After leaving the palace, we dropped off our car at the train station and only had a short walk to the Hotel Monaco.  We were warmly greeted by Rita and were promptly settled in our room, with a map of the city and some general directions.  I must say what comfy beds we had and plenty of space in our room.

We set off and  walked through the old town, enjoying the throngs of people, street entertainers and a very happy atmosphere.  Spent an hour or so sipping on a wine, drinking a beer and watching the world go by.

The next day was spent sightseeing in the old town, going up for a view of the city, touring the Residenze and generally enjoying ourselves.  Munich has a wonderful festive atmosphere and is a nice place to be.

Thanks to Hotel Monaco for helping to make our stay so pleasant.

Here is our addition for you blog.  Thanks again for all your assistance.

Cheers,
Sue Gowlett

Even with luggage for two months in Europe (thank heavens it all rolls), it was a very easy connection. After checking in, the friendly lady at the hotel desk helped us find something to see in the evening; we like classical music, so we decided on the opera at Gaertnerplatz.

We took the U-Bahn (subway, about $1.50) two stations, then walked a block to the theater. It is situated on a square with several cafes, so we were able to find buy tickets (about $20) at the box office and have a light supper (about $25 for two) before the opera began at 7. We ate at the local branch of Le Pain Quotidien (the Belgian chain that has several branches in NYC), and it was perfect.

The opera was finished at 9:45, and we hopped back on the U-Bahn to the main station, and walked back to the hotel. So, for an evening for two with transportation, supper and opera we paid around $70 – that’s cheap by NY standards. What a difference the exchange rate makes!
Ed

Everything was very clean and the hotel staff were exceptionally helpful.  We received many recommendations for places to eat (breakfast, lunch, and dinners) and all were brilliant!  The staff were even nice enough to phone ahead and get us reservations when needed and they offered us umbrellas when it was raining outside.

Although we did not take part in the breakfast every morning, it smelled lovely and we will definitely try it on our way out to out early flight tomorrow.  The location is also worth noting.  It is literally a 5 minute walk from the Haufbaunhof and it was perfect to walk to the Munich center.  We really didn’t need to even buy tickets for the tram/subway as it was conveniently located to everything Munich had to offer.  The only negative comment I have is we wished there was at least one television station in English, but traveling to Germany, I guess that is more of a wish than a necessity.

I truly can not say enough about the friendliness of the hotel staff and how much they were able to help us during our short stay.  I would highly recommend this hotel to any of our friends or family that might be traveling to Munich.  Thank you so much for a great stay!

Kind Regards,
James Gray
Room #501

The size of the camp is staggering. As you go through the tour, there are only a couple of barracks still standing, but you can clearly so the rows of prisoner housing that once existed. It understandably leaves one with an eery feeling. Just walking through the gate to the camp leaves a pit in your stomach, as you’ve likelz seen images and photographs of prisoners entering through the very same gate- many to never leave the camp. The number of people interned at the camp is staggering; not to mention the tens of thousands of people that died there.

The memorials that have been erected in recent years are a touching tribute to the different groups (religions) of people that suffered, perished, and survived there. The museum on the grounds is also nice. Though with the guided tour, there wasn’t much time to take it all in. There is a short video to watch as well, toward the end of the tour. It was an experience I won’t soon forget…and I hope that I never do.

Our Munich accommodation at the Hotel Monaco was very nice.

Hotel Monaco (Italian for Munich) more than lives up to the excellent feedback it has attracted on the internet.  Breakfast to see you well into the day, and cherubs everywhere – staff included!

It is a shame that the Third Reich walking tour and the Neue Pinakothek art gallery don’t lend themselves to cycling!  Still, aching legs are a good excuse for sitting down to some more beer, sausages, sauerkraut and, of course, mustard!

Good things don’t last forever.  Early start tomorrow for Croatia.  To Zagreb and Split by train, then 56 km pedalling down the Dalmation coast to Baska Voda.  Hope the beer there is as good!

Andy and Sue Black, Bristol, UK

I made my way to the Information Section in front of the train station and bought a map for future reference and then made my way to the Hotel Monaco where I was to stay for the next two and a half days. The hotel is only about three blocks from the train station and that is certainly a convenience for any weary traveler. The hotel is clean and very basic but when one is traveling you don’t need  lot of facy things since the idea of traveling is to get out of your hotel and see the sights. The staff were very friendly and quite helpful, especially when it came to information about the city and how to get around.

Saturday I took a bus tour around the city and that is something I would highly recommend, especially if it is your fiirst time to a new city. Munich is the third largest city in Germany and the bus tour can be booked at the Information Place next to the train station. The bus trip took me to the outlyiing areas and then back again where I had to take a second bus, actually part of the same tour, for the inner parts of the city. This particular trip allowed me to get on and off the bus at different sights so it was quite convenient. The tour guide gave information about the city in both German and English and that was a big help.

For my trip I got off at the Nymphenburg Palace which is very beautiful. The grounds are expansive and well manicured. It reminded me of Versailles in France. After getting back on the bus and finishing my tour I spent the rest of the day in the middle or older part of the city doing some site seeing, visiting churches, going to Mass in the afternoon and then catching some authentic German food for dinner. All in all a very satisfying day and to tell the truth, I was very tired from all the walking I had done.

Sunday I went to the Deutches Museum, by way of the S-Bahn, which is a museum dedicated to science and technology. This was another long day of walking but the museum was quite impressive. It is not was extensive as the Smithsonian ( but what is) but never- the- less I was very, very  impressed and would highly recommend it if a person is interested in the technological advances of the last 500 years or so. There is an extensive underground representation of a coal and a salt mine which is quite the site. The other parts of the museum that I was impressed with were the aviation section, the section bridges, manufacturing machinery, the full scale model of a WW I submarine, plus many other exhibits too numerous to mention. The ship models are works of art in themselves.

Although I had an S Bahn ticket to get back to my hotel I decided to walk back and see what things I could see. I was able to stop in at another stunningly beautiful chruch and went by the new Synagoague that was built after WW II. I couldn’t go in the Synagague because it was closed but I was able to take photographs of it.

My plan for Monday is to see the Residenz, which was the family palace of the Wittelsbachs who had ruled this area of Bavaria for around 700 years (as noted in Rick Steve’s book on Germany), maybe go back to the book store by the Synagogue, take more pictures of the city and then head back to Ansbach.
All in all a very busy two and a half days.

There was still so much that I did not see and maybe I might be fortunate enough to get back to Munich (Munchen) some time in the future. The inner part of the city is easy to get around. The people I had met were friendly and helpful especially when I needed help getting around town (as when I required assistnce with the S-Bahn when I went to the Deutsches Museum) and of course the food was good and, well, its Munich so the beer is exceptional!

Glenn Bailey, Ph.D.
Hotel Monaco, room 606

After so many wonderful sights— the variety of museums, the different churches and palaces, the interesting vistas— a night walk along this same pedestrian area provides views of historic buildings beautifully illuminated, live classical music, and groups of happy people brings much joy in being part of this vibrant and exciting city.
Jane Dieckmann