Disney on Ice type show. We wandered back towards the U-bahn and were going to get off at Odeonplatz, when we connected with Lauren and Matt and met them for beers and wandering. We did end up walking back to Odeonplatz because we all wanted to see the Munich Residenz. It was after 4pm and of course it was closed (planning, Paige, planning!). Walked through the grounds and up to Englischer Garten where we made a beeline for Eisbach Welle - the area of the English Gardens where the river is so rough that people actually surf on it! It’s so cool!
Olympiapark
Englischer Garten
Eisbach Welle
After wandering some more, we found ourselves back in Altstadt grabbing drinks at Fedora before heading to Paulaner Im Tal for more beers! Here, the boys decided we should go to Haxnbauer for dinner. We didn’t do our research, though, because we missed the suckling pig that sells out immediately. No wonder there was a line! Our server thought it was hilarious that at 8pm we thought we were going to get the pig. Instead, I ordered the Bavarian Duo of pork and veal knuckle. It came with these weird potato ball things. Not about it.
Monday was our last day in Munich and Michael realized he had an assignment to do. While he was in the hotel room getting his work done, I wandered. Took the U-bahn to Weinerplatz (or Vienna Square). It’s the smallest permanent square in Munich. It was adorable, but unfortunately all of the shops were closed. I found a bakery on a side street - Backerei Schmidt - and I grabbed some pretzel stick thing. Walked from there to Maximilianeum then up the Isar River and to Glockenbachviertel.
While waiting for Michael, I browsed through some shops and wandered back towards Viktualienmarkt (where we were going to meet for lunch). I stopped in to Eataly and was floored. I mean. I’m embarrassed to say this as a New Yorker, but it was my first time in any Eataly. Cheese and wine and so much food. This is what heaven is like, right?
I walked around Viktualienmarkt before Michael got there, but withheld from eating anything in solidarity. Once Michael got there, we grabbed a quick sandwich and walked around the stalls. Since it was our last day, we didn’t buy any of the food, but enjoyed all of the browsing. I love markets, after all. We grabbed a glass of wine and made our plan for the rest of the day. We had a handful of things we wanted to do, and a few hours before we needed to make our way to the airport for our flight.
First up - Asamkirche. Guess what? We got there and it was closed. For maintenance. We peeked inside and got an idea of how ornate and incredible the interior was, but I was disappointed nonetheless. One thing that really stuck with me about Asamkirche was how crazy it is that such an old church is surrounded by new buildings and shops.
From here, we walked down to St. Peter’s church and paid the €3 to walk up a million flights of stairs to get to the top. The stairs are so narrow and you have people going up and down - so it’s pretty tricky. The view from the top was worth it. Seeing Marienplatz from above, taking in the Bavarian city - it was a highlight for me.
Our last stop was Hofbrauhaus. We enjoyed our steins of beer and prepared to depart our first trip of the year.
If I can tell you my biggest takeaway, this is it. If you’re used to eating a balanced diet that includes vegetables and not an insane amount of meat - when in Munich, be prepared for a stomach ache.
das beer
