Bagni di Lucca and Beyond

We arrived in Munich early on a cold, wet Sunday morning on an overnight sleeper from Florence, and I use the term sleeper loosely.  The day started cold and wet and got even colder as it went on.  We were going to fly, but the airlines wanted to charge 900 euro for 2 one way tickets – trying to claw back money lost because of the ash cloud.

There is not much to do very early in the morning so we wandered into the city centre to have a look around.  On the way we spotted a tourist bus that was due to take off at 10.00am so we hovered around until then.

on the way to the city - a park with a curious display

it is a memorial for Michael Jackson

this tall chap was also in the park

 We came upon Le Pain Quotidien, one of a chain of restaurants where you are guaranteed an excellent hot chocolate, good coffee and great breakfast.  I have eaten at Le Pain Quotidien in Paris, New York, London, Rome and Los Angeles so obviously I had to try the Munich branch.  It was freezing, and hot chocolate was the first order.  This was followed by soft boiled eggs with a selection of delicious bread.  There is always plenty of bread left over to try the various chocolate and fruit spreads, and you should always do this.

Le Pain Quotidien - daily bread

breakfast - this is for you Mirella

  We opted for the 2 hour tour to get out of the cold, and we were glad we did.  The city and surrounds are lovely.  There are beautiful gardens everywhere with chestnut trees in blossom and spring flowers in ordered gardens.

The bus took us through the outskirts of the city to the delightfully named Nymphenburg Palace, which is enormous.  The photos give no idea of the size of the garden filled grounds.  The palace was built to celebrate the birth of the baby of Ferdinand Maria and Henriette Adelaide of Savoy .  Obviously this baby, Maximilian II Emanuel,  needed lots of space to crawl around.  The palace has been extended by later inhabitants and today is open to the public, but also continues to be a home and chancery for the head of the house of Wittelsbach.

Nymphenburg Palace

The first floor of the former court stables houses a collection of Nymphenburg porcelain – considered to be some of the finest in the world.

We went past Olympic park and the English Gardens on the way back to the city – something to be investigated on another trip to Munich.

Closer to the city we drove down Maximilianstrasse, a very stylish street, and towards Marienplatz and Karlsplatz where we left the bus and headed back towards the  elegant city centre.  Most things were closed on Sunday, but  we quite liked what we saw and would happily come back to see more.

stylish shopping on Maximilian strasse

a pretty square in the city

this is a home decorating shop for your dog or cat - so needed

I love this cheerful fountain

By chance we found an interesting restaurant called Augustiner Grossgaststatten in Neuhauser Strasse 27.   There was originally a monastery on the site, established in 1294.  There is documentary evidence that beer was brewed there from 1328.  The brewery was eventually moved somewhere else, but beer continued to be brewed on site until 1885.  The present building dates back to 1896/97.  Now it is a busy restaurant, a warm inviting place to be on a miserable day.  There is a particularly good looking beer garden which would be great on a better day.

inside the restaurant

an interesting light fitting

the amazing beer garden - today empty

Jim leaving the restaurant

The wild boar in the Munich square is the same as the one in Florence

the parks are full of spring flowers

Neptune's Park

I think it is Little Red Riding Hood with the Wolf - anyway I thought she was lovely

Despite the weather we enjoyed our day in Munich.