That’s a Wrap – Munich, Germany

Sorry for the absence in the past month. I’ve been busy – had friends visiting from the States, and passed my Portuguese A1 exam.

Now that I’m back. First, I would like to wrap up the Bavarian/Salzburg trip from last autumn, which is long overdue. Then I will write about my spring week in London, visiting friends and seeing a couple of shows on the West End. Then a dinner at the ONLY Michelin-starred Japanese/Portuguese restaurant in Portugal, and recipes of course.

My last day in Munich, I started late, packed and checked out of my hotel before heading to lunch at a Italian deli called Trinacria Feinkost der Sizilianer. The pasta alla genovese was delish that I ended up ordering their other pasta dish – lasagna with pumpkin, smoked cheese and chestnut – as take-away. I figured I would be hungry when I got home in Lisbon.

After lunch I hopped on the S-Banh and headed to the Residenz.

The former royal palace of the Wittelsbach monarchs has 130 rooms on display.

My favourites are the Ancestral Gallery

The Grotto Room

And the Antiquarium

The Antiquarium was built between 1568 and 1571 to house the collection of antique sculptures (hence the name Antiqu-arium). It is the oldest room in the Munich Residenz. With a length of 66-meters, it is also the largest Renaissance hall north of the Alps.

The rest of the rooms in the palace museum were all lavishly decorated, especially the Rich Rooms, which includes the Audience Room where the Elector received his guest standing beneath a red velvet canopy; the Green Gallery where festive gatherings were held with members of the court; and the State Bedroom with a sumptuous bed “only for display, not the comforts of relaxation”

With friendly staff and a well curated audio guide, the Residenz Musuem is one of the best palace-turned-museums I’ve visited in Europe. Be prepared to spend 2-3 hours inside, particularly if you are interested in history and decoratove art.

Several yards away from the Residenz Musuem, is the Cuvilliés Theatre – named after its French architect François Cuvilliés.

The original building which hosted the first performances of Mozart’s Idomeneo in 1781, was destroyed on 18 March 1944. Only painted wood carvings and tile fittings survived and were restored in the new building near Apothecary Court in 1958.

This concludes my October trip to Bavaria and Salzburg.

All the posts related to the trip can be found here:

Munich

Bavarian Alps

Salzburg

Hallstatt

Munich is a beautiful city brimming with art, culture and history. Its proximity to the Bavarian Alps makes it a convenient hub for hiking and mountain excursions. Even though the weather wasn’t perfect during my visit in Salzburg, the town has enough to offer regardless of the weather. And it’s a perfect gateway to other mountain towns like Hallstatt and Berchtesgaden, which I did not get to visit this time around. More so the reason to go back!

Coming up next: London – St. James Park & Soho/Chinatown