germany trip report
Apr 14th, 2006, 12:50 PM
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germany trip report
the essence of this board is sharing and, as such, it's important to give back what has so freely been given...
i particularly want to thank dax and ingo for their help with dining options even tho i wasn't able (for various reasons) to exercise many of them.
this was our first trip to germany. we've been to southern europe several times and amsterdam twice. i'm not exactly sure why a german trip seemed to intimidate us. perhaps it was the language: we speak (btwn us) all the romance languages but, as it turns out, i spoke enough german to get by. a lot was fear of the weather: late march/early april seemed "iffy" at best.
well, this was supposed to be one of the worst winters in europe for some decades and the weather.com had us seeing upper 30's highs and rain. it turned out to be lower to mid 50's and it rained exactly one evening over the ten day stay.
the basic itinerary was fly into munich...stay 3 days; drive to bamberg...stay 2 days; drive to dresden...stay 2 days; drive to berlin...stay 3 days and fly out of tegel. this wasn't my ideal but rather dictated by hotel openings. we could have easily and happily added a day to dresden (at the expense of berlin...altho i have a schizoid love/hate relation brewing with it).
i'll begin in earnest tomorrow about the actual stay but i can't let the flight details go. we got a great price ($550 per) on delta from savannah, ga to atlanta, on to munich and from berlin, tegel to jfk and thence la guardia to savannah. beware of the transfer from jfk to la guardia...you have to pressure delta to provide transport. they dont have their own shuttle. we had plenty of time, but a short layover would be disasterous without prior planning.
DELTA...i was based in atlanta for several years and have taken literally hundreds of delta flights. for all intents and purposes, atlanta is THEIR airport. you can get in and out faster with them. beyond that, they suck...they treat passengers like true cattle now charging $5 for a mini bottle that costs them .90 cents. the food is atrocious and the entire flight crew looks like the cast from ROCKY HORROR PICTURE FILM. suggestion: buy one drink and refill from your own stash. actually, they neither know nor care.
munich ...tomorrow...
i particularly want to thank dax and ingo for their help with dining options even tho i wasn't able (for various reasons) to exercise many of them.
this was our first trip to germany. we've been to southern europe several times and amsterdam twice. i'm not exactly sure why a german trip seemed to intimidate us. perhaps it was the language: we speak (btwn us) all the romance languages but, as it turns out, i spoke enough german to get by. a lot was fear of the weather: late march/early april seemed "iffy" at best.
well, this was supposed to be one of the worst winters in europe for some decades and the weather.com had us seeing upper 30's highs and rain. it turned out to be lower to mid 50's and it rained exactly one evening over the ten day stay.
the basic itinerary was fly into munich...stay 3 days; drive to bamberg...stay 2 days; drive to dresden...stay 2 days; drive to berlin...stay 3 days and fly out of tegel. this wasn't my ideal but rather dictated by hotel openings. we could have easily and happily added a day to dresden (at the expense of berlin...altho i have a schizoid love/hate relation brewing with it).
i'll begin in earnest tomorrow about the actual stay but i can't let the flight details go. we got a great price ($550 per) on delta from savannah, ga to atlanta, on to munich and from berlin, tegel to jfk and thence la guardia to savannah. beware of the transfer from jfk to la guardia...you have to pressure delta to provide transport. they dont have their own shuttle. we had plenty of time, but a short layover would be disasterous without prior planning.
DELTA...i was based in atlanta for several years and have taken literally hundreds of delta flights. for all intents and purposes, atlanta is THEIR airport. you can get in and out faster with them. beyond that, they suck...they treat passengers like true cattle now charging $5 for a mini bottle that costs them .90 cents. the food is atrocious and the entire flight crew looks like the cast from ROCKY HORROR PICTURE FILM. suggestion: buy one drink and refill from your own stash. actually, they neither know nor care.
munich ...tomorrow...
Apr 14th, 2006, 01:35 PM
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Looking forward to the rest of your trip report ... especially to your Dresden adventures, of course. I am glad to hear you could have easily and happily added a day to your stay in my home town.
