German Cities and Regions

There are two types of charms. The one, which is enacted on the stage, fascinates through its apparent inexplicability. Legerdemains like sawing a woman in half are a somewhat elaborate illusion, which however lose their magic effect as soon as they are explained. The charm of Munich is of the other type: it is simply there. It is not based on any production, any screenplay and cannot be explained fully. “Munich glowed” (München leuchtete) wrote Thomas Mann in the year 1902 in the first sentence of his novel Gladius Dei.

In the year 2008, the city actually glowed, even a little more brightly than usual. Munich is decked up. One polishes where it has become somewhat dull due to the passage of time, and attends to its needs till it shines. But then there is indeed something to celebrate: Munich has become 850 years old this year. Dreibrückenfest Drei-Brücken-Fest ( Three Bridges Festival), Altstadtringfest (Old Town Ring Road Festival) – celebration after celebration during the summer, and much has been thought about it, remembered, discussed and many prices have been awarded. Undisturbed by this hustle and bustle, the city is as charming as ever. Some of its magic ingredients can be actually discovered by close observation.

Another world in the middle of the city: The Englische Garten (The English Garden)

It is quiet on this October day in the northern part of the Englische Garten on the bank of Isar. A soft breeze carries golden yellow autumn leaves through the air; an angler wearing gumboots stands in the stream that flows along peacefully. Suddenly, a neighing. Three horses emerge from the woods; the horsewomen hold the reins loosely in the hand. It splashes as they cross the hip-deep Isar, in the background you see the sun setting in glowing colours. One forgets quickly that one is in a city.

The Englische Garten is spread over four square kilometres, which means it is larger than the Central Park in New York and the Hyde Park in London. Since it stretches over a large part of the city from north to south, it is only a few minutes to the park for many residents of Munich. A person, who strolls around carefreely amongst the streams, wooded areas and luscious meadows, may inadvertently stumble across one of the many highlights: for example, the beer garden at the Chinese tower, where in summer the residents and tourists have snacks side by side and drink a Maß (one litre) of beer, while the brass band plays “Ein Prosit“(Cheers) in the 25 meter high tower. Like any other beer garden of the city, it is occupied till the last bench in the morning by people who wish to catch the first spring sunshine of the year.

Enjoy with all your senses

The Haus der Kunst (House of Art) is at the southernmost end of the English Garden. It is just one amongst the many renowned museums of the city, besides the old and the new Pinakothek (art museum), the German museum and the Jewish museum that was opened recently. Also, the theatres are well-known even outside the city. Such plenitude of culture can make one hungry.

The little girl has put a raspberry over each finger. While she stretches her hand giggling towards the people who are passing by, the eyes of the mother wander to the fish stall a couple of meters away: Fresh carps, trout, whitefish and pike placed in ice, wait there for their buyers. The Viktualienmarkt (victuals market) in the heart of Munich, only a couple of streets away from the city hall, is really a gourmet market. Over 100 small businesses offer variety of bread, fruits, fish, meat, flowers or juices. All the five senses get pampered while shopping, after all you have the freshest specialities handpicked before you. Therefore, the Viktualienmarkt, also called affectionately the “gute Stube von München” (the parlour of Munich), is always well frequented in spite of high prices.

The security, the cleanliness and the beauty

And then there are several other things, which are really self-evident, but do not attract the attention of the inhabitants of Munich anymore. Barbara Pilat is an incomer from Poland, who has been studying in the city for five years. What is so special about Munich? “The October festival, the football and naturally the wonderful environment: Whether I desire to go to a lake or to the mountain, everything is close by“, she says. “Moreover, it is safe here: I am not scared to go home alone at night. Although I have been living here for some time, the cleanliness and the beauty of the city and its architecture always stands out in my eyes. “

Most people think of the security, the cleanliness and the beauty at first. “Munich is actually so perfect that it is already boring“, said the Italian football player Luca Toni, playing for FC Bayern München, recently in an interview. Perhaps – paradoxically – that is the only downer. Hence Munich is bourgeois for many. One can dance in a museum building in the famous discotheque P1, but what about those, who want the environment to be less chic and glittering? Who looks for an overflowing and inspiring life in run-down quarters and for honky-tonk entertainment as it can be found, for example, in Berlin, might feel disappointed. Munich has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Germany – and the highest rentals. A person who does not have a job might not be able to stay for long in the city.

Therefore, one might get the impression that Munich is a bit complacent with regards to its blamelessness. But perhaps this problem describes the situation of the city at best. A situation, which only few large cities face, and many of them envy Munich.

With 1.3 million inhabitants, Munich is the third largest city in Germany. The capital city of Bavaria has one of the highest per capita income and the lowest unemployment rate in the whole of Germany. The city is famous not just for the October festival. The universities, the renowned museums, and the impressive architecture are as much a part of Munich as the beer, the Hofbräuhaus (beer hall) and the two football teams, FC Bayern München and 1860 München.