Day 8 – Durbach to München (Munich)

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It was a grey overcast day for our 358 kilometre journey to Munich using the autobahn. According to the GPS system it looked like we would take around three hours however it took about an hour and a half longer. It was an interesting journey as I expected that we would have no speed limit for the entirety of the journey. However, the reality was different in that most of it was at a speed limit ranging from 60 kph to 120kph. Not only that, there long periods where were moving at a snail’s pace either due to road works or to moving from three lanes to two. The countryside was green and undulating which again surprised me as I expected lots of flat land.

Marienplatz

Our hotel was one of a Leonardo chain called NYX and the best way to describe it was that it was very funky. The lift was softly lit with a purple light and the furnishings were all very modern. The room, whilst small, was all that we needed and very comfortable.

We took the U-bahn (subway)into Marienplatz, the centre of the city. It was very busy with people everywhere. The rathaus, town hall, was called the new town hall but in New Zealand it would never be called that as it looked much older. It was very impressive except that the grime of a century or so needs to be removed.

Viktulienmarkt

Nearby, was a food market where, at 3pm, there were people everywhere purchasing amongst other things, 1 litre steins of beer. The food looked quite interesting as well. Quite different to our normal food, although the ubiquitous pizza was everywhere.

We spent the next hour wandering looking at the buildings which are all relatively low rise which is nice. A German friend had recommended visiting a couple of parks - one was the English Garden which included a small river where people surf on a wave. It is artificially created and comes out of a large culvert. It was quite a spectacle.

Surfing München style

Our final stop for the evening was the Hofbrauhaus which is where they brew their own beer and serve very German food. The place is huge, there was even an Oompah Band playing music. We were ushered to a seat and a little later another couple sat with us as there were no other seats. They came from a town in Eastern Germany and told us in halting English that they visited Munich partly because of the friendliness of the people and also to go boating on a lake nearby. They were lovely! The food was ok - a bit heavy for me though.

Afterwards we made our way back to the train, stopping to listen to some young people playing outside it. They were very good and had quite a crowd had gathered around them.