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| Munich. |
Germany Facts & Information
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| Location
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Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and
the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of
Denmark |
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| Climate
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Temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters
and summers; occasional warm foehn wind |
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| Terrain
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Lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian
Alps in south |
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| Population
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82,398,326 |
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| Nationality
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German |
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| Ethnic groups
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German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made
up largely of Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish,
Spanish) |
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| Religions
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Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25% |
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| Languages
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German |
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| Government Type
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Federal republic |
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| Capital
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Berlin |
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Currency
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Euro |
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| Description of Flag
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The German flag has three equal horizontal
stripes of black, red, and gold. |
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| Germany Flag
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More Information
 www.travel.state.gov
www.cia.gov
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Munich Culture
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On the 30th of April in 1945,
American troops marched into a town that had been nearly 70%
destroyed. As part of the reconstruction program, a special
effort was made to preserve the historical areas. Residents
apparently did little looking back with any regrets and instead
went ahead to build modern Munich.
People here are often welcoming. While German is, of course,
the main language used in Munich, English is
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widely spoken and taught in schools. Most restaurants in the town
center offer English menus, many with quite interesting translations.
It is easy to get by with little or no German language knowledge.
The city is regarded as very safe. Because of its friendliness,
Munich is sometimes called either “The world metropolis with
a heart” or “the village of a million people.”
Like Berlin, Munich has everything you'd expect in a cosmopolitan
capital. Yet it's small enough to be digestible in one visit, with
much of it walkable. But it has the added bonus of a storybook setting,
with the mountains and Alpine lakes just an hour's drive away.
As attested by its many festivals and beer gardens, the residents
of Munich like to have fun. The city has more than 100 beer gardens,
the largest of which, the Hirschgarten, accommodates more than 8,000
people under sprawling chesnut trees. But surveys show that residents
are among the hardest-working in the entire country. The city is
also known as an intellectual center because it is the seat of Germany’s
largest university, with 100,000 students.
In recent years, the city has acquired an international reputation
but it still manages to retain some provincial flavoring. Native
Munich residents often seem to find ways to ignore the hustle and
bustle around them to take continuing pride in their long-standing
Bavarian customs and traditions. If you don’t believe it,
take note of some of their painstaking care in creating perfect
costumes for their various festivals.
More Information:
www.state.gov
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Munich Shopping
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One of the largest department
stores in town is Kaufhof, which sells everything from men and
women’s clothing to house wares. The store is in the pedestrian-only
side of Marienplatz, which has many of the more interesting
stores in Munich. Munich’s biggest book store is also
in Marienplatz. Hugendubel carries a lot of English-language
titles. It’s a bookstore, café and library. One
of the finest places for old and new handicrafts and folk art
is Wallach at |
Residenzstrasse. One of Germany’s oldest and most historic
art galleries, dating back to the 1840s, is Bayerischer Kunstgewerbe-Verein.
Works by more than 400 artists are on display. Some of the best-dressed
local women regularly shop at Maendler, which is divided into a series
of boutiques that feature clothing by Jil Sander and Joop. Shoppers
find everything from formal wear to what might be termed experimental.
The Hammerle offers only limited edition jewelry with all pieces made
in-house by Bavarian craftspeople. Germany’s oldest miniature
pewter foundry, dating from 1796, is visited by many tourists in December
to buy traditional Christmas decorations similar to what used to be
sold to Maximilian I, the king of Bavaria. Munchner Poupenstuben und
Zinnfiguren Kabinette has some figures made from 150-year-old molds
that are collector’s items.
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| Munich Restaurants |
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Read reviews for some of the best
restaurants in Munich. You'll find the perfect restaurant for your
vacation here. Choose a restaurant by cuisine type or visitor rating. |
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Munich Travel Guides
Frommer's Munich
Lonely Planet Munich
Let's Go Munich
Fodors Munich
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