I realize I’ve never actually mentioned where I live. And since autumn is in full swing, now’s a perfect time to take a look at everyday, non-touristy Munich.
This past Saturday, I biked around the city a bit, made a supermarket run to survive Sunday, and visited my favorite tea shop to restock. What still amazes me about Munich even after few years living here is the amount of greenery. And mind you, I didn’t even go out of my way to visit any parks — I was just riding my bike toward the city center. It’s about 10 km from where I live to Sendlinger Tor station, and the first part of the route looks like this:
Munich Transport
As I mentioned, I mostly use my bike — the city is flat, distances are short, and the weather’s usually good. My commute to work takes less than 20 minutes (5 km) by bike, whereas public transport takes about 40 minutes with two transfers.
And that’s actually a distinctive feature of German (or European) public transport in general: the network is extensive, but multiple transfers are very common. Whether you’re traveling between cities or just getting across town, a bus–subway–tram combo is totally normal.
Besides the usual transport options, there are also various bike and e-scooter rentals. Take a look at the e-scooter photo — notice the license plate. Yep, in Germany even these little “toys” are classified as official vehicles that must be registered (with plates), insured, and so on. Luckily, no license is required. The same plates can be seen on Segways — and probably would be required for unicycles or hoverboards, but those simply don’t exist here.
Downtown Munich
And here I am in the Old Town. Munich sits on the Isar River, and when the weather’s nice (as it was this day), the riverbanks are full of people. Some swim, some grill, others have picnics on the grass. And many just stroll along the main pedestrian street — Munich’s equivalent of Moscow’s Arbat or “Pokrovka” in Nizhny. That’s where I was headed too, to restock on tea at my favorite shop.
On the way back I stumbled upon a small flea market mixed with fair-style amusements. You could grab a bite, have a beer, and buy all sorts of odds and ends — baking molds, dishes, pots, bedding, toys, and more. What caught my eye were some old-school meat grinders — exactly like the ones my grandma used to have. The classic Soviet hand-cranked metal ones, simple as a hammer. But the price? 15 to 21 euros! I haven’t bought one recently, but I’d imagine you could get one for 500 rubles back home, tops.
At the edge of the extended Old Town, I was seen off by the Münchner Kindl — the “Munich Child,” the city’s symbol, also featured on the coat of arms. Stay tuned =)
