Downtown-Southern District, Munich, Germany (A)

The Viktualienmarkt began as a farmer’s market in 1807 by the formal decree of King Maximilian I. The area was cleared of previously standing buildings expressly for the purpose of building this market. The market has grown in both size and stature over the years and the area on which it’s located has been expanded several times. The Viktualienmarkt is now the largest market in Munich, a place to find both exotic and traditional foods of all variations.

The Munich Stadtmuseum is an interesting place to visit even if you don’t want to go inside and look around. The buildings that now house the museum were built in 1888, and one of them was used as the city’s armory and the other was a horse stall. If you are interested in visiting the museum exhibits, the museum is open every day except Monday from 10am to 6pm. Inside you will find an assortment of permanent exhibits ranging from Munich’s intriguing cultural history from the very beginning to present and information on Munich’s role in the Nazi movement, to music, puppet, photography and film exhibits. Temporary exhibits also come and go throughout the year.

The Asamkirche is a beautifully ornate church, both inside and out, that has quite an interesting story of how it came to be. In the early 1700s there were two brothers with the last name of Asam. One was an architect and stucco-worker and the other an architect and painter. Together they built the Asamkirche as a dedication to St. John Nepomuk; the building’s decorated front describes some of the positive things he did throughout his life. The Asam brothers paid for this church out of their own pocket and, therefore, wanted to keep it private and closed to the public. The public, however, did not like this very much and they were eventually forced to open it up to the masses. The inside of the church is as impressive as the outside. It’s open from 9am-5pm daily and I highly suggest taking a peek!

In the 12th century a small wall was built around the city of Munich. But, Munich quickly outgrew this area and in the years between 1285 and 1347 a second wall was built farther out. And, of course, when you build a wall you need to build entrances! Four gates were built into the wall and Sendlinger Tor was the gate on the southern side. When originally built in 1318, this gate had three arches, rather than just the one you see today; in 1906 the arches were altered, presumably so that cars could pass underneath. The pedestrian arches in the two towers on either side of the gate were added in as well.

Building of the St. Anna Damenstiftskirche, which translated into English means, “woman’s collegiate church” began in 1732 by Karl Albrecht, who is more commonly known by the title Emperor Charles VII. However, much of the original church architecture was destroyed during World War II and what you see today is a rebuild from the 1950s. It is definitely worth taking at least a quick peek inside of this church. When you look up at the ceiling you’ll see it is in black and white, which is quite unusual for a church. This is because the people who rebuilt the church only had access to black and white photos of the original. They didn’t want to risking painting in the wrong shades, so they just used black and white.

The towering Michaelskirche, or Michael’s church, was erected between 1579 and 1597 by William V, Duke of Bavaria. He was intent on having this church in its present location and at its present size, even if it meant tearing down 87 pre-existing houses that were in its way. As far as the church’s size goes, William would be happy to know that even to this day Michaelskirche is the largest Renaissance church north of the Alps. The front of the church is decorated with many impressive statues including some of Duke William himself and earlier rulers from the Wittelsbach dynasty. And, if you haven’t gotten enough of this family from the building’s façade, you can go inside and see a few of their tombs, William V included.

At Sendlinger Tor you got a glimpse of the old city’s southernmost gate. Well, here at Karlsplatz you can see Karlstor, or Karl’s Gate, which was the city wall’s westernmost gate. Before the Karlsplatz square was erected a pub stood in its location. The pub was called Beim Stachus. In 1797 the square received its official name of Karlsplatz, named after the much disliked Karl Theodor, but to this day most of the locals refer to it as Stachus.

And, if you’re hungry, on one side of the Karl’s Gate is the most visited McDonald’s in all of Europe! But if you’re interested in trying something new I would suggest getting a bite to eat at one of the many “Döner” restaurants scattered around. At these hole-in-the-wall spots you can get deliciously fresh Turkish pitas with sharp spices and flavors.

The Old Botanical Garden was designed from 1804-1814 by Frederick Louis Sckell but the Classical entrance gate was created in 1812 by Joseph Emanuel d'Herigoyen. The original function of this garden was to showcase exotic trees, and many are still there today. Of course this garden wasn’t always called the Old Botanical Garden, but in 1914 when a second, newer garden was built the word “old” was attached to this first garden’s name.

In the middle of the Old Botanical Garden is the tranquil Neptune Fountain and on the outskirts is a memorial plaque remembering the first direct electric current that went from Miesbach to Munich in 1882. In the warmer months of the year there is also a peaceful beer garden where you can relax and sip one of Munich’s famous beers, Löwenbräu.