Munich!

Sorry this is so late in coming. I was in Munich on Friday, and now it's Monday. I know four days is a bit much, but I needed this post to be good. That's a good excuse, right?

I've only just noticed this sign. They're at every train stop, but they still make me laugh. The best caption my 17-year-old mind will allow me to invent is "FAILURE."

Departure from the Nuremberg Hauptbahnhof...

...and arrival at the one in Munich.

Munich is a great looking city.

I don't even know what this building is. 

Part of the medieval Stadttor, the wall that defended Munich from invaders.

The church in Munich, the Frauenkirche. I was extremely disappointed that the entire west tower is undergoing renovations and is covered up to the onion dome in tarpaulin and scaffolding. The east tower still looks nice.

The other famous building, the Marienplatz Rathaus.

Every day at noon, a team uses manual cranks to make these figures dance while bells ring.

When Marienplatz was built, it was agreed that nothing would ever be built on it. Then the city was invaded and sacked -- but the invaders didn't destroy anything; they only looted. As a way of thanks, this monument was built in Marienplatz, though it violated the unwritten rule. Nothing else has ever been built on the square.

From atop the east tower of the Frauenkirche, the whole city is visible, and more. The mountains you see in the background are the Alps.

Of course, the city's nice to look at, too.

More of Munich from above.

The Rathaus is quite vast.

The only skyscraper visible from the tower.

The bright yellow walls of this church set it apart from the many others around.

There's a nice fountain in front of the church.

The odd church from  before, this time from the ground.

This building holds a large collection of statues of famous people. The Nazis, in their early days, used to hold rallies here, and were the subject of a very successful police raid. This wasn't the raid that prompted Mein Kampf, but it was yet another instance where Hitler was fired upon by police and left unscathed.

The lovely garden outside the history museum, currently running an exhibit on Ancient Egypt. The "real" city hall (i.e., the one where city government is actually seated) is visible above the trees.

Part of the aforementioned history museum.

This building houses actual government functions in Munich, rather than the Rathaus on Marienplatz. In Nuremberg, by contrast, there's only ever been one city hall.

There's a nice little canal that runs by the rear entrance.

A view of the canal running through the garden from before.

Just a random building. I was surprized to find one in Greco-Roman style, rather than Gothic.

The entrance to the art museum.

The "real" river running through Munich. This is on the outskirts of the Englischer Garten, which rivals Fairmount and Hyde Parks as the most expansive city park in the world.

This is called Friedens Engel, a monument commemorating 25 years of peace following a war with France in 1870-71.

Friedens Engel is flanked by two classical sculptures. I wasn't in the right position to photograph the one on the left side.

This restaurant is located in the middle of the Englischer Garten. The name means "Chinese Tower".

This is the namesake, a replica of a building in London that is itself a replica of a building in Beijing. There was a band playing stereotypical German music on the second floor.

This commemorative dome in the center of the park was the site of a major Hippie protest in the 60's. The park in general was a pretty big location for the Hippes.

Random church.

The view from the dome.

From a distance.

The Englischer Garten really is a beautiful park.

Random fountain.

Another part of the Stadttor.

Another funny old car. Don't know the model, though.

The monument commemorating the Scholl Siblings, a man and a woman who spread pamphlets and flyers revealing the atrocities and true intentions of the NSDAP. They were hanged for their crime. Remember that a society can never be free until and unless the five basic freedoms of expression are guaranteed: freedom of speech, press, protest, petition, and religion. Without these, freedom is only allowed for those in a majority...which isn't freedom.

German Word of the Day / Deutsches Wort des Tages

Flugblat :: Flyer

Die Geschwister Scholl gaben Flugblaetter gegen Hitler aus.

The Scholls gave out flyers against Hitler.