A Municher once told Tom that Munich was "Germany's largest town".  That spoke much more to the attitudes of Munichers more than the reality.  The fact was, Munich was one of the largest cities in Germany, one that found itself on the world's stage many times # the 1972 Olympics, the world-reknowned Oktoberfest, the annual Munich Security Conference, hundreds of international conventions.  The hometown football (socer) club Bayern München was one of the world's elite.

On the other hand, because it was tucked in the somewhat remote southeast corner of Bavaria, it seemed to have avoided some of the urbanization that took over the cities along the Rhein.  Our experiences in places like Cologne, Düsseldorf, and Frankfurt showed that there were parts OK to visit, and there were large crumbling chunks of the city to avoid completely.  We had done a lot of Munich and hadn't yet found any really "bad" parts.

In general, Munichers lived a slower pace amidst a year-round festive atmosphere.  After all, Bavaria enjoyed a very active tourism industry that flourished during the Cold War due to the presence of the Alps and the Danube regions.  Bavaria exported lots of cars, beer, porcelain, stoneware, and many crafts.  And now, Munich was diving headfirst into the modern hi-tech business.  Munich was indeed the most prosperous city in what was arguably Germany's most prosperous state.  

Between us, we'd been to Munich five times.  The first trips were for events # the Oktoberfest in 2001 and its Christmas Market two months later.  But later trips allowed us to take in the entire city, especially during a happenin' winter weekend in early 2004.  What we found was that the city was much more than its popular and famous downtown.  

This travelogue has been significantly expanded to six chapters, including this introductory page and two travelogues in the Features of this site.  The Nymphemburg Palace link takes you to that chapter in the King Ludwig's Castles travelogue.  Meanwhile, the travelogue on the Oktoberfest is located in the Features.  Not included in our travels (at least yet) are the Olympia Park and the concentration camps in nearby Dachau.  Click one of the colored regions below to access on the chapters of this travelogue.