Our first order of business was to return the rental car in Munich. This sounds like a simple task, but no. It was hell. We spent at least an hour circling the train station, each of us running in to speak with various rental company agents, before being sent back out into the world to another location. Sigh. Jess and I never get snippy with each other, but the strain of returning the car had us on edge. Add in the fact that we got lost walking in circles trying to find our hotel, and Munich wasn’t off to a very good start.

But it was all about to turn around. I’ll say this about Munich: what it lacks in rental car common sense, it MORE than makes up for in public transport awesomeness. Every city should have a system like the U-Bahn. It was so easy for us to get everywhere. The stations were all connected at multiple points, maps were clearly labeled, entrances marked. Public transport nirvana!!!

Munich is weird y’all

Our first stop of the day was downtown to see the Marienplatz and the alte rathaus (old town hall). I loved this area. Most famous for the glockenspiel that faces the square, the alte rathaus had tons of beautiful gothic detail. We ended up taking 1001 pictures from every conceivable angle and in every available light, and watched the glockenspiel do its thing a few times.

Alte Rathaus – setting sun

Alte Rathaus – at night

Alte Rathaus – morning light

We scored some cheese, meat, fruit and bread at the Viktualienmarkt, and ate al fresco in the Marienhof park. It was pretty much my favorite lunch of the trip.

Our fabulous lunch in Marienhof Park

Potpourri goodies at the Viktualienmarkt!

Fresh produce for sale!

After lunch we window shopped a bit before concluding our time in Munich with a trip to the Residenz – the city’s treasury and museums. It was pretty awesome, and I’m a huge sucker for sparkly things, so needless to say, I was happy.

Blinded by sparkly love

Why yes Prince of Germany, I will marry you and wear the crown jewels!

A great hall in the Munich Residenz

For our last meal in Germany, I ordered a beer (which I half-heartedly drank) because we were in Munich and that’s what you’re supposed to do. I like beer, but I wasn’t feeling it. We walked back to our hotel (we found it with minimal fuss this time around) and packed up our stuff for our early morning flight home.

No post about Munich would be complete without the Glockenspiel pic

I can say with certainty that Jess and I will be visiting Germany and Austria again. I felt at home there, the food was great, the people friendly, and the sights staggering. Plus, we still need to get ourselves to Neuschwanstein…