Twin City Photos

I have never seen so many beer gardens as I did in Munich a couple of weeks ago (I’ve been traveling quite a bit, hence my lack of visits to your sites). It seems if you walk a few blocks in any direction you’re sure to find one tucked away in some plaza, backstreet, or in the yard of a building complex. Beer gardens originally were places were one could bring the family and food, in a picnic like setting, and buy beer and other beverages to go along with your meal. Nowadays of course they also sell food, traditional meals such as Schnitzel, Haxenbraten, and Hähnchen, all cooked to perfection. If you look closely you’ll see old folks, young folks, kids, and even strollers. The tradition lives on. In about a week I’ll be enjoying a little more of the tradition, and a car that will be able to do easily 220+ kmph, instead of a van that peters out at 185 :)

The Olympia Tower in Munich’s Olympia Park, home of the 1972 Summer Olympics. The total height of this tower is 955 ft, with the observation platform, from which you can see the Alps, being at 623 ft.

For other skywatch photos go here

The picture is self explanatory. The Germans take their environment pretty serious, and this sign is for the ‘Ecology Democratic Party’, one of the many political parties . Personally I wish we had a multi party system over here. Sure there’s the potential for grid lock, but on the other hand it forces parties to form coalitions if they want any of their agenda implemented. Everyone gets some of what they want.

Located just outside of the the Olympic Park, the BMW Headquarters is one of the landmarks of Munich, and was declared historical in 1999. This photo was taken from the Olympic Tower, itself at 950 ft high another landmark.

After nearly a week in Munich, finally got out to take some photos. This one shows the Marienplatz, the center of town, where the Rathaus and its famous Glockenspiel are located. In case you’re wondering how I got that vantage point, it was taken from the tower of the Frauenkirche, one of the tallest churches in the area.

One of the dozen or so nooks lining the entrance into the main section of the Ratskeller. Many of them occupied with small groups ranging from a couple friends to families, having dinner. Quite cozy, or as they say in Germany, gemütlich.