Chapter One
Welcome to Bavaria!
We arrived early in Munich at 8:36 am. After getting settled in our hotel, we grabbed a bite at a nearby sidewalk café. Latte & croissant for me, Melissa had a macchiato and a piece of cake. We went into a local thrift store in hopes of finding a nice selection of used lederhosen and dirndl, and we were pleasantly surprised at the selections! Unfortunately, I am apparently larger than most German men, as there were none in my size. Melissa had better luck with some of the dirndl, but the ones that fit weren’t her favorites and her favorites didn’t fit. I also perused the selection of FC Bayern jerseys and merch, but again, nothing in my size.
We proceeded to another store near the train station we had seen on the way in. A very helpful lady assisted Melissa in finding a super cute dirndl outfit, complete with dress, blouse, ribbon and apron. I found a pair of lederhosen that fit me, so I was thrilled! Technically, they’re called bundhosen, as the pant legs extend below the knee, and are frequently worn with little ankle socks and separate but matching calf warmers. The bundhosen were the biggest pair they had. My apologies to all the members of the bovine community who sacrificed their skin so I could cover mine. After a quick jog back to the hotel to get cash (cards were not accepted at this particular store), we added a couple of small souvenirs to our purchase and headed out.
With the trachten (the common name for this category of traditional Bavarian, Austrian and Alpine cultural attire) in hand, we had worked up a bit of an appetite, so we decided to stop in a local convenience market to set a snack. It was kind of like a CVS but without the pharmacy (more on that later). International flavors of American snack producers are a hoot! Pringles have flavors like Black Truffle and Butter, Thai Green Curry, and Chinese Sweet Chicken Wing. They REALLY love paprika here, hot and regular. There were lots of “crisps” in paprika flavor.
At the register there were a couple of drink fridges, just like in America. But in addition to water and sodas, there was an assortment of bottled, boxed and canned beer, wine, and pre-mixed cocktails. One caught my eye immediately. It was the familiar blue can of Lowenbrau. I hadn’t had one of these since the turn of the century when it stopped being brewed and distributed in the United States. We made our purchases and strolled down the sidewalk sipping on a Lowenbrau tall boy. I was getting the hang of German life.
We walked toward the Old Town, and the Pride Parade went right past us. There was an enormous crowd in the parade and even more spectators. We continued through the old town, past the Karlsplatz and city gate and walked toward the Viktualienmarkt. Along the way we came across a cool little record store celebrating Pride with a sidewalk setup that had pumping music, apparel and a little lounge style seating area. I perused their selections for a minute before we headed on.
In the market we discovered a vibrant square with stalls full of fresh flowers, produce, meats and cheeses, olives, mustards, and every tubular meat product you can imagine! We sampled several different things from a lot of the vendors, making timid attempts at using German in the process. The locals seemed to appreciate this. Or at least found it amusing. They smiled politely and promptly moved the conversation to English. Obviously, we weren’t the first American tourists they had encountered.
Suddenly, a sight came into view I had only seen before on television. The Viktualienmarkt Biergarten! Nestled beneath the beautiful horse chestnut trees, aromas of delicious Bavarian cuisine piggybacked the breeze throughout the shaded grove. Over a thousand people crowded the beer garden as we roamed through a labyrinth of tables, checking out the various food vendors and the famous beer stand I’d seen so many times on tv shows and YouTube videos. I went with crispy pork knuckle on a bun with mustard and Melissa decided to try the currywurst and fries, covered in a tangy ketchup flavored with, you guessed it, paprika. I liked it a lot, possibly more than the American ketchup I'm accustomed to.
The beer stand operated with true German efficiency. Walk up, choose your style in either liter or half-liter, grab, and go! Cash only. I was proud to be one of the few Americans in the line that knew to have cash ready. This beer stand operates like a well-oiled machine until a tourist walks up with a Visa card and a confused look.
Back at our table, the vibrant crowd roared with spirited conversations all around us in a dozen different languages. At the table next to us sat a group of particularly raucous Gen X Brits on a stag party weekend. I was intrigued by this lively bunch and joined them immediately. In a matter of minutes, I felt like one of the gang as we hoisted our mugs and broke into song. This is why we travel!
We parted ways with our new friends and proceeded through the market, past St. Peter's Church and back into Marienplatz where Munich Pride was in full swing. Huge crowds were jammed into the square facing a stage on the west end. Flamyngus was on the stage singing and dancing to a pop beat that electrified the crowd. The lyrics were German, but the beat transcended any language barriers.
After the performance, we found a shady spot beneath the famous glockenspiel. We ducked into the nearby U-Bahn to use the restroom and grab some water. Since we had our handy metro day pass, we zipped away toward the English Garden. Or so we thought. A mere three stops later, we got off, crossed the tracks and boarded the correct train heading north.
We had a lovely stroll along Leopoldstrasse and through a quiet neighborhood until we found an entrance along the west side of the English Garden. Almost immediately we found a river with lots of folks in various states of undress. I was happy to join them! Sun worn from the heat of the day, the chilly flowing water felt great on my skin. Thanks to watching hours of Rick Steve’s videos, I was wearing a pair or quick-dry shorts that can double as a swimsuit. After splashing about for a while, we dried off, gathered our things and ventured deeper into the park in search of the famous Chinese Tower Biergarten. We enjoyed a dinner of some delicious potato au gratin dish with a sausage and pretzel and of course, eine mass of lager.
After our train snafu on the way to the English Garden, I was looking for redemption, and found it as we changed trains at Odeonplatz heading to the central train station. We followed the signs to the correct exit and Melissa was amazed when we climbed the stairs and were standing right at the entrance of out hotel. Redemption arc, complete!
We relaxed in our room, did some journaling, and rested our feet until it was time to go downstairs and meet our tour group. Seventeen guests. Two Kevins. One guide. We covered the itinerary in greater detail and our guide, Anja, had some great suggestions for downtime. After our introductory meeting, we took a walk around the Old Town and went to Augustiner Stammhaus for dinner. We were treated to a delicious meal of mushroom soup, roasted half chicken with potato and cucumber salad, and strudel for dessert. So good!
After dinner, we were left to our own devices, so Melissa and I walked a little deeper into Old Town where there was a bustle of activity. There was a great R&B funk band playing covers by James Brown, Earth Wind and Fire, and Bruno Mars. After we walked some more, we headed back to our room. We broke out the laptop and watched the 1949 film The Third Man, starring Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, and Orson Wells. This was crucial research for an upcoming part of the trip, but more on that later.