Ingo
Ingo
Apr 15th, 2006, 03:32 AM
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we arrived in munich at 9:30 am on a saturday. passport control was quick and efficient and we were on our way to town via the s bahn (metro) in no time. a word about the munich s and u bahn: these are without doubt the cleanest metro cars and stations in the world...no graffiti, no litter.
we had anticipated cold and rain but were rather greeted with sunny skys and mild temperatures. our hotel not being far from the central station we decided to walk it. it was a good choice after a long flight and the air was great.
the tryp meunchen is a fairly typical business class hotel. we normal opt for charm but we got a good rate and were short for time in selecting. the room was spacious and clean and altho the view was somewhat dismal, we don't spend time in the room anyway. the tryp gets some mixed reviews on tripadvisor but i can assure you that it is a more than acceptable choice. some say the neighborhood is somewhat sleazy, but i don't know where they get that. it seemed to be working/middle class to me with a lovely historic church at the head of the street. the u bahn was around the corner and the free sauna was a big plus. we did not take the hotel breakfast (13,50 E extra) preferring to find our own local cafe.
we were early for check in but they held our bags, gave us a map and directions to the u bahn and off we went to marienplatz, the city's central square. emerging from the metro we were greeted by the bluest sky and an absolute riot of color, humanity and quasi-gothic archetecture we'd ever encountered. the weather being so good, it seemed as tho half the city had come together to enjoy it after so much cold and rain. add to this that there was a football match between cologne and munich set for that evening with groups of fans singing, cavorting and teasing their opponents. i hope you can catch the picture and the vibe. it was incredible.
as it turned out we were just on time for the mechanical clock show on the face of the new rathaus. since this only happens three times a day we counted ourselves lucky. basically, there are two niches in the fascade of the building right beneath the clock. slightly after it has struck the hour, the upper grouping of figures begin moving the motif being a king and queen at a festival/tournament. it is replete with courtiers and mounted knights who actually joust. the lower grouping is a bit more pedestrian but fun nonetheless.
after the show we roamed about the inner courtyard of the rathaus, a fantastic neo-gothic contrivance actually commissioned by ludwig II and executed around the late 1890's. we found this out later and while i was initially fooled, the presence of several classic figures from rennaisance art eventually gave it away. we poked our heads into the famous ratskeller and were impressed enough to consider it for dinner one evening.
leaving the main square to the southwest, we browsed around the nearby victualsmarket. we never pass up a central market and this one did not disappoint. a virtual cornucopia of fruits and vegetables stand side by side with butchers and fishmongers. there are stands specialising in cheeses, processed meats from bratwurst to salami and others offering prepared antipasti. prices were well within line and everything was meticulously fresh and clean. we got some great shots which my wife is threatening to combine with other european markets in her breakthru coffee table photo album.
by this time, i'm getting a little foot weary so we decide to find ourselves one of those famous munich beer halls for our first augustinerbrau weissebeir of the trip. we hit a home run on the first pitch. the weisses brauhaus has apparently been around since the late 1700's and is all it's touted to be. we would later sit inside but today with the weather being so mild opt to be outdoors. the clientele is an eclectic mix of locals, some american tourists and several enthusiastic cologne and bayern munich partisans prepping up for the later showdown.
gotta close temporarily. be back later with some observations on german beer and food this having been our first authentic exposure to either...
we had anticipated cold and rain but were rather greeted with sunny skys and mild temperatures. our hotel not being far from the central station we decided to walk it. it was a good choice after a long flight and the air was great.
the tryp meunchen is a fairly typical business class hotel. we normal opt for charm but we got a good rate and were short for time in selecting. the room was spacious and clean and altho the view was somewhat dismal, we don't spend time in the room anyway. the tryp gets some mixed reviews on tripadvisor but i can assure you that it is a more than acceptable choice. some say the neighborhood is somewhat sleazy, but i don't know where they get that. it seemed to be working/middle class to me with a lovely historic church at the head of the street. the u bahn was around the corner and the free sauna was a big plus. we did not take the hotel breakfast (13,50 E extra) preferring to find our own local cafe.
