[The following post is from the archives of my In Search Of Incredible blog, originally published on 10 November 2016]

 

11 December 2015, Friday

It’s the last full day of our trip and we started it with a free walking tour, as recommended by our hotel’s receptionist. She told us that there are several companies offering these 3-hour tours and no prior reservation is required. You just need to show up at the meeting place at Marienplatz at 10:40am, so off we went. We saw a group of about 12 others gathered at the area around Mariensäule (aka Mary’s Column), so we went ahead to join them and registered ourselves. An English-speaking guide introduced himself to us, and we started the tour right at Marienplatz itself.

Marienplatz was named after the Mariensäule. Standing in the middle of the square, it is a column erected in 1683 to celebrate the end of Swedish occupation. There is a golden statue of Virgin Mary at the top of the column. With the Christmas market occupying the square, the Mariensäule was somewhat overshadowed.

The main reason why the tour starts at 10:40am at Marienplatz is because the Glockenspiel puts up a show at 11am every day, as well as at 12pm and additionally at 5pm in the summer months. The Glockenspiel is basically a cuckoo clock and it was built into the clock tower of the New Town Hall (aka Neues Rathaus) in 1908. It consists of 43 bells and 32 figures, where the figures revolve over two tiers set to the chiming of the bells. It tells the story of a royal wedding, a jousting tournament on horseback and a ritualistic dance.

The entire performance lasts a little more than 10 minutes and it has been deemed one of the most overrated tourist attractions in Europe, alongside the Astronomical Clock in Prague. As the figures are quite small and they are high up the tower, it was rather difficult to see what was going on. So yes, I would agree that it was not a big deal. Even the guide spoke about it in jaded tones.

After the Glockenspiel performance, we went into the courtyard of the New Town Hall for a quick look. The Gothic building was built between 1867 and 1908 and its impressive main façade is 100m long. It has 400 rooms and it houses the city council and administrative offices.

Next, we visited Frauenkirche (aka Cathedral of our Dear Lady), located a stone’s throw away from Marienplatz. The cathedral was built from 1468 to 1488 so it’s really old. The two green domes atop the towers were only added in 1525. During World War II, Frauenkirche was severely damaged by air strikes and major restoration works were finally completed in 1994.

Even though it was built in Gothic style, its red brick exterior was rather plain and did not contain the usual rich Gothic flourishes. However, it is one of the most prominent buildings in Munich because its two towers reach a height of 99m each, dwarfing over the surrounding buildings by good measure. In fact, there is a law stating that no buildings in Munich city can exceed the height of the Frauenkirche.

The interior of the cathedral is as low key as its exterior. It feels very narrow because of its height. It appears windowless, save for one stained glass window at the far end. The reason for that is connected to an interesting feature that can be found near the cathedral’s entrance – the Devil’s Footprint. On the floor, there is a special tile with a footprint surrounded in gold. This is the so-called Devil’s Footprint.

Legend has it that the architect of the cathedral made a pact with the Devil to finance the construction of the church on the condition that it celebrated darkness, and hence, contained no windows. The clever architect tricked the Devil by positioning columns so that the windows were not visible from where the Devil stood in the foyer. At the time, the window at the far end was blocked by a high altar so it could not be seen. But when the Devil later realised he had been tricked, the church was already consecrated and he could no longer enter it. So the Devil stomped angrily on the ground and left in a gust of wind, leaving behind a footprint on the foyer floor.

From Frauenkirche, we next went to Promenadeplatz for an interesting stopover at a memorial shrine dedicated to the greatest entertainer who ever lived…Michael Jackson! I did not even know that there was such a shrine so I was really surprised to see it.

The unofficial shrine is located at the base of a statue of Orlando di Lasso, a Rennaisance composer. Orlando di Lasso has no relation to MJ but the site was chosen because it is located in front of the 5-star Bayerischer Hof Hotel, where MJ frequently used to stay whenever he visited Munich. The shrine was adorned with many pictures of MJ, candles and flags from all over the world. The loyal fans had even made effort to dress it up with Christmas decorations to suit the festive season. So much love for MJ!

After the brief pilgrimage, we went on to Odeonsplatz. The big square at Odeonsplatz is surrounded by three prominent buildings – Theatinerkirche, Feldherrnhalle and Munich Residenz.

We first visited Theatinerkirche (aka Theatine Church), nicknamed “Tiner Turner church” because it sounds like it. Sadly, the church was undergoing restoration works so its exterior was covered and adorned with a huge Huawei advertisement. Thankfully, its interior was still intact.

This Catholic church was built from 1663 to 1690 in Baroque style and it is perhaps the most unique church I have been to. All the columns and the ceiling were in white, giving it an ethereal feel. It seemed as if time had stood still and everything was frozen and covered with snow. As the exterior was boarded up, maybe not many people were aware that it was open so there were very few tourists inside. The emptiness added to its mystical allure.

Feldherrnhalle (aka Field Marshals’ Hall) is a monumental loggia commissioned in 1841 by King Ludwig I of Bavaria to honour the tradition of his army. It looked mightily familiar because it was modelled after the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence, which is beside the Uffizi Gallery at Piazza della Signoria. A loggia is an architectural feature that is a covered exterior gallery or corridor usually supported by a series of columns or arches.

