It was such an amazing city in such short amount of time. The two days I spent in Munich were perhaps my favourite in my ten day whirlwind european tour.

The evening train from Stuttgart to Munich was a short two hour trip that took me from a quaint sleepy to town to a bustling city. I stayed at the Hotel Monaco near the Munich Hbpf, which was perfect because of its central location, friendly staff, amazing breakfast and clean rooms.

As an architectural junkie I savored over the museums from the historical Alta Pinakothek to the contemporary Brandhorst Museum since they are all about a block from each other. You can take the train to the museums but its such a short walk from the central station, that its worthwhile to brave the weather and soak up as much of the city as possible. From the museums, I took the train to the Allianz Arena and caught a local soccer match. For a few euros you can experience the crazy energy from the soccer fans, drink good beer and watch the game in an amazing stadium. During larger matches, the Arena’s exterior glows blue or red, which is a great sight to see at night. A few trains stops away is the BMW Welt (BMW showroom) which is connected to the museum by the skybridge. The Welt is free and for two euros, the museum which showcases the BMW artists series is a pretty good deal as well. What is great about the BMW is that its also connected to Frei Otto’s Olympic Park from the 70s. The amazing tensile structure is in great shape and such a wonder to see. If you climb to the top of the ridge you can watch the sunset and scan the entire park, don’t forget to check out the mini cooper that is floating in the middle of the lake too. Locals are really nice, so when I asked a couple where I could taste authentic Bavarian food, they mentioned Donsil’s in Karlsplatz. It was amazing food that I washed down with a few liters of cold dark beer. The vibe was great and I even got free entertainment since I sat next to a table that started singing in German every time someone left the room. After that I met up with some friends and meandered to a local bar and found ourselves enjoying another round of beer at a local beer house. Even though it was an action packed trip, it still felt really calm and mellow. I’ll definitely visit Munich again!

-Francis I.