we were early for check in but they held our bags, gave us a map and directions to the u bahn and off we went to marienplatz, the city's central square. emerging from the metro we were greeted by the bluest sky and an absolute riot of color, humanity and quasi-gothic archetecture we'd ever encountered. the weather being so good, it seemed as tho half the city had come together to enjoy it after so much cold and rain. add to this that there was a football match between cologne and munich set for that evening with groups of fans singing, cavorting and teasing their opponents. i hope you can catch the picture and the vibe. it was incredible.
as it turned out we were just on time for the mechanical clock show on the face of the new rathaus. since this only happens three times a day we counted ourselves lucky. basically, there are two niches in the fascade of the building right beneath the clock. slightly after it has struck the hour, the upper grouping of figures begin moving the motif being a king and queen at a festival/tournament. it is replete with courtiers and mounted knights who actually joust. the lower grouping is a bit more pedestrian but fun nonetheless.
after the show we roamed about the inner courtyard of the rathaus, a fantastic neo-gothic contrivance actually commissioned by ludwig II and executed around the late 1890's. we found this out later and while i was initially fooled, the presence of several classic figures from rennaisance art eventually gave it away. we poked our heads into the famous ratskeller and were impressed enough to consider it for dinner one evening.
leaving the main square to the southwest, we browsed around the nearby victualsmarket. we never pass up a central market and this one did not disappoint. a virtual cornucopia of fruits and vegetables stand side by side with butchers and fishmongers. there are stands specialising in cheeses, processed meats from bratwurst to salami and others offering prepared antipasti. prices were well within line and everything was meticulously fresh and clean. we got some great shots which my wife is threatening to combine with other european markets in her breakthru coffee table photo album.
by this time, i'm getting a little foot weary so we decide to find ourselves one of those famous munich beer halls for our first augustinerbrau weissebeir of the trip. we hit a home run on the first pitch. the weisses brauhaus has apparently been around since the late 1700's and is all it's touted to be. we would later sit inside but today with the weather being so mild opt to be outdoors. the clientele is an eclectic mix of locals, some american tourists and several enthusiastic cologne and bayern munich partisans prepping up for the later showdown.
gotta close temporarily. be back later with some observations on german beer and food this having been our first authentic exposure to either...
Apr 15th, 2006, 11:15 AM
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lunch at the weisses brauhaus is our first encounter with REAL german beer and german food. if you think the becks or st. pauli girl (much less lowenbrau) that one finds in the american bar or supermarket is even relatively authentic, you're deluding yourself. even the stuff available in specialty shops probably suffers from overage. the keynote to good hefewiessen is freshness and potency.
we started with two augustinerbraus as they are local to munich. of all the wiesbier we drank on the trip which included paulaner, schneider, hacker pschorr and others, this was our favorite. full bodied with that slight back taste of clove, it is a delight to smell and look at with its cloudy opacity. we paired them with a "light" plate of bratwurst each, my wife having potato salad and me the sauerkraut.
well, that was our first introduction to the german notion of portion size. americans are much maligned for supersized meals. trust me, there is serious competition abroad. the two plates came out with not one but two wursts per, a mound of side dish AND bread. admittedly, we're atypical american eaters but this would have sufficed for supper.
whatever, it was so good we both cleaned our plates. a note about german sauerkraut and mustard: both are sweet not vinegary or hot as is sometimes mischaracterised or sold in american supermarkets. having finished, we split another weisbier and i indulged in a cigar. germany has the largest per capita cigar consumsion in the world and i was able to glean from other patrons where nearby tobacconists were in order to satisfy my habana craving. i was also able to find out who had won the ncaa basketball semi's the night before. all in all a VERY sucessfull lunch!
