Munich September 2005

I made a trip to Munich in September, to meet up with Korina, and to catch the very last of the superb Bavarian Biergarten Wetter. We tried to keep outdoors as much as was humanly possible, with a number of trips to the various beer gardens, and outdoor restaurants. We also made visits to the usual old haunts, to see if anything had changed since out last visit... which it never does!

Robert & Korina at the Augustiner Biregarten on Arnulfstraße

Maß Attack

Blue Havana

Mama Mia...

The view from the observation area of Peterskirche

I have been to the top of the tower on a number of occasions, and the view is fantastic, though unfortunately on this occasion it was slightly obscured by scaffolding due to some renovations

Munich's oldest church (1180), known locally as Old Peter, has turned over a new leaf, and it's a gold one at that. The white-and-gray interior has been decorated with gilded baroque accents and trompe l'oeil medallions. It contains a series of murals by Johann Baptist Zimmermann, but nothing tops the attraction of the bizarre relic in the second chapel owith the gilt-covered and gem-studded skeleton of St. Mundita. From its resting place on a cushion, it stares at you with two false eyes in its skull. Jewels cover the mouth of its rotten teeth, quite a contrast to the fresh roses usually kept in front of the black-and-silver coffin. The church also has a tall steeple, which we climbed to take these photo's. There are coloured circles on the lower platform to tell you whether the climb is going to be worthwhile, if the circle is white, you can see as far as the Alps if not... turn back!

Robert overlooking the Rathaus

Marienplatz

Just Fountain

Downtown

Hotel Bayerischer hof is certainly one of the very best and most popular hotels for the "Bavarian Jet Set" , popstars, polititians and "Schicki Mickies" and is located a stones throw away from the Rathaus on Promenadeplatz

A day out at Lake Starnberg

Robert & Korina Lakside

The Starnbergersee was one of Europe's first pleasure grounds. Royal coaches were already trundling out from Munich to the lake's wooded shores in the 17th century. In 1663 Elector Ferdinand Maria threw a shipboard party at which 500 guests wined and dined as 100 oarsmen propelled them around the lake. Today, pleasure steamers provide a taste of such luxury for the masses. The lake is still lined with the small baroque palaces of Bavaria's aristocracy, but their owners now share the lakeside with public parks, beaches, and boatyards. The Starnbergersee is one of Bavaria's largest lakes -- 20 km (12 mi) long, 5 km (3 mi) wide, and 406 feet at its deepest point -- so there's plenty of room for swimmers, sailors, and windsurfers. The water is of drinking quality (as with most other Bavarian lakes), a testimony to stringent environmental laws

Frau Brenk

The Starnbergersee is named after its chief resort, Starnberg, the largest town on the lake and the nearest to Munich. Pleasure boats set off from the jetty for trips around the lake. The resort has a tree-lined lakeside promenade and some fine turn-of-the-20th-century villas, some of which are now hotels. There are abundant restaurants, taverns, and chestnut-tree-shaded beer gardens

Ship Ahoy!

Undosa Seerestaurant

...Bavarian

Stadt Starnberg

Starnberg is a small city of about 20,000 people close to Munich. There is also the county of Starnberg which until recent years, was the only German county whose political head came from the Liberal Party

It has good public transport and autobahn connections to Munich, which can be reached in about 40 minutes by train or car. Starnberg stretches over many kilometres because it has several suburbs: Wangen, Percha, Hanfeld, Söcking, Leutstetten and Perchting

Mellow Yellow

Quaint

Starnberg Kirche

Parklife

Living the highlife

On the lake's eastern shore, at the village of Berg, you'll find the King Ludwig II Memorial Chapel. A well-marked path leads through thick woods to the chapel, built near the point in the lake where the drowned king's body was found on June 13, 1886. He had been confined in nearby Berg Castle after the Bavarian government took action against his withdrawal from reality and his bankrupting castle-building fantasies. A cross in the lake marks the point where his body was recovered

The castle of Possenhofen, home of Ludwig's favorite cousin, Sisi, stands on the western shore, practically opposite Berg. Local lore says they used to send affectionate messages across the lake to each other. Sisi married the Austrian emperor Franz Joseph

Robert & Korina taking the highground

Seerestaurant Undosa is a restaurant that is only a short walk from the Starnberg railroad station and boat pier. Most tables command a view of the lake, which provides some of the best fish specials on the international menu. This is the place to try the mild-tasting Renke, a perch-type fish. The Undosa also has jazz evenings and a large café, the Oberdeck, also overlooking the lake

Afloat

One of the reasons Munich is such a desirable place to live is that is has practically everything; mountains nearby for skiing and hiking, beautiful parks and also close proximity to some beautiful lakes.

Starnberg, at the northern end of Lake Starnberg is at the heart of the Five Lakes district and the lake itself is a favourite spot for windsurfers, and boaters alike