Mary's Square

Day 41:

Today we finally got out of the flat and saw Munich. The first sight we were able to see was Siegestor, or the Victory Gate, a triumphal arch. On top was the female personification of Bavaria on a chariot led by 4 lions... seriously awesome. It was built in the mid 1800s to show how awesome the Bavarian army was, but in a strange twist of fate, it now stands for peace.

We made our way to the Hofgarten, a nice park situated between the Residenz and the Englischer Garten. After a nice stroll, we went across Odeonsplatz, which was the location of the Beer Hall Putsch, where the Nazis tried to take over Munich by force. ...And failed. So long story short, we walked in a plaza where Hitler got arrested. At the southern end of the plaza is the Feldherrnhalle, which is a mid 1800s loggia about the Bavarian military again, but actually, it was to basically built cover up where the medieval Schwabinger Tor. Of course, lots of war references around, but its cool to hear the history of such a central plaza.

On the west side of the plaza was the Theatine Church, the outside of which was of course under construction. But the inside was different than any we have seen yet on this trip. An attendant in the church explained that an Italian princess who married a Bavarian had the church commissioned and used Italian architects and artists to design it. Everything was so intricately designed! Its also where Maximilian II, who built Hohenschwangau, was buried. We're actually not sure if its called buried if there is a large, ornate casket just sitting in the church... but he's there. Then we made the interesting decision to go to the crypt underneath the church. It was creepy. It smelled like the Pirates of the Caribbean, there were twists and turns, and little rooms. And awkwardly, there were so many caskets. One would think in a royal crypt that they would be more spread out and on display, but there were 3 or 4 in every little alcove. They were made of metal, some fancy with shields, crosses, and inscriptions, and some just basic boxes. And there were baby caskets, which were super awkward to see, because they FIT the casket to the body. A lot of them were dented too, maybe from wars, maybe from something else... and they were right there. 100-300 year old bodies, just sheet metal between us... Needless to say, we got creeped out and left.

Back in Odeonsplatz, with the knowledge that the area had been the Italian part of town for a long time, the different look of things started to make sense. We noticed locals rubbing the snout of lions on bronze sculptures in front of the Residenz as they walked by. So in true tourist style, we went across the street to get in on the action. We figured it was something to do with luck, but it turns out the most common story behind it is hilarious. The king at the time had a mistress, which was frowned upon. A student disapproved, so pinned a note to the door of the Residenz. The king didn't like it and put out a warrant for the people responsible. The student felt that the assumption that it was more than one person lessened his deed. So he wrote another note to pin to the door saying it was only one person, but he got caught. The king thought it was funny and super bold of him to try the second note, so pardoned him. On his way out, he rubbed the noses of all 4 lions as he was running by. So we got luck AND fought infidelity at the same time!

Just around the corner was Max Joseph Platz, named after one of the million Maximilians who were king og Bavaris. We sat on the Maximilian I Joseph statue in front of the Nationaltheater München, a beautifully columned opera house, for a little bit, not realizing that we were hungry, not tired. We headed east again and crossed the Isar River, where we saw Friedensengel, a column with a golden goddess on top far north of us. On the bridge was an awesome statue of Athena. And on the other side was Maximilianeum, which we knew absolutely nothing about, but it sure stands out! Turns out its where Bavarian Parliment meets... so really not too exciting, but the backdrop, it being on a small hill, and the design made it nice to look at!

By that time we realized we had worked up an appetite and headed to the Hofbräuhaus, which turns out to be owned by the state (should have figured that out by the name, but oh well). That was by far the most touristy thing we have done so far. We didn't hear any German, got overcharged for food an drinks, but it was completely worth it! The beer hall atmosphere is great, and the food was delicious and fattening too. We had obazda for an appetizer, which is a cheese spread with spices traditional in Bavaria. It was incredible!

We wandered through the shops from there, then went to Marienplatz, where there is a large glockenspiel on the side of the Neues Rathaus. The building is only about 100 years old, but is designed in a very bold gothic style and the face spans the length of the whole plaza. We figured that the glockenspiel would play every hour on the hour, so we waited for a little while to see the show. Turns out it only plays 3 times a day, but we just happened to be there at the latest one. That's some good luck! While we waited, we looked at the Mariensäule, the marble column with a bronze Mary and Jesus on top. This statue was built in the late 16th century, and regarded as the center of the country, where all roads led. Then the glockenspiel did its thing, everyone oohed and aahed as life sized figures spun around in the copper cage. It apparently tells the story of a marriage, celebrated by a joust, and some dancers who were said to keep people's spirits up during a plague. Pretty morbid, but it was quite a sight to see!

We decided to head home where we watched the Sweden - Ireland game at the bar downstairs. It was a long day so we headed back after the game. We found out that the daughter of our host is apparently a crazy person who river surfs. Tomorrow we'll try to see what that is all about!Read more