we decided to meander up the tal which runs behind both the alte and neue rathauses and encountered several restaurants and specialty shops. the FIFA cup is a national obsession which will kick off in munich and elaborate preparations are evident all over the city (and country, for that matter). they have a large info centre just at the head of the street with an amazing geodesic globe representing a soccor ball/earth.
we continued to ramble aimlessly until about 4 pm at which point it occured to me that we had forgotten one of our travel rituals: the 5 or 6 pm coctail in the hotel room. well, we asked in vain for liquor stores finally having to resort to a simple query: "wo schnapps...whiskey"? as in paris, frequenly the best place to buy is in the food court of a major department store.
having overcome this major hurdle, we returned to the hotel, checked in and immediately flopped out. the jet lag was beginning to set in. after a couple of drinks, i set the alarm for 8 pm hoping munich was a late dinner city. we'd passed by the HOFER that afternoon which seemed nice enough and to have a small menu . we weren't looking for much our first night particularly after the lunch.
well, welcome to german portions part II...i ordered a wienerschnitzel and leigh orders a schwienbraten with whatever accompanying veggies (what have you). out come two sides of veal and pig respectively with an astounding array of condiments and side dishes. i mean it was staggering, oliver twist would have returned some of it much less, famously, ask for more.
but the food was excellent and we both troopered thru about 3/4 of it. this was also the only dinner meal with which we drank beer. we later found out that the HOFER is a fodor recommendation and i'll agree to that. but i suggest sitting on the second level rather than the ground entry. it can be a bit drafty. the food is traditional but seemingly well prepared and the service, altho somewhat rushed, is pretty good on the whole: not for the epicure but at 40 E total, a pretty fair establishment.
it's now about 11 pm and the jet lag has MANDATED that we forego the different after supper cafe and cigar. so we return to the tryp looking forward to tomorrow's alte pinotek visit and some well needed sleep...
we started with two augustinerbraus as they are local to munich. of all the wiesbier we drank on the trip which included paulaner, schneider, hacker pschorr and others, this was our favorite. full bodied with that slight back taste of clove, it is a delight to smell and look at with its cloudy opacity. we paired them with a "light" plate of bratwurst each, my wife having potato salad and me the sauerkraut.
well, that was our first introduction to the german notion of portion size. americans are much maligned for supersized meals. trust me, there is serious competition abroad. the two plates came out with not one but two wursts per, a mound of side dish AND bread. admittedly, we're atypical american eaters but this would have sufficed for supper.
whatever, it was so good we both cleaned our plates. a note about german sauerkraut and mustard: both are sweet not vinegary or hot as is sometimes mischaracterised or sold in american supermarkets. having finished, we split another weisbier and i indulged in a cigar. germany has the largest per capita cigar consumsion in the world and i was able to glean from other patrons where nearby tobacconists were in order to satisfy my habana craving. i was also able to find out who had won the ncaa basketball semi's the night before. all in all a VERY sucessfull lunch!
we decided to meander up the tal which runs behind both the alte and neue rathauses and encountered several restaurants and specialty shops. the FIFA cup is a national obsession which will kick off in munich and elaborate preparations are evident all over the city (and country, for that matter). they have a large info centre just at the head of the street with an amazing geodesic globe representing a soccor ball/earth.
we continued to ramble aimlessly until about 4 pm at which point it occured to me that we had forgotten one of our travel rituals: the 5 or 6 pm coctail in the hotel room. well, we asked in vain for liquor stores finally having to resort to a simple query: "wo schnapps...whiskey"? as in paris, frequenly the best place to buy is in the food court of a major department store.
having overcome this major hurdle, we returned to the hotel, checked in and immediately flopped out. the jet lag was beginning to set in. after a couple of drinks, i set the alarm for 8 pm hoping munich was a late dinner city. we'd passed by the HOFER that afternoon which seemed nice enough and to have a small menu . we weren't looking for much our first night particularly after the lunch.
well, welcome to german portions part II...i ordered a wienerschnitzel and leigh orders a schwienbraten with whatever accompanying veggies (what have you). out come two sides of veal and pig respectively with an astounding array of condiments and side dishes. i mean it was staggering, oliver twist would have returned some of it much less, famously, ask for more.
