I got back from Munich on Tuesday morning and then straight into work. I spent a couple of evenings downloading and sorting pics so those would be available before I actually told you about my trip.
I uploaded 130 pictures which are in 9 different sets. If you haven't checked them out pls go to the flickr link I provided earlier. The photos are not available to the public as I have pics of family members and don't want every freak with an internet connection looking at them.
If I haven't sent you an invite (it is a email I send you from the flickr.com website) and you would like one, pls email me at mk1802@yahoo.com
Now...a little bit about Munich, The Capital of Bavaria. Munich is 2 hours away by car from Stuttgart and it was a nice drive, mostly on the Autobahn. Munich is the 3rd largest city in Germany with 1.5 million residents. Only Berlin and Hamburg have larger populations. It is estimated that the city was founded in 1158 by monks of the Benedictine Order. In fact, Munich's native name, Munchen, is derived from an old German word, Monche, which means monk.
Munich is also where Hitler and his supporters staged the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, shortly after WWI (the Germans suffered a crushing loss to the Allies, complements of the US Marine Corps). This little uprising landed Hitler in prison where he wrote "Mein Kampf"
On a side note, it was the WWI Battle of Belleau Wood where the Marines were given one of their nicknames of "Teufelshunden" or "Devil Dogs" by the Germans because of the ferocity with which they fought. It is also the place where Capt Lloyd Williams (USMC), when told by retreating French soldiers that they should turn around because everyone was pulling back, said "Retreat? Hell, we just got here". Capt Williams died during the battle for Belleau Wood, which historians say was the turning point for the Allies during WWI. He was also a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute (1907) and a member of Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets. Capt Williams is also thought to be the first Virginian to die in WWI (I thought all my readers in Virginia would find this particulary interesting). God rest his soul.
Now where was I? Oh, yes, my trip to Munich.
I booked a room at The Kings Hotel which was very nice. The room was small by American standards but about what you should expect when in Europe. It was located only 5 minutes from the city's central train station and only another 5 minutes to the entrance to "old town Munich" or the city's central square.
This central square area is actually quite large, probably 10 blocks long and 2 or 3 blocks wide. I use blocks just so you can imagine how big it is. Most of the area is all a pedestrian area and it is always fairly crowded as there are many shops and cafes in the area. On Saturday, it was just packed with people. All the shops were open and in the center of the square, many beer gardens had opened and there were several traditional German bands playing music. It was very festive. It seems like Sat is the day when everyone gets out to shop, eat and drink. Most everything in closed on Sun and many of the tourist stuff like museums are closed on Sun and Mon. Most of the Munich picks you see on my flickr site were taken on Sat. The very center of the square is called Neues Rathaus "New Town Hall".
The Neues Rathaus was built b/w the years of 1867-1909 and has a 330 ft facade. The central facade features a 260 ft clock tower known as Glockenspiele. Each day at 11am and 5pm, the bells ring out a carol while mechanical knights fight a tournament and a crowd dances (see pics on flickr). The latter is a reenactment of the first coopers' dance held in 1517. You can search "youtube" and find video. It was ok, just didn't blow me away. It was probably more interesting in 1909.
All within a few blocks are some of the most fantastic churches I have ever seen. I took lots of pics (again, see them at my flickr page), however, I can tell you that no picture can capture what I saw. They are so elaborate and intricate, you could spend hours in each one. The three churches I got pics of are: Michaelskirche (St. Michael's Chruch) built in 1585, Asamkirche (Asam's Church or St Johann-Nepomuk) built in 1750, and Frauenkirche built in the mid 1400s. Each one had something really noteworthy about it such as "the devils foot print" at Frauenkirche, at St. Michael's: the life sized bronze angel that holds the holy water as well as the crypt of Ludwig II (built the big castle I went to Monday known as Royal Castle of Neuschwanstein), and Asam's Church was over the top in every way. There is so much history behind each one of these churches that each one could be its own blog topic. I encourage you to google (or use the search engine of your choice) each one for pics much better then the ones I took.
Also in the town square is Augustinerbrau which is the oldest and most celebrated brewery in Munich which was founded by Augustinian monks in 1328. The Germans take beer very seriously. Beer is consumed daily often with lunch and dinner. It is practically more available then water and the source of much national pride.
On Sunday, I went to the Deutsches Museum which is one of the oldest and largest museums of technology and science. It is Smithsonian in size. It covers all things science. It doesn't have just one or two telescopes, it has 100. It covers, in great depth, the history of printing and paper (my Dad could have spent several hours just in this section). It covers (insert the name of any technology) from the day it was invented to what we use today. Included are such things as the camera, flight, sailing, musical instruments, physics, telecommunications, computers, etc.
Of particular note, they had a life size diorama of Galileos's workshop which featured a large collection of scientific equipment used by the famous astronomer and physicist to establish the basic laws of mechanics. Knowing the achievements of Galileo, it was awe inspiring to be so close to the items in this display. I felt like I was thrown back in history. Stephen Hawkins says, "Galileo Galilei, perhaps more than any other single person, was responsible for the birth of modern science". Truly amazing.
Galileo was found guilty of heresy in 1633 by the Catholic Church because of conclusions he drew from his scientific studies. In 1992, some 350 years later, Pope John Paul II admitted that the Church got this one wrong and declared that Galileo was once again a member in good standing. You go, Galileo.
Tomorrow I will finish up the the BMW Museum and the Royal Castle of Neuschwanstein.
I got distracted by my beautiful wife on yahoo instant messaging. Sorry, she has priority, always . More tomorrow.
