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Wide awake by 5:00 a.m., thanks in part to continuing jet lag AND the nonstop revelers in the street below my hotel room all night. I guess it's to be expected during the world's largest keg party!
I was at the breakfast buffet early and I ATE, even though I'm usually just a morning coffee drinker. I even stashed some hard rolls and little tubs of Nutella and margarine in my day pack for later consumption. I'd been living on the last of my energy bars I'd brought from the states, and I didn't know when I'd eat again, so I made the most of breakfast! I'm not a big fan of meat and potatoes, so most German food just didn't appeal to me, plus I just didn't feel like dealing with all the crowds at every establishment. I never ate anything outside of the hotel breakfast buffet except my energy bars, so I have no restaurant recommendations or dining experiences in Munich at all - sorry!
After breakfast I decided to visit a little church I'd read about called the Asam. As I walked down to the Sendlingerstrasse I had to pick my way through piles of garbage and broken glass, all remnants of Oktoberfest street parties. Yick. The Sendlingerstrasse was lovely though, lined with fuschia filled flower tubs and cute shops. The Sendlinger Tor gateway was built in 1318, although only the hexagonal towers are left of the original structure. I found the Asam and just peeked in, as it was Sunday morning and people were praying inside. It was astonishing! So much ornate beauty in such a small interior space. The nuns were lighting candles at the altar, and I can still see it in my mind's eye. Very special.
A few more photos, then I walked back to the hotel, through completely deserted streets, and checked out. I walked to the Hauptbahnhof for the final time, thankful that my suitcase had convertible back straps. The filth in the street and on the sidewalks was indescribable and there was no way I was going to pull my suitcase through it. I found my train platform and sat down to write in my travel journal until the train arrived. The trip to Salzburg was pretty uneventful, except that I could tell when we crossed the border from Germany into Austria. The houses and buildings alongside the rail tracks went from graffiti-scarred to flower-covered almost instantly -- kind of surprising.
I could see Old Town Salzburg as we pulled into the train station, so I knew I had a fair hike in front of me. It was about a 20 minute walk, not bad at all. I did notice, however, that I seemed to be the only train passenger who was walking to Old Town (?) I found an ATM along the way and successfully withdrew some local currency for the first time since I'd arrived. I felt very relieved to discover that my ATM card was working after all. I kept getting "pin number error" messages at all the ATMs in Munich, so I'd been relying on the DMs I'd brought from home, plus my credit cards. Let me just say that Salzburg is gorgeous, and also one heck of a touristy place. The Old Town area is relatively small, and the tour bus groups are relatively large, so you can imagine the crowds which are packed into the narrow streets and squares every day. I stumbled upon a cute little street carnival at the Residenzplatz, strolled up and down the lovely Getreidegasse, marveling at the iron shop signs, but I never did find an open TI.
I finally gave up on the Salzburg Card idea and just decided to visit Mozart's House. It was a small flat with white-washed walls and creaky wooden floor boards. The Mozarts lived there until Wolfgang and his sister were too old to share the same bedroom any longer; they then moved into a much larger rented place on the Marketplatz. The ticket price included a tour of both residences, and I particulary enjoyed viewing some of Mozart's original instruments, including the violin, viola, harpischord and piano. Mozart was famous in his own day, and the residences also contained all kinds of portraits, pen and ink drawings, silhouettes, locks of hair, snuffboxes, etc...all gifts from admiring fans.
Well, all that walking made me hungry, so I decided to visit another Rick Steves recommendation, the Augustiner Brau. (I didn't take any photos there, but this link will take you to the page of some other travelers who did). This cavernous beer hall and garden is actually housed within a monastery, and the beer is brewed by the resident monks. It was a short walk from Old Town, and after proceeding through several seemingly endless hallways within the enclosure, I finally came upon dining area. Wow!
The entry hall was lined with various food booths -- meat, deli, bread, candy, and so on. I pointed to a couple of deli salads that looked good, paid for them and continued on. A sharp right turn at the end of hall brought me to the beer area, which opened into the enormous and bustling seating area and outdoor garden. Once again, I just observed for a while, then copied what others were doing. One wall was lined with various sizes of stone mugs, the opposite side of the room featured wooden kegs of beer and a serving counter, and in the middle of it all was a large fountain with water running continuously from four spigots. The procedure seemed to be to choose your mug, rinse and empty it several times from the fountain, then push your way to the counter to be served by one of two "tap meisters." No queueing in Germany and Austria, it's either push or be pushed, so you have to elbow your way in for service just about everywhere! Hey, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
The best part of the return walk to Old Town was the view of the fortress and town from one of the river bridges. It was little gray and damp that day, but the view was still beautiful. I did a little more window shopping and strolling in Old Town before returning to the Hotel Elefant and calling it a day.
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