Deutschland Diary, Part 7: On foot
Yesterday, Susie and I went shopping downtown. We started by taking the U-Bahn down to Sendlingertor, one of three remaining gates of the old city wall.
We walked from there up to Karlstor, an equally magnificent old gate.
The heart of Munich is very much a pedestrian's paradise. And because schools are out this week, the streets were full of shoppers and children, even on a weekday.
We shopped and walked our way up to Marienplatz, the plaza right in the heart of the old city. In the center of the square is a statue of Mary, for whom it's named.
On one edge of the square is the Altes Rathaus, or old city hall.
On the next side you can see Alte Peter, or Old St. Peter's, the oldest church in Munich dating back to the 11th century. People less phobic than I can climb the church tower to get a great view of the city.
I get dizzy just looking up at the tower.
Perhaps the most imposing building on Marienplatz, however, is the Neues Rathaus, or New City Hall ("new" by Munich standards, meaning it is only 19th-century). In the tower of the Rathaus is the famous Glockenspiel. And to the left of the Rathaus, you can see the two domes of the Frauenkirche, which tower over old Munich. The Frauenkirche is a huge old church that is one of the city's most recognizable landmarks.
The Rathaus is huge. If you were to follow the picture above to the right, you'd see the rest of the building.
And it is through these doors that you can enter the Ratskeller, the restaurant in the cellar of the Rathaus. (Yes, this is the root of the name of the bar in every college town across America.) Susie and I had a late lunch there. Most of the other diners were groups of old men or old women meeting friends and hanging out in the Ratskeller in the middle of the afternoon. Not a bad life.
As you can see, it is a lovely old space. Susie's favorite part is the murals on the walls, and she pointed out to me the dancing sausages. No, not this dancing sausage, but these cute litte Wurst:
Fortified with a good lunch and a half litre of Starkbier, we ventured out to do more shopping. So what did I buy? Well, I can't tell everything, but I did pick up many traditional Bavarian items. For example, I bought lots of these little pewter ornaments, or Zinnfiguren. I couldn't resist this one because of the scrawny orange cat with the big scared eyes (look like anyone we know?)
And of course, me being me and this being Germany, I also bought some of my favorite German product:
Aren't they beautiful? These are what I call "dress Birkenstocks." Note the lovely floral pattern, the delicate ladylike straps, and the fashionable orange color. Dress Birkenstocks like these are suitable for all kinds of formal affairs, such as tea parties, weddings, and the Miss America Pageant: Final Night & Crowning. (Today I bought two more pair, but they were casual wear Birkenstocks, suitable only for the Casual Wear Competition of the Miss America Pageant: Final Night & Crowning.)
I really love Munich. It's beautiful, it has great beer, and it has the best damn shoes in the world.