Munich - Part 2

let's continue exploring other fun parts of munich!

apart from rome and paris, munich is the only other city that i think its justified to do a 3 nights or more!

there are just so many activities to do/places of interests to go here.

despite our aching joints, we still woke up bright and (not) cheery by 7+am since the sun shines bright by 6+am....

days are definitely longer in the summer though the temperature is still hovering too low for us.. *brr*

left: we stayed around Sendlinger Tor which is a nice shopping street  ard 10-15mins walk from the city centre

right: breakfast time! @ a cafe near our hotel

one of the attractions: Rococo churh - Asamkirche which is just a stone throw from our hotel

i've seen many gothic/renaissance churches but rococo is a new one for me - ooh for the grandeur

tada,we have reached the viktualienmarkt - which is essentially a market for local produce

mostly vegs + fruits at atrocious prices

@ St peter's church - a tad too "new" and polished for me but its the first time yz sees a much bigger church other than his kindy church. he said he preferred his school one for this is too big. LOL

at the city square

Finally, its time for lunch break. today, we are heading to a centuries old brewery - Hofbrauhaus located in the heart of the city square.
though most guides touted it as overly commercial and teeming with tourists, still many recommended it for a feel of typical german brewery atmosphere.

the whole beer hall can accomodate up to 1000+ guests!

so over here, you find yourself a table to sit, grab the attention of the many waiters/esses around and just dished out your orders!

food were served pretty soon in decent portions and quite nice (though nothing out of the ordinary).



after lunch, shopping time! finally some action for me. :P

we went maximilianstrasse which was retail heaven to me! :)

finally, its time to go to the last attraction in munich.....

left: the deutsches museum!

right: in the maritime section - real -life ship/boat models!

at the aviator section

"lego" set in olden days. lol.

the museum still have other interesting sections like astronomy, transport, paper, natural sciences etc.

most are too boring for me LOL.

but yz was most happy in their kids kingdom where he can learn and play at the same time!

im a hamster!

left: playimg with big lego blocks!

right: on board a fire engine

we revisited the italian restaurant again for the yummilicious pizza + lagsana this time round.

i guess we are still geared more towards italian than german meaty fare for food.

yum yum

Neuschwanstein - swan castle

today, we did a day tour to the "disneyland" castle - neuschwanstein castle!
the castle was actually nearer to Fussen town which is still a good almost 2hours train ride from Munich.
oh well, we need to do the mandatory travelling to and fro for the castle like most day tourists..

 

hubbi posing in front of typical bread/pastries store in central train stations

 left: waiting in the freezing cold for our tour guide to appear

right: on local train to Fussen!

 left: did a quick lunch at one of the eateries at bottom of hill (yes, we have distance to go/climb before reaching the castle...)

right: yz doing his classic dance with the ticket in hand

Hohenschwangau castle in the background - the castle that king ludwig was staying in when the constuction of neuschwanstein wass on-going

 we opted to take the horse carriage which took us 2/3 distance up the hill. im so glad for that for the remaining 1/3 distance up to the castle PLUS the remaining climb up to the mary's bridge (more about this below) PLUS the walk all the way down is no JOKE!

If you look closer, you will realise that the horses are actually bigger-built and more muscular than normal horses.
but its not really surprising given the number of passengers they have to pull up/down hill on a daily basis!
i did felt a little bad sitting in the carriage while they huffed and puffed their way up, not unlike when i sat on those donkeys to make my way up the cliff at santorini...
BUT, im really glad for even with the ride, my knees and calves ached like shit the next day from the walking/climbing for the rest of the day trip. @_@

they dropped us off at the lookout point which offers a good vantage point for taking shots with the castle:

 

left: we were near the clouds!

right: we can see what's below us through the bridge..

left: see, we are high up here

right: that is the mary's bridge - name after ludwig's mum - and yes we will make our way slowly up there to take the famous postcard shot of the castle.... zzzz

we were allowed to take photos outside the castle but not inside.
the guide throught the castle was pretty interesting though i think the view from the castle is definitely more spectacular than the interior designs - though king ludwig did have alot of interesting wall paintings done in most of the rooms.

left: the tower from the entrance

right: mummy and boy

left: yz posing as mediaval knight

right: we had done the interor tour, yay!

after the castle tour, it's time to make the slow, torturous ascend up the hill to the mary's bridge...

the cold mountain air helped a little as i gulped in the cool air into my burning lungs...

 can you see the Hohenschwangau castle which i took earlier on. we are THIS high up by now! zzzz

 

the mary's bridge. and there is absolutely nothing below those wooden planks...

so scaredy cat me didnt dare to walk the full stretch but only to the middle of it to take photos. wahaha.

the mandatory shot of the castle from the bridge

it was well past dinner time by the time our train rolled back to central station.

its a good thing that our hotel is only a stop from central station and we managed to find an authentic italian restaurant just opposite our hotel.

the owner and chef were italians ala the touchy kind. LOL.

but, their food was fast and delicious.

love the thin pizza crust which they prepared, threw into the big stove and done in a jiffy!

 

left: the pizza and spaghetti bolognesewere good!

right: the tiramisu aint strong enough in the liquor department but a good thing for yz i guess.

and that calls it a day for our castle day trip and what a tiring and fun day it has been!

we shall do the rest of munich tomorrow.....