Alas, our desire to stay once again at our favorite small hotel, the Admiral, was thwarted by the fact that all their rooms were booked for that week. We needed to find another hotel and using TripAdvisor found their most popular Munich hotel-a small hotel called the Laimer Hof in the suburb of Nymphenburg.
Without the GPS Navigation I could never have found it. Munich is not a city laid out in a grid pattern with straight roads, so is challenging for the driver, with it's twists and turns and of course you have to be aware of the trams that also share many of the streets.
The Laimer Hof
It sits on a quiet leafy street and we found a parking spot there and from now until we left Munich the car would remain there as we walked and took the excellent public transportation if we needed to explore the city. The hotel has only 23 rooms and ours, on the 2nd floor was very small indeed but we would only be using it for sleeping and bathing as the weather was so nice that we didn't spend much time in the room. It was certainly not as good an experience as the Admiral Hotel.
It's family-owned and now 8 years later it is listed as #2 on the TripAdvisor list of best places to stay in Munich which is quite an achievement. What the hotel lacks in terms of comfort and amenities is made up for by the helpful owner and his well-trained happy staff.
After unpacking we spent some time just resting at this little bistro table by the front door, drinking complimentary espresso and trying to adjust to the jet lag and desire to sleep following a 9 hour flight from Chicago. A one hour nap was decided upon just to help us get through what would be a long first day. The only sound in our room on this quiet residential street was the faint sound of blackbirds singing in the trees outside.
Once we were refreshed by sleep it was time to be refreshed by beer, something that Munich is justly known for the World over. Five minutes easy stroll away lay the largest beer garden in the world-the 8,000 seater Hirschgarten. On a sunny afternoon with plenty of shade trees for our comfort we found spaces on a picnic bench at a communal table and were instantly in a Happy Place of laughing and drinking, smiling normal Germanfolk. These people know how to drink beer and have fun without being obnoxious idiots, annoying those around them. We felt comfortable and at home, people watching and enjoying beer which you get yourself at one of the stands.
Once we were refreshed by sleep it was time to be refreshed by beer, something that Munich is justly known for the World over. Five minutes easy stroll away lay the largest beer garden in the world-the 8,000 seater Hirschgarten. On a sunny afternoon with plenty of shade trees for our comfort we found spaces on a picnic bench at a communal table and were instantly in a Happy Place of laughing and drinking, smiling normal Germanfolk. These people know how to drink beer and have fun without being obnoxious idiots, annoying those around them. We felt comfortable and at home, people watching and enjoying beer which you get yourself at one of the stands.
You can spend a few hours here eating and drinking-the food is always simple German fare and always good. We particularly liked the grilled Mackerel on a stick (Stickerlfisch)
Hirsch is the German word for deer and indeed there are many behind a fence where they can't nibble on your pretzel when your head is turned. Beautiful animals, despite their love of the plants in our garden.
The Hirshgarten is open until midnight and sometimes 1 a.m but we left at dusk to take a train-an S Bahn which runs mostly above ground, down into the heart of the city, for dinner at our favorite German restaurant the Spaten Haus, the home of Spaten Beer.
After a substantial meal, enjoyed outdoors on a warm May evening,we joined the hundreds of people who enjoy strolling the pedestrian streets around Marienplatz. Warm evenings fill the tables at the outdoor restaurants and people wash down that simple satisfying German food with the highly famous Munich beer. We are happy to be here once again but the jet lag is taking it's toll so we plan our return to Nymphenburg via the S Bahn. At night though we find the trains are infrequent and after standing on a platform for 30 minutes we give up and return to the street where we find a taxi-the are usually at ranks outside hotels or places like the Opera House.
A 20 minute ride in comfort brings us to the door of the Laimerhof, in the quiet suburban streets and we are soon falling into bed, exhausted and exhilarated by our first day in Europe.
Next morning, our first full day in Munich begins. We have time for a leisurely breakfast in the communal dining room, bathed in sunlight on another beautiful May day. Good coffee and the usual array of cold deli meats and cheeses. Fresh varieties of wholesome bread and honey. Cereals and fruits. Carol gets her hard boiled egg as always and we are fueled for some slow walking.
It's Sunday so the sound of distant church bells anoints the air. Our plan is to visit Nymphenburg Palace which is a short 5 minute stroll through quiet leafy streets.
Being a sunny Sunday we weren't the only tourists visiting
Once at the Palace I turned to look back at the pond.
And then we stepped inside after buying our tickets
Built in 1675 it was the "house" (LOL) where the future King Ludwig II was born. He was the one who rescued Richard Wagner from a life on the run (from his many debts) when he ascended the throne in 1864.
Mind-boggling largesse is the order of the day in these Royal Palaces but personally I'd be more interested in visiting the house of say a restaurant waiter of the period to see what normal folks were living in. Thankfully I was born in an age of electric lights and running water and modern healthcare.
And let me not forget cars and airplanes and the freedom to travel.
The waiter's hovel would probably not be a tourist attraction and wouldn't have enough light for me to photograph in. There's a Palace here a few hundred yards from our hotel, so we might as well look at it. The grounds are beautiful to walk in-that's for sure.
Like many families the Royal family needed 490 acres of green space to wander in.
Carol finds as bench, using her Benchfinder App...
On the grounds, a hundred yards away from the Palace we visited the Hunting Lodge which, after a hard day of hunting deer or whatever, the Princes and guests could spend the night, saving them that last arduous 100 yards slog back to the Palace. It was , as you would expect, simply decorated...
The rustic kitchen area
After a couple of leisurely hours in the Palace and gardens and with the crowds swelling it was time to take our leave of Nymphenburg Palace and make another trip downtown to a beer garden in Englisher Garten for beer and lunch.
So, does one fritter away a day in Munich, just moving at a relaxed pace from one pleasurable experience to another. We may have gone to the Opera that evening-I can't remember. Or we may just have enjoyed the park until it got dark.
Next day, a Monday, we would switch into action mode as we had to meet Ciaran and then drive to Austria....
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