but the food was excellent and we both troopered thru about 3/4 of it. this was also the only dinner meal with which we drank beer. we later found out that the HOFER is a fodor recommendation and i'll agree to that. but i suggest sitting on the second level rather than the ground entry. it can be a bit drafty. the food is traditional but seemingly well prepared and the service, altho somewhat rushed, is pretty good on the whole: not for the epicure but at 40 E total, a pretty fair establishment.
it's now about 11 pm and the jet lag has MANDATED that we forego the different after supper cafe and cigar. so we return to the tryp looking forward to tomorrow's alte pinotek visit and some well needed sleep...
Apr 16th, 2006, 06:48 AM
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i awaken at 7:30 sunday morning feeling pretty refreshed but i know from bitter past experience not to disturb the still sleeping lioness on the other side of the bed. so i study the map and read up on munich and the alte pinotek which is our first stop today.
a note on german hotel beds: in all four hotels we will stay in on this trip the configuation is the same, so i assume it's universal. the beds are essentially platform types with a relatively thin firm matresses.there is a large (double sized) pillow and a down or microfibre comforter...no top sheet. i really liked them as did the lioness who finally started stirring at about 8:15.
we had problems finding an open local cafe probably because of sunday and decided to find something around the central station and then u bahn up to the gallery which opens at 10. we do find an italian place across the street from the station and have a couple of excellent cappucinos and mediocre and overpriced pastries. by the way, there are a LOT of italians in germany generally working in food and beverage.
the alte pinotek is a nicely organised collection spanning the italian pre-rennaisance primitives (whom my wife euphemistically calls the flat green and pink people) thru the 18th century. while not really up to the quality of dresden's pinotek or berlin's gemeldischesgallerie, it is still a uniformly solid collection with a couple of genuine masterpieces including a durer self portrait i've been waiting to see for several decades.
even by passing the primitives for her and most of the 18th cent and reubens for me (european galleries are so overgorged with second rate and atelier reubens as to be off putting), we manage to consume two hours. we consider doing the 19th and early 20th cent. work in the neue pinotek across the street, but the weather is still pretty godd and we opt to u bahn to odeonplatz and filter back down to the main square from there.
standing in the center of the odeonplatz surrounded by neo classical buildings and looking north up the teatrestrasse unmarred by high rises, i have the oddest sensation. i can almost hear carriages clattering over the cobblestones and seem to visualise the people around us in 18th century garb. i swear it was a palpable feeling and that's one of my least favorite historic eras.
we take residenzstrass and pass the the residenz and the teatre buildings and, then move east down the maxmillianstrasse hoping to find one of the restaurants dax had so kindly suggested. we couldn't find it altho he said it was across from the kempinski and passed that. whatever, it gave my wife time to window shop all the upscale stores she has no intention of buying anything in. one way or the other they were all closed as it was sunday.
we turned south walking thru a warren of smaller streets with many specialty shops. passing by the famous hofbrauhaus, i couldn't resist poking my head in to have a look. it's a very interesting group of rooms with a lot of attendent history but i trust others who've suggested it's very touristy and have no interest in oom pah music. instead we decide to pop into a smaller beerhall on a side street for our mid day beer. this place seems strictly for the locals and, while it may not have the history, is certainly charming enough. we watch the barman tap a small fresh keg and pour off what appears to be a really heavy bodied brew. we don't order it. the waitresses are absolutely expert at pouring out weisbeirs. they do it two at a time on a severe angle and always draw the perfect head. this was a fun place. i wish i'd noted the name to pass on.
later afternoon and evening later...
a note on german hotel beds: in all four hotels we will stay in on this trip the configuation is the same, so i assume it's universal. the beds are essentially platform types with a relatively thin firm matresses.there is a large (double sized) pillow and a down or microfibre comforter...no top sheet. i really liked them as did the lioness who finally started stirring at about 8:15.
