Life lesson of the day: a blow-dryer with the correct outlet converter works wonders for bridging international relations. I successfully brought Austria, Switzerland and America together this morning. :)
I feel like in terms of being a tourist, today was an epic success. I had wandered around the city yesterday, but was able to learn more about the context of the places I visited during a hop-on, hop-off tour I went on. The tour began in the heart of the city where we saw some of the main squares of Munich such as Odeonsplatz, Karlsplatz and Marienplatz, where there are walking streets, outdoor vendors and very nice stores to shop at. We also got to see some of the major museums in the area, the residence of royalty, and some of the main churches in the city.
The tour continued on the outskirts of town at the Palace of Nymphenburg, the summer residence of German royalty. Rather than do a tour of the inside, I wandered the grounds of the royal garden which was huge, but amazing mainly because there were swans hanging out in the water areas. Twas a lovely day for a walk in the palace gardens.
My next stop was BMW World (a showcase, distribution and production center) and the neighboring BMW Museum. I am not really a car person, but this place was amazing nonetheless. You can tell that the brand is dedicated to innovation and design not only through their cars, but also through some of the programs they support and the artists’ projects they had featured in the showroom. All the cars were displayed beautifully, the interior of the buildings had clean lines and the architecture was breathtaking. In fact, this place gets more visitors than any other tourist destination in the country!
If you buy a custom made car, they pay for a plane ticket for you to come pick it up at this location and give you a whole presentation for your special day. Although I must say that when a guy on a motorcycle came ripping through the showroom and proceeded to pull wheelies and go up and down several sets of stairs, I started to think the whole thing was a little over the top. I guess you have to get your money’s worth? Too bad I could never spend that much money on something that depreciates about 30% the minute you drive it off the lot…always the overly practical accountant. But at least they let anyone inside to gawk at the beauty of the cars. When you put one of your cars with a Steinway piano, my heart might melt a little bit.
At the end of the day, the Mini Cooper is much more my thing. I LOVED this nearby ad.
The site of the 1972 Olympics games in Berlin was my next stop. Here, I ate bratwurst (I thought it was only appropriate) and climbed a hill in the park to get amazing views of the city and the Olympic stadium, which is supposed to look like a mountain range. I always wondered what cities did with their Olympic venues after the games are over, but as I learned from the tour, Munich has actually made much more money off their main stadium than they put into it because it is used for all kinds of events. In addition (fun fact!) the subway system in Munich was started because they won the bid for the Olympic games and then the city continued expanding after. So I guess hosting the Olympics can be great in many ways!
Before the sun set, I hurried to see the Walking Man statue, walk around the artist district and take a quick spin around the English Garden, the largest park in Munich. I have to say that I absolutely loved the little café near the entrance of the park that used enclosed ski lift chairs as places to enjoy a drink. Germany, be more stereotypical with your love of skiing.