Cheers,
Michael
I uploaded 130 pictures which are in 9 different sets. If you haven't checked them out pls go to the flickr link I provided earlier. The photos are not available to the public as I have pics of family members and don't want every freak with an internet connection looking at them.
If I haven't sent you an invite (it is a email I send you from the flickr.com website) and you would like one, pls email me at mk1802@yahoo.com
Now...a little bit about Munich, The Capital of Bavaria. Munich is 2 hours away by car from Stuttgart and it was a nice drive, mostly on the Autobahn. Munich is the 3rd largest city in Germany with 1.5 million residents. Only Berlin and Hamburg have larger populations. It is estimated that the city was founded in 1158 by monks of the Benedictine Order. In fact, Munich's native name, Munchen, is derived from an old German word, Monche, which means monk.
Munich is also where Hitler and his supporters staged the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, shortly after WWI (the Germans suffered a crushing loss to the Allies, complements of the US Marine Corps). This little uprising landed Hitler in prison where he wrote "Mein Kampf"
On a side note, it was the WWI Battle of Belleau Wood where the Marines were given one of their nicknames of "Teufelshunden" or "Devil Dogs" by the Germans because of the ferocity with which they fought. It is also the place where Capt Lloyd Williams (USMC), when told by retreating French soldiers that they should turn around because everyone was pulling back, said "Retreat? Hell, we just got here". Capt Williams died during the battle for Belleau Wood, which historians say was the turning point for the Allies during WWI. He was also a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute (1907) and a member of Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets. Capt Williams is also thought to be the first Virginian to die in WWI (I thought all my readers in Virginia would find this particulary interesting). God rest his soul.
Now where was I? Oh, yes, my trip to Munich.
I booked a room at The Kings Hotel which was very nice. The room was small by American standards but about what you should expect when in Europe. It was located only 5 minutes from the city's central train station and only another 5 minutes to the entrance to "old town Munich" or the city's central square.
This central square area is actually quite large, probably 10 blocks long and 2 or 3 blocks wide. I use blocks just so you can imagine how big it is. Most of the area is all a pedestrian area and it is always fairly crowded as there are many shops and cafes in the area. On Saturday, it was just packed with people. All the shops were open and in the center of the square, many beer gardens had opened and there were several traditional German bands playing music. It was very festive. It seems like Sat is the day when everyone gets out to shop, eat and drink. Most everything in closed on Sun and many of the tourist stuff like museums are closed on Sun and Mon. Most of the Munich picks you see on my flickr site were taken on Sat. The very center of the square is called Neues Rathaus "New Town Hall".
The Neues Rathaus was built b/w the years of 1867-1909 and has a 330 ft facade. The central facade features a 260 ft clock tower known as Glockenspiele. Each day at 11am and 5pm, the bells ring out a carol while mechanical knights fight a tournament and a crowd dances (see pics on flickr). The latter is a reenactment of the first coopers' dance held in 1517. You can search "youtube" and find video. It was ok, just didn't blow me away. It was probably more interesting in 1909.
All within a few blocks are some of the most fantastic churches I have ever seen. I took lots of pics (again, see them at my flickr page), however, I can tell you that no picture can capture what I saw. They are so elaborate and intricate, you could spend hours in each one. The three churches I got pics of are: Michaelskirche (St. Michael's Chruch) built in 1585, Asamkirche (Asam's Church or St Johann-Nepomuk) built in 1750, and Frauenkirche built in the mid 1400s. Each one had something really noteworthy about it such as "the devils foot print" at Frauenkirche, at St. Michael's: the life sized bronze angel that holds the holy water as well as the crypt of Ludwig II (built the big castle I went to Monday known as Royal Castle of Neuschwanstein), and Asam's Church was over the top in every way. There is so much history behind each one of these churches that each one could be its own blog topic. I encourage you to google (or use the search engine of your choice) each one for pics much better then the ones I took.
Also in the town square is Augustinerbrau which is the oldest and most celebrated brewery in Munich which was founded by Augustinian monks in 1328. The Germans take beer very seriously. Beer is consumed daily often with lunch and dinner. It is practically more available then water and the source of much national pride.
On Sunday, I went to the Deutsches Museum which is one of the oldest and largest museums of technology and science. It is Smithsonian in size. It covers all things science. It doesn't have just one or two telescopes, it has 100. It covers, in great depth, the history of printing and paper (my Dad could have spent several hours just in this section). It covers (insert the name of any technology) from the day it was invented to what we use today. Included are such things as the camera, flight, sailing, musical instruments, physics, telecommunications, computers, etc.
Of particular note, they had a life size diorama of Galileos's workshop which featured a large collection of scientific equipment used by the famous astronomer and physicist to establish the basic laws of mechanics. Knowing the achievements of Galileo, it was awe inspiring to be so close to the items in this display. I felt like I was thrown back in history. Stephen Hawkins says, "Galileo Galilei, perhaps more than any other single person, was responsible for the birth of modern science". Truly amazing.
Galileo was found guilty of heresy in 1633 by the Catholic Church because of conclusions he drew from his scientific studies. In 1992, some 350 years later, Pope John Paul II admitted that the Church got this one wrong and declared that Galileo was once again a member in good standing. You go, Galileo.
Tomorrow I will finish up the the BMW Museum and the Royal Castle of Neuschwanstein.
I got distracted by my beautiful wife on yahoo instant messaging. Sorry, she has priority, always . More tomorrow.
Cheers,
Michael
Wow. Great photos, Michael. You must be having a blast over there.
ReplyDeleteBut don't get too into it. We're all expecting you home as soon as possible.
Jerry
Good to hear from you, Jerry. This certainly is a once in a life time opportunity and I promised myself I wouldn't piss it away. I would love to retire here in Bavaria.
ReplyDelete