we had problems finding an open local cafe probably because of sunday and decided to find something around the central station and then u bahn up to the gallery which opens at 10. we do find an italian place across the street from the station and have a couple of excellent cappucinos and mediocre and overpriced pastries. by the way, there are a LOT of italians in germany generally working in food and beverage.
the alte pinotek is a nicely organised collection spanning the italian pre-rennaisance primitives (whom my wife euphemistically calls the flat green and pink people) thru the 18th century. while not really up to the quality of dresden's pinotek or berlin's gemeldischesgallerie, it is still a uniformly solid collection with a couple of genuine masterpieces including a durer self portrait i've been waiting to see for several decades.
even by passing the primitives for her and most of the 18th cent and reubens for me (european galleries are so overgorged with second rate and atelier reubens as to be off putting), we manage to consume two hours. we consider doing the 19th and early 20th cent. work in the neue pinotek across the street, but the weather is still pretty godd and we opt to u bahn to odeonplatz and filter back down to the main square from there.
standing in the center of the odeonplatz surrounded by neo classical buildings and looking north up the teatrestrasse unmarred by high rises, i have the oddest sensation. i can almost hear carriages clattering over the cobblestones and seem to visualise the people around us in 18th century garb. i swear it was a palpable feeling and that's one of my least favorite historic eras.
we take residenzstrass and pass the the residenz and the teatre buildings and, then move east down the maxmillianstrasse hoping to find one of the restaurants dax had so kindly suggested. we couldn't find it altho he said it was across from the kempinski and passed that. whatever, it gave my wife time to window shop all the upscale stores she has no intention of buying anything in. one way or the other they were all closed as it was sunday.
we turned south walking thru a warren of smaller streets with many specialty shops. passing by the famous hofbrauhaus, i couldn't resist poking my head in to have a look. it's a very interesting group of rooms with a lot of attendent history but i trust others who've suggested it's very touristy and have no interest in oom pah music. instead we decide to pop into a smaller beerhall on a side street for our mid day beer. this place seems strictly for the locals and, while it may not have the history, is certainly charming enough. we watch the barman tap a small fresh keg and pour off what appears to be a really heavy bodied brew. we don't order it. the waitresses are absolutely expert at pouring out weisbeirs. they do it two at a time on a severe angle and always draw the perfect head. this was a fun place. i wish i'd noted the name to pass on.
later afternoon and evening later...
Apr 18th, 2006, 11:39 AM
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hello...
i'm sorry i haven't had the time to continue the report. i'll try to resume next weekend...
on the other hand, writing these things does take a considerable amount of time and, frankly, effort. i like to share experiences but if i feel that there is a lack of interest, there is little point...if you catch my drift.
i'll plan on finishing the munich part of the trip but if i don't see any other interest, i'll just morph out into the advice sector.
thanks to all who HAVE commented...
i'm sorry i haven't had the time to continue the report. i'll try to resume next weekend...
on the other hand, writing these things does take a considerable amount of time and, frankly, effort. i like to share experiences but if i feel that there is a lack of interest, there is little point...if you catch my drift.
i'll plan on finishing the munich part of the trip but if i don't see any other interest, i'll just morph out into the advice sector.
thanks to all who HAVE commented...
Apr 18th, 2006, 08:38 PM
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I am still somewhat benused by the fact that my trip reports on my trip to Germany in 2003 did not elicit a single, not ONE, response. I went back and reread them to see what I'd done wrong. However, I was quite pleased with them. At least they reflected our travel style and are still nice for my sister and I to read. Once you write the report after the trip, the details become more sharply etched in your memory.
I find that unless I'm planning to visit a place a trip report comments on, I'm just as likely to pass over it or read it quickly and then pass on.
So, my point is that your report is helpful to me, I'm enjoying it, and I hope you will continue, with the same level of detail and personal style.
I find that unless I'm planning to visit a place a trip report comments on, I'm just as likely to pass over it or read it quickly and then pass on.
So, my point is that your report is helpful to me, I'm enjoying it, and I hope you will continue, with the same level of detail and personal style.
