The flight into Munich was smooth and easy. Getting to the center of Munich from the airport? Even easier. Just a 40 minute ride on the Deutsche Bahn, right from the terminal. You have to love public transportation in Europe.
Makes you wonder how the U.S. managed to screw up public transportation so badly just about everywhere – especially to airports.
Outside the Hautbahnhof train station at 9:00 p.m., the streets were pretty quiet. We easily found the Hotel Monaco a few minute walk down Schillerhasse, a narrow street lined with hotels, and surprisingly quiet.
We were greeted warmly at reception, dropped off our luggage, and immediately headed off to find something to eat. Brega (did I spell this right?) at the front desk, recommended the Bohne and Malz (no guarantee on the spelling, here, either), a short walk away. We had just come in from Dublin, and after a splurge on food of the fish-n-chips variety, we weren’t sure we were ready for a traditional Bavarian menu yet.
But a nice surprise awaited us. The Bohne and Malz had a great menu and an even better atmosphere. I recommend the tilapia with “zesty” stir-fried vegetables, and a glass of the Austrian wine that the menu described as “velvety” and truly was velvety. David (my traveling companion), who was feeling more Bavarian than I, went straight for the weinerschnitzel, which he described as “delicious,” particularly with the wheat beer. A beer he describes a “lighter and more flavorful” than the beer we had Dublin.
An after-dinner walk down the nearby pedestrian zone was pretty quiet, save for the group of young men loudly singing German songs as the walked down the street holding their giant beer mugs that must have been the gallon size. We weren’t ready for the beer hall yet, but do they give away those gigantic mugs for free? Or do you bring your own?
Got a good night sleep at the Hotel. My room has large windows but faces the back so its nice and quiet. The best night sleep I’ve had so far on our trip.
I like Munich already.
Dave Fribush
Tags: Add new tag, munich, night, trainstation