In the Feldherrnhalle are bronze statues of Bavarian generals Johann Tilly and Karl Philipp von Wrede and also two large stone lions. The one on the left is growling at the Munich Residenz while the one on the right has its mouth shut towards the Theatinerkirche church. I wonder if it was deliberate.

The Feldherrnhalle is also famous because it was the site of the confrontation between the Bavarian State Police and Hitler supporters during the Beer Hall Putsch. “Putsch” means “coup” in German. On 8 November 1923, at the Bürgerbräukeller beer hall, Hitler made a failed coup attempt to take over the Bavarian state. The following morning, Hitler supporters organised an illegal march towards the Bavarian Defense Ministry but their progress was halted at Feldherrnhalle by the State Police. Gunfire broke out, resulting in the death of 4 police officers and 16 marchers. Hitler was later arrested and sentenced to jail.

Next to Feldherrnhalle is Munich Residenz. It is the former seat of government and royal palace from 1508 to 1918. The sprawling complex of buildings comprises of 10 courtyards and 130 rooms. We didn’t actually enter it because there is an admission fee to access the various parts of the residence.

In front of the Alte Residenz (aka Old Residence) building are four bronze lion statues. Our guide told us that people like to rub them for good luck. So much so that the originals have been safely stowed away and the lions now in place are copies, so people can rub all they want without causing damage to the 400-year-old originals. In case you’re wondering why there are so many statues of lions around, it is because lions take on special significance in Bavaria and are even found on their coat of arms.

From Munich Residenz, we went to the National Theatre (aka Nationaltheater) building at Max-Joseph-Platz. It is the home of the Bavarian State Opera (aka Bayerische Staatsoper), State Orchestra and State Ballet. After visiting all these opera houses and concert halls in Prague and Munich, I think it would be wonderful if I could catch one of their performances in these magnificent halls one day.

We then walked along Maximilianstraße, which is the upmarket area and Germany’s most expensive shopping street. It has been touted Munich’s “most elegant promenade” and it is home to luxury boutiques, designer shops and 5-star hotels. In other words, a playground for the rich and famous and not mere mortals like us.

Next up is Hofbräuhaus, the world’s most famous beer hall, located at Platzl 9. The beer hall was built in 1589 by the Duke of Bavaria, who was a demanding beer guzzler and was dissatisfied with the poor quality of beer brewed in Munich. As a result, beer had to be imported, which was costly. The Duke then decided to build a brewery and he recruited a master brewer to produce beer that met his exacting standards, and thus, Hofbräuhaus was established.

The Hofbräuhaus building is an institution upon itself and many famous people had patronised it, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, John F. Kennedy and Adolf Hitler too. The regulars even have their own reserved tables and lockers to store their personal steins (beer mugs) there.

Hofbräuhaus is the most popular beer hall in Munich but it is not the only one. Our guide also shared with us the 6 big breweries of Munich – Hofbräuhaus, Löwenbräu, Augustinerbräu, Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr and Spaten. Augustinerbräu is the oldest among them all, established in 1328. You can find their beer halls all over the city. Just note that each beer hall carries that particular brand of beer exclusively only.

We then swung by Peterskirche (aka St. Peter’s Church), located at Rindermarkt. It is affectionately known as Alter Peter, or Old Peter, because it is the oldest church in the city, built in 1180. Even though its tower is only 91m, it appears taller than Frauenkirche (whose towers are 99m tall) because it stands on a hill called Petersbergl, which is the only noteworthy elevation in the city area. Hence, a trip up the tower provides the best panoramic view over the Old Town area.

We then ended the tour at Viktualienmarkt, the fresh food market. “Viktualien” means “victuals”, which is a Latin word for “food”. The food market used to occupy the main square at Marienplatz but was relocated here in 1807 because it became too large. The 140 stalls here offer vegetables, meat, fruits, flowers and other fresh food.

At this point, we offered our tips to the guide for a job well done. You are free to tip whatever amount you feel the tour is worth and there is no obligation. The tour lasted 3.5 hours in total, longer than what we expected. If you’re in Munich and have about 4 hours to spare, I would recommend going for one of these free walking tours because it is very informative and you get to see all the major sights, though admittedly there were times when the guide was a little too informative and I found my attention drifting away.

As the tour ended at about 2:30pm, we were very hungry by then. We decided to head back to Hofbräuhaus for a good lunch. It was very crowded but there were still seats for us. I ordered a serving of roast pork with potato dumpling and a mug of Hofbräu Original beer. The food was very good.

After a satisfying lunch, we went separate ways for our own shopping before calling it a night at the hotel, where we packed our luggages for the final time. 

 

12 December 2015, Saturday

The following morning, we took checked out of our hotel and took the S-Bahn train to the airport. We bought a Group ticket for €22.30 (approx. S$33.80), which was valid for up to 5 people, meaning, 5 people can share one Group ticket. It was still cheaper than getting 3 Single tickets, which would cost around €12.00 each.

We departed Munich Franz Josef Strauss airport at 1:00pm on our SQ flight with Preferred Seats, which we paid an additional S$84.53 each for extra legroom. It was an 11 hour 40 minute non-stop flight, so it was worth it to get the extra comfort for the long flight. And that’s the end of my trip! It will probably be a while before I return to Europe again. I especially love the architecture of European cities but it’s time for a change of scenery. Till the next time, adios!