Munchen

After a quick recharge to top up batteries, water supplies and do some laundry at Lake Pilsensee, we return to Munich (otherwise known as Munchen), to explore the Old Town. (Checkout Mic though taking in the rays like the locals and can you blame them when the night time temperature gets down to 3 degrees Celsius. Well, not 100% like the locals because he has his clothes on. It’s not a rumor but fact that the Germans hate tan lines).

We decided to ride our bikes into the city centre today as there’s excellent cycling infrastructure across Germany. Within 10 minutes we arrived at the Marienplatz in time to observe the midday reenactments of a ducal wedding with a knights’ tournament and the merry men of Germany performing a Coopers’ Dance signifying the end of the plague. Once the clock chimes midday, for 15 mins the crowd is in awe as they listen and watch the Carillon perform. But don’t worry if you miss the show, all is repeated at 5pm in the Summer which will leave you with plenty of free time to explore the sights and grab some of the German specialties.

With so much to see, we’ve booked ourselves into a Walking Tour. The big attractions being the beer producers and the men in their lederhosen (leather shorts)!! It’s a real mix of sorts on the streets here as there are the Mediterranean style street cafes adjacent to the olde-world beer halls, in amongst the high end trendy department stores and luxury hotels. But the funny thing is that it works and in its own very special way is successful in drawing thousands of international visitors to this thriving city each year.

Other interesting sights included the fashion at Londonderry. The Dirndl is featured in a vogue magazine and is showcased in their front windows. It’s not uncommon from what is visible on the streets for this attire to be apart of a women’s and man’s wardrobe. Mic believes the red aproned attire would just be perfect for me at Xmas. Watch out kids and family you could all be in for a real treat this year.

But in amongst the madness are the Bavarian Surfers! Yes, they ride the waves from dawn to dusk on the man made Eisbach river, in the heart of Munchen. Thankfully they can swim as the current is so strong here they nearly get washed out to sea. Slight exaggeration but the eddies are like our rips back home.

Oh, and just so the parents don’t have all the fun getting dressed up in the traditional Bavarian costumes they have the authentic range for the children as well. The tailoring and overall quality is just gorgeous.