Venturing Out of the Tent

Originally, our plan had been to go back to Fruhlingsfest on Sunday and spend the day at another tent (each tent is a different brewery).  When we woke up Sunday morning, we knew that wasn't happening. Some people hadn't listened to the lessons we learned at Oktoberfest and had a little too much fun :)

Instead, we slept in late and ventured into the city for some fresh air and sight seeing.  Karen's only exposure to Munich at this point was the beer tent, so we wanted to make sure she had a more well-rounded idea of what Munich was like. We headed to Marienplatz, which is always stunning. 

The astronomical clock

We walked around the platz and the surrounding area.  One of my favorite stories about Munich is the one of the Maypole.  Back in the day, every city had a maypole.  People from surrounding villages would steal neighboring village maypoles.  There was a group of men who stole Munich's maypole held it for ransom.  The only way they would return it would be if they could be guaranteed a seat at a round table at Oktoberfest for life.  So, now, there is only one round table in all of Oktoberfest and these men come and enjoy Oktoberfest every year.

The maypole

We ventured into the famous Hofbrauhaus, hoping to find a seat, but had no luck.  

Instead, we grabbed lunch at a restaurant next door.  I wish I had taken a picture of the boys' pork knuckles.  They were so excited about them and they were huge! Karen and I opted for soup, which ended up being a good choice because Mike and Scott really struggled to finish their pork.

After lunch, we wandered around for a bit more and grabbed a drink before heading back to Marienplatz.  The astronomical clock goes off at 5:00pm, so we made sure we were back in time for the big performance.  In reality, it's not that exciting.  I would say, if you are around Marienplatz at five, hang around to watch it, but it's not worth going out of your way to see it. It does last for a good ten minutes though, so if you're a few minutes late, you're not to worry!

After watching the astronomical clock (and all of the tourists standing in the middle of the square staring up at the sky) for a few minutes, we headed back home.  Scott had to catch a flight back to Naples that evening and Mike wanted to watch the Capitols hockey game, so we spent the evening just hanging out at the apartment.  Honestly, I think all of us were tired from our crazy two weeks of travel and much appreciated a calm night in.