Moseying Around Munich

Kyle and I rolled into Munich Thursday afternoon, and are heading out Monday mornin – enjoying the holiday weekend exploring the city and resting our legs. But as usual, we’re not too good at resting and started off the weekend by going on a bike tour around the city (only 5 miles though!). Our tour guide Scott took us around old Munich, stopping every couple blocks to explain the history and architecture with a strong New York accent and some good jokes.

We were shown centuries old buildings once belonging to the royal family, a gorgeous church that took 105 years to build, and a number of old Nazi owned buildings that have been repurposed into museums and memorials.

The tour even included lunch at a Biergarten. We of course did not miss this opportunity to get a picture with our giant beers.

Scott made sure to include a fun surprise in the educational tour: canal surfing! Within the English Gardens park lies a man made canal whose currents were strengthened in order to clear out the algae prior to the Munich Olympics. Sometime in 1969, some brave soul decided to surf the little wake, and the practice has lived on ever since. A line of men and women in wetsuits all gave their best shot on the solitary wave.

After our bike tour, we met up with a fellow cyclist who had just completed a run from Istanbul to Munich. We got some comically large beers in Olympic park and had a great time chatting… and having him assure us we won’t freeze going over the Alps.

On Saturday, we took a train over to the Dachau Memorial Center. The lovely spring weather was quite a contrast to the sobering experience of walking around the camp. We didn’t get any pictures, but it was an amazing memorial site and museum. Definitely a must see if you’re visiting Munich.

We celebrated Easter by attempting to actually rest and not walk 10 miles around the city. Despite the holiday, the Biergartens were still open. We spent today drinking some Radlers, snacking on pretzels, and playing 20 questions with each other in the sunshine.

Tomorrow morning, we’ll take off on our way to Venice.

Happy Easter!