May 20: The Return to Munich

Fighting off Pestilence

After our early train from Salzburg back to Munich, we checked in our luggage once again at the Wombat Hostel near the central train station in Munich and set off on the adventures planned for the last day in Munich. The group split into several groups. One visited the Munich City Museum, an eclectic exhibition that traced Munich's history from its earliest days up through the latter part of the twentieth century. Sections on art, beer, and the tumultuous twentieth century were found in the main building, with an interesting separate installation devoted to the Third Reich across the street (though the war years were once again given short shrift).

Schloss Nymphenburg

Another group decided to visit Schloss Nymphenburg (The Palace of the Nymph) located in northern Munich, an area that was once outside the city but now lies within a residential neighborhood of the expanding German metropolis. A first glance of the palace does not do justice to the massive scale of the building itself and the grounds it is situated on. I can imagine anyone who gazed upon the Nymphenburg Palace must have been amazed, whether they were just a common citizen of the Bavarian kingdom or a visiting monarch from another kingdom. Construction of the palace began in 1664 as a gift for the newly born Prince Max Emanuel. This first stage of the palace was completed in 1675, over the following decades the palace was transformed from an Italian baroque style to a French Rococo style by the time Ludwig II, great-grandson of king Max Emanuel, was born. This is said to be the reason Ludwig was so enamored by the French style and he built the palaces at Linderhof and Neuwanstein in a similar French stye. Maybe more impressive than the palace itself are the gardens the palace is surrounded by and the other small buildings dotting the immense palace grounds. One of these buildings has been repurposed and expanded to create a

The Greenhouse

very large system of greenhouses that help house some of the more exotic plants from the palaces botanical gardens that can not survive outdoors. Other buildings included the royal bath house, a hunting lodge, a teahouse, a retreat made to look like abandoned classical ruins, and various other residences as well. It is also worth noting the beautiful marble statues and fountains that depicted Roman mythological gods, goddesses, and heroes. 

BMW World

After the tour was finished, and we were done exploring the palace grounds, it was off to our next stop, BMW Welt (BMW World) which consists of the original BMW factory, a large showroom, a testing facility, company headquarters, and, of course, the BMW Museum. Here prospective buyers and car enthusiasts can view and drive brand new BMWs, one of Bavaria's most recognizable exports. The building that housed BMW World is an ultra modern piece of art made with mostly stainless steel and glass, which shows both impressive engineering, the well-being of the company, and also their dedication to modernity and the advancement of engineering. Here they were showcasing inventions such as their new adaptive headlights, fully electric cars, and powerful yet efficient new race engines. The museum provided a nice contrast to the BMW World by paying homage to all the different carsand bikes the company has produced over the years, but a constant theme remained that the company had developed many innovations throughout its long history including help with the development and production of airplanes in the First World War and the jet engine in the Second. Sadly, all of the tours of the factory were booked through the first week of August as the tour is considered one of the must see things in Munich. 

Across the street from BMW World is the site of the 1972 Olympics. When someone mentions Munich one

The Olympic Village

of the things that immediately comes to mind are these Olympic games which were famously marked by the abduction and murder of members of the Israeli Olympic team by Palestinian terrorists. These games were planned to starkly contrast the 1936 Berlin Olympics held by the Nazis, and have a focus on unity and happiness, but when the Munich Massacre happened this message was quickly overshadowed by the terrorist activities. It is worth noting in an effort to bury the past, the hills at the Olympic park are made from rubble created by the Allied bombings of Munich at the end of World War II. It was very interesting to walk the same footsteps that the Israeli team may have taken, see Mark Spitz's room, and stand in the same spot where the most controversial call in basketball ever happened, resulting in a crushing loss for the United States at the hands of the arch rival

Olympic Stadium

Soviets. There is a real sense of sports history on these grounds that remains to this day, but that does not mean that the residents of Munich do not find use for them. Just the day we visited there were groups setting up a 5k to benefit children's relief efforts, and an AC/DC concert was ready to be held the next day.  

My next stop after a long subway ride to the outskirts of the city was the Allianz Arena, where one of the

Allianz Arena

most storied clubs in European soccer play itshome matches, FC Bayern Munich. This new stadium was constructed when the teams popularity created logistical problems of hosting games at the 1972 Olympic stadium any longer. The stadium looks like a large white tire in the distance, but when there is a match the outside is lit up red, the color associated with the Munich side. Just a day before we arrived in Munich, Allianz Arena played host the the semi final of the UEFA champions league, perhaps the world's second most important soccer tournament behind the World Cup. While here we toured the grounds and got to see the teams trophy room and also picked up some souvenirs from the team shop as well. 

The last stop planned for the day was to eat our last authentic German meal at one of the cities oldest restaurants and breweries called JW Augustiner. When I asked someone for assistance in finding the restaurant, I was informed there was more than one JW Augustiner and the woman kindly told me the best one to go to for the most authentic experience. Just a 15 minute walk later we found ourselves sitting at a large 12 person table with filled with strangers. Thankfully some of them knew some English and could help us with the menu, and we proceeded to share potato salad and beer while talking with the locals about Munich and it's history. They were interested in what we saw and learned while we stayed in their city, and they provided some good advice on what to do and see next time we found ourselves in Munich. They seemed to enjoy talking about how much fun there is to have and how beautiful the city is. It was easily seen that pride for Munich ran deep and I was glad to have the experience of sharing a table with these people listening to their stories and learning more about the culture that one can only get in this way. After our extended dinner we made our way back to the hostel to pack our things and sleep in preparation for our early departure the next morning. For me, the last day was one of my favorite, and I can say it's one of the best days I've had the chance to experience in my life thus far. It was literally inspiring for me to see and do so much and to learn so much and take all of the History and significance of one city in.