June 13 - Arrival in Munich

The flight arrived in Munich this morning nearly half an hour early and all went smoothly at passport control, baggage claim and (practially non-existent) customs.  I had planned to go the easy (but expensive) route and take a taxi from the airport to the hotel rather than juggling luggage on the train, but just before we had to shut down electronic devices on the plane, I was reading about the Lufthansa bus that goes from the airport to the main train station downtown for 10.50 Euros.  I figured all I had to do was get my luggage to the bus stop and from there the driver would stow it under the bus.  It turned out to be a great plan, because at the train station, the bus pulls up right next to the taxi stand, so I could just hop in and get a taxi to the hotel, which was only 11.50 Euros--much better than the projected 80 Euro taxi fare from the airport!  And I had a very personable driver who was amazed that I understood the eco-engine in the Mercedes taxi.

Once in the hotel I went to the check-in desk where, for the first time, things weren't looking so good.  They could find my name in the computer.  Fortunately our chorus director/travel coordinator Patsy Meiser happened to walk by at the very moment.  The desk clerk turned us over to the very capable concierge, whose first question was whether I would like something to drink.  Patsy said they had great coffee drinks, and next thing I knew, a cappuccino was sitting in front of me.  The concierge finally sorted things out--my room was under last name AtkinsonHunt since Dee and I were going to be roommates (first name DeloresLinda) so then it was just a matter of waiting 45 minutes or so for the room to be ready (after all), it was only 10:30 in the morning, well before check-in time.  I had barely settled into a comfortable chair in the hotel lobby/lounge area when the concierge and three front desk clerks walked over and sang Happy Birthday to me--I guess after noticing my birthdate on the hotel registration information form--what fun!

After unpacking in my room, I decided that I needed to be out and about, especially since it was a sunny day, to stay awake and get past the jet lag, so I went out to the Marienplatz, the main plaza with the City Hall.  I had lunch at a cafe right across from the Neue Rathaus' famous Glockenspiel, the requisite German platter of Rostbratwurst (small grilled sausages), sauerkraut, and a brez (pretzel).  After lunch I just strolled.  I went into the courtyard of the Rathaus and around to the other side of the building with a delightful park area, Marienhof.  On one side of that square was a venerable deli that used to be called on by the King, the Alois Dallmayr delicatessin, so I had to walk through and see the multiple rooms housing beautiful displays of meats, cheeses and produce, and prepared dishes.  There was also a cookie room, a candy room, a room of coffees and teas, one for preserves, and much more.

Back outside, I decide to see some of the many churches so I visited Frauenkirche, St. Michaels, St. Peters, and Spirito Sancto.  

Frauenkirche interior

St. Michael's interiro

St. Michael's with the two onion domes of the Frauenkirche popping up from behind

While sitting in Frauenkirche, the organ started up and choir began singing--it was the start of Rosenkranz (thought he was a Shakesperean character).  And as luck would have it, various services were going on in each of the other churches, so random visting was not an option.  Which meant I couldn't walk in far enough to turn around and see the church organs high up at the backs of the churches--one of my favorite things to check out in a church.  After St. Michaels, I decided to enjoy an aperitif, so I had a glass of prosecco at an outdoor cafe near the church.  There were lots of street musicians out and about playing all sorts of music.  In addition to the usual solo instrumentalists, there were jazz and classical ensembles with various string and other instruments.  One even had a grand piano.

After about five hours of checking out all the neighboring streets, including watching the Glockenspiel in action at 5:00 pm, I decided to take the subway back to the hotel.  

Upon reaching my stop, I decided to try the second of the two exits out of the subway station, the one that went away from the hotel, so I could surface in a different part of the neighborhood and see what was nearby.  There were several outdoor cafes, including one Italian restaurant that featured authentic pizzas.  That sounded like a great birthday dinner to me, so I had one, along with a glass of Nero d'Avola wine. Not wanting to occupy a table for four, I opted to sit at one end of a long table for eight that already had a few people sitting at the other end.  Before long, I was joined by a woman visiting her daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter who had decided that the flat had become a bit too small, so she escaped for dinner.  Then a couple of people from the Netherlands filled in the two remaining seats and we had a great time.  As a birthday treat, I decide I would have dessert and chose the tortelino di cioccoloto.  I didn't realize it would come warm--it was a petite chocolate cake filled with a wonderful warm chocolate filling.  Not large or sickeningly sweet or smothered with ice cream or whipped cream, just a dusting of powdered sugar, it was perfetto!

From there I headed back to the hotel and, lo and behold, right in with the string of shops next to our hotel was a restaurant called the Kirr Royal.  

My Belgian colleague in Italy always says that a Kir Royal is a good way to celebrate a birthday, so I stuck my head in and asked if the served them, and they did.  So I took a seat on the terrace, and when the bartender brought it out, I explained my colleague's philosophy.  The bartender said that since it was my birthday, he had a surprise for me.  Next thing I knew, he was back with a sword and a bottle of champagne, and he proceded to help me open the bottle of champagne with the sword by running it up the side of the bottle toward the cork.  The top popped right off with very little force--amazing--and I have the cork, still in the glass bottle top.  So I must say that I will never forget this birthday!

Back in the hotel, many of the tour people who had also arrived early were in the lobby and insisted on buying me another glass of wine.  So despite having little sleep on the flight the previous night, I stayed up quite late, much later than I expected, catching up with everyone's news.  Dee, Marge (Edwards) and Sandy, everyone says hi!

I've brought my Fitbit, a sort of pedometer plus, along on the trip, and today I logged 14059 steps, more than 5.5 miles.  So I think I earned my little chocolate cake treat!