You know, we have generally stayed in cities for three nights. We are in Munich for four nights. This makes it feel like we live here.
On today's agenda we must go have lunch with Sarah, the sales manager at The Charles Hotel, Munich. The Charles is in the Rocco Forte Collection, just like Villa Kennedy in Frankfurt. You know how much I liked Villa Kennedy. Needless to say, we are looking forward to lunch. We hopped into the subway because Munich was 90F/32C and we did not want to arrive for lunch having walked 20 minutes through the heat. Soon after exiting the subway, we saw The Charles.
Not a bad looking hotel, eh?
The lobby bar of The Charles.
A view of the Old Botanical Gardens and Railway Station from one of The Charles' rooms.
But what do you care most about? The food.
My parsley soup. I regret to say that it was so good that I did that thing where I finish it without offering Barbie a taste. Now that I have mentioned this, she will remember, too. Bad move to remind her, but sometimes the truth hurts.
I had the Duck with bok choy.
Barbie had the mushroom risotto.
I also had several iced teas and a double espresso. After a nice, long lunch, I had enough caffeine in me to sprint to our next destination, the Königsplatz. (King's Square.) Designed in the early 1800's, Sarah told us we would know we were there when, "All of a sudden it looks like Greece."
She was one hundred percent correct.
I am starting to notice a trend. The Germans were big fans of Athens and Rome, and much of the architecture is "inspired by" these examples. Yet, looking at the city of Munich, I appreciate the Gothic architecture most of all. Yet I suppose the Gothic style would not have evolved without those that came before it.
Considering how cluttered Athens can be, perhaps Königsplatz is doing its best to spare you the trip?
By the way, during the Third Reich the Königsplatz was used for the Nazi Party's mass rallies. They clearly understood the value of a photogenic background.
Obelisk!!! This is the Obelisk in Karolinenplatz. There is nothing, NOTHING, about it in the English Wikipedia. But there is an extensive article in the German Wikipedia. So I went the extra mile.
Here is a computerized translation of the German article: The story of Bavaria is connected closely with the France. The 1833 revealed, reminds one 29 meters of obelisk high in the place middle of the 30,000 Bavarian fallen of the Russia expedition Napoléons 1812, with which Bavaria stood on sides of France. Brienner street and bar street that cross the place are named after places of battles of the release wars against Napoleons 1813 to 1815, [1] at which Bavarian troops against French fought. Therefore both sides of this special relation between Bavaria and Napoléon are united at the Karolinenplatz.
I know that I should have just said, "This Obelisk, built in 1833, is 29 meters (95 feet) tall and is a memorial to the 30,000 Bavarian soldiers lost fighting on the side of France during the invasion of Russia in 1812." But the broken English translation is cool, isn't it?
Quick Fact: This invasion of Russia in 1812 inspired both Tolstoy's War and Peace and Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.
Barbie and the Obelisk. Can you even see her? I told you that this Obelisk is massively tall.
A Maximilian I statue, who ruled during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). I dare you to read the history of the Thirty Years' War and not ask, "Why wasn't this called World War I?" Because nearly all of Europe jumped into that one and nearly one million men were lost. I suspect, and I have no proof and not one fact to support me, that the reason we did not use the geocentric term "World War" until the 20th century is because of communication technology. In other words, it was the ability of news of the war to spread globally that caused us to label Europe's 1914-1918 conflict a World War.
We saw this yesterday, but as we walked from the Obelisk to the Residenz I had to take this picture focusing on the open space of the Feldherrnhalle. It is in this space that Hitler aimlessly (seriously, they started marching without a destination) lead 2,000 men into a conflict with 100 policemen, resulting in the deaths of 16 Nazis and 4 police. Imagine that scene in this space.
The Residenz, which was the Royal palace of the Bavarian monarchs. Not bad.
The gate at the entrance to the Residenz's garden.
Our favorite church, the Theatinerkirche St. Kajetan, from a better vantage point than I got yesterday.
We went inside again, because we cannot get over the beauty of this place. I took a picture including people today, so that it would not be too redundant.
Barbie lighting a candle, as she always does.
A little taste of the stucco ornamentation that mesmerizes us.
Sorry. I'm a little stuck on this. 2,000 Nazis, 100 state police. Right here is where it all truly began.
We're going to have to assume that these are Roman columns unearthed by accident and now simply standing behind some buildings, as you cannot knock them down.
After another day that involved around four hours of walking, my feets needed to be submerged in some cool water. There they are with the Maximilianeum and St. Lukas' Church easily visible in the background.
For dinner, I could tell you that we went to the Hofbräuhaus, arguably the most famous beer hall worldwide, but that would not be true. We walked in, appraised the noise level and food quality, took some pictures, and walked out. This is not exactly the place to have dinner for two.
The Mariensäule in the early evening. At this time of year, 10pm still gives you a hint of the sun.
The Neues Rathaus at night. I took a pic of the Apple Store to my direct right, but it shall not be included. I'm not that silly.
Would you walk past a store with this name and not take a picture? And, yes. You are right. Part of me wants to go back tomorrow and stand in front shouting the store's name over and over until German police arrive. Wait. This is not a good idea.
From our hotel's rooftop, you can see the towers of Peterskirche, Neues Rathaus, and the Frauenkirche. When I took this pic, I looked at the iPhone and thought, "Too bad it's not going to come out good enough to use." Sometimes this thing surprises me.
And with that, I bid you good night.
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