A Day in Munich

9-5-08

Following my running ridiculousness, we went on a walking tour of Munich with a brilliant tour guide named Travis. Very knowledgeable, personable, and an entrancing story telling.  He's part of a tour company called Sandman's New Europe.

If you ever find yourself in a European city where they run tours, do yourself a favor and learn something from them.

The city is surprisingly easy to walk and possesses an old world charm. I've learned that about 70% of it is actually a reconstruction of the city before it was devastated in World War II. One can only imagine what this place must have looked like before the Allied Forces bombed it to hell. We visited one cathedral that is actually centuries old without being reconstructed, as the Allies were ordered not to destroy it, since it's twin towers were used as a bombing maker. 

That little tid bit of knowledge is just a sliver of the knowledge I've gained about this great city, mostly thanks to Travis. His stories gave life to historic pieces of Munich that we would have missed or taken for granted such as the devils footprint in the cathedral. And he gave us trivial facts that we never would have known, such as the pope's beer of choice. He taught us about maypoles, Mary's statue in Marienplatz, beer gardens, the Hofbrauhaus, and probably more that I will recall as I galavant around Munich. The point being, while Munich is the beer capitol of the world and I am consuming my fair share of the delicious beverage, there is much more to this Bavarian city.