We vacated our Munich apartment on August 29th, but not before Henry and I fit in a few more strolls in the Englischer Garten and lunch at the Viktualienmarkt. I also visited two more Munich museums and traveled to Garmisch and Freising.
My friend, Marcia, was kind enough to take off a few hours from work to join me on a two-hour walk around the Eibsee (see photos), and alpine lake near Garmisch. Izzy the dog, and Lauren, Marcia's elder daughter, came with us. I was amazed at how calm Marcia and Lauren were, despite their scheduled departure to Boston the following day. Lauren is starting college at Wellesley. With a distance of about 4,000 miles and a six-hour time difference from Garmisch, Marcia and her family have double the communication difficulty as Henry and I had when Brett went off to college in Rhode Island. I've been outdistanced, so no more complaints from me about how far away from us our children are.Circumnavigating the Eibsee was perfect for an easy, no exertion amble. We (including Izzy), got our exercise, Marcia and I got our last dose of catching up with each other (at least for a while), and Lauren got a bit of beautiful weather before her college adventure begins. Having to return to work, Marcia dropped me off in the pedestrian district of Garmisch, and I got a further taste of what makes Garmisch and its environs so special. It didn't matter that I got drenched (oops, no umbrella) in a torrent of rain on my walk, then run, to the train station. (My clothes and hat, which have SPF in the fabric, mercifully dry quickly.)
Aside from the usual painted facades and cobbled streets of a European old town, Garmisch legitimately boasts a beautiful "Kurpark," a green area with lots of flowers, shade trees, an open air performance stage, benches, and Adirondack chairs in which to sink and watch people wander by (see photos). It is fitting that Aspen, Colorado, a Rocky Mountains gem, is a sister city of Garmisch. Thanks again, Marcia, for providing a personal draw to your home town! I'll miss you! When you younger daughter, Stephanie, wants to visit colleges in California, make sure that UCSD is on the list!Freising, close enough to Munich to have a stop on the S-Bahn, is an unheralded little gem. It was just right for a few-hour excursion from Munich.
T
he major points of interest are the Baroque/Rococo cathedral and its gallery of bishops' tombs from the 14th century forward (see photos), and the former monastery's Weihenstephan Brauerei, operating since 1040 and purporting to be the oldest brewery in the world. If my recollection serves me well, the ornateness of the inside of the cathedral rivals the monastery in Einsiedeln, Switzerland (see blog entry "Sun!!!"), but does not come close to surpassing it. 
The location of the former monastery, which now houses the agricultural and brewing departments of the Technical University of Munich, is atop a hill overlooking Freising, suburban Munich, and surrounding countryside (see photo). 
As I neared the top of the hill, I was treated to a series of very attractive gardens (see photo), before settling in for lunch at the Braustuderl. 
Although I was unable to tour the brewery, tasting the decent product was satisfactory enough, especially as an accompaniment to my "traditional" Munchen meal of white wurst (served in broth) with mustard and salted, baked pretzels. After nearly four months in Munich, I never fell in love with wursts, but I felt the farewell feast was a necessity.My two museum visits were to the Glyptothek, Munich's oldest museum, founded in 1830 to house Ludwig I's collection of Roman and Greek sculptures, and the accompanying Staatliche Antikensammlungen (State Collection of Antiquities).
In addition to my predilection for porcelain, I find the painted Greek vases and relief sculpture enchanting (see photos). 
The two museums are across the street from each other, and sit next to Konigsplatz, the sight of Nazi book burning in 1933. It is eerie how an otherwise innocuous looking square (see photo) could have been the sight of such senseless, evil, and barbaric destruction.As I have written before, I will always have a soft spot for the Englischer Garten. Whether intended or not, it is a symbol of peace and tranquility, happiness and optimism, and a statement that people of all races, religions, and cultures can live in harmony with each other.
We fittingly spent our last afternoon in Munich having a wurst and sauerkraut lunch in the touristy, but fun, Viktualienmarkt (see photo) (although it's the city's main open air market, Henry had not yet visited there), 
and strolling through the Englischer Garten (see photos). As I took my last photos of the afternoon, "I'll be back!" (with no apologies to Arnold Schwarzenegger) repeatedly ran through my head. We'll also be back for more dinners at Il Grappolo (see blog entry "Here and There Addendum"), our favorite Schwabing restaurant. The food at this Italian restaurant is far better than anything wurst in and around Munich! It holds a prominent spot in our memory book.Auf wiedersehen (literally, to see again) to Munich and our Schwabing neighborhood! We shall return!
No comments:
Post a Comment