Today was our last full day in Munich. We decided to do the free walking tour of the city. The tour starts at 10:30 am and our meeting point was Mary column in Marienplatz.
Marienplatz is the center of the city surrounded by old city hall, new city hall, and churches. Around 90% of the old city was destroyed by bombing during WWII and was rebuilt again and the design still reflects the gothic architecture.
Glockenspiel in the new city hall is world-famous for its show. It was amazing to see the historical clock chime and the life-size moving figures start their dance, it lasts for 15 mins and was beautiful.
New city hall from the other side. The guide shared the stories and history of the city
Wurmeck also called dragon’s corner located on the corner of New Townhall and represents a legend from the time of the plague.
Old City Hall looks modern as compared to new city hall
Frauenkirche church. The guide told the story of the devil’s footprint.
There was a map of the old city just outside the church.
St. Peter church
Michael Jackson memorial We stopped here during our walking tour, there were cards, letters and flowers from Michael Jackson’s fan at this site.
Odeonsplatz Historical building where Hitler and his followers were arrested.
We walked to the Residenz gardens located next to it. There was a War memorial in the courtyard.
We also stopped by the popular Hofbrauhaus Munchen on our walking tour. We already visited this beer hall the previous day and enjoyed beer and snacks then.
The tour ends at the famous Viktualienmarkt market. There was a small Christmas market here. We had our first gluhwein and sample some local food. All other Christmas markets in Munich were canceled due to higher cases of covid cases at this time.
Our tour guide was engaging, extremely knowledgeable, and fun. We learned a great deal about the specific historical sites and Munich history.
In the afternoon we took metro U3 from Marienplatz and get off at the Olympiazentrum stop.
We went to BMW Welt first. It is a must-see for BMW lovers, with an amazing display of cars and motorcycles.
We walked to Olympiapark, which was built for the 1972 Olympics in Munich. People were running, jogging, and walking their dogs and kids. There was a swimming pool and a walk of stars. A couple of tours like roof climbing, stadium tours, and Olympic tower are offered in the summers.
Beautiful views of the BMW Museum while walking.
We crossed the road to go to the BMW museum, with nice views of the BMW Welt from there.
We took the U3 back to Munich city center and went back to our hotel. We missed the Christmas markets in Munich as they were canceled but still enjoyed our time visiting all other places. We were able to visit many Christmas markets later in our trip so stay tuned.