Munich Day Trip - Aying

Most of our previous 'Day Trip' blog posts, like this one to Kufstein, have a destination at least 1-2 hours away from Munich by car.  If you don't need a mountain fix in the Alps, there are options closer to the city that still feel like you're getting away.

One such destination is a walk from Aying -- it's a small town (population 4,500) with a station on the S-Bahn (commuter train).  It takes about 40 miniutes from the Ostbahnhof to get there on the S7 line.  The trains run every 20 minutes in each direction, during normal hours.

 

Aying is most well known for its brewery Ayinger... but that is something to visit after our walk.

After you get "out of town" (which just means walking down the main street -- that's basically all there is) the route will run in a circle, past Göggenhofen to Grosshelfendorf.  The return path goes through Heimatshofen and Graß (Grass) back to Aying.  All of the above are very small, and you walk through these villages in minutes. 

Here is a map (plus ascent/descent chart) I found on a German site:

As you can see in the chart above, there are no mountains here!  The complete circle takes about 2.5 hours to walk, depending on speed and stops of course.  And 9 of the 12 kilometers are on some kind of sidewalk or street ("asphalt"), while the rest simply uses the local farmers' tracks or wide forest path ("weg").

In an early stretch between Aying and Grosshelfendorf, the route goes off-road through light woods, and I caught it at the perfect time for a photo (this was in the Winter, obviously).

The primary destination of this walk is the Marterkapelle (Martyr's Chapel) of St. Emmeram in Kleinhelfendorf, marked on the map above with a cross.  This is what it looks like on approach across the farmer's field: 

As the story goes, the itenerant bishop St. Emmeram was martyred nearby in the year 652.  The Bavarians were "idolaters" at this time and he was trying to convert them, but I guess after 3 years the Duke of Bavaria had heard enough and had him killed.  The chapel has a large scene depicting the event in the middle of the church, almost entirely made of wood (see photos below). 

 

In the center of the display is the martyr's stone, where supposedly the saint died.  Pretty gruesome rendering of the martyrdom:

 

The ceiling shows biblical events and themes too, in the rococo (late Baroque) style.  Note that the original chapel was built in 1640, but was replaced in 1752 with the current structure -- renovations are probably what keep it looking clean, bright, and colorful. 

Kleinhelfendorf also has a larger Church of St. Emmeram, which is where Bayern Munich star and German National Team captain Philipp Lahm chose to get married.  The Miesbach stucco work is supposed to be some of the nicest in Bavaria.  It's fine for a second stop along the route -- the two are quite close (church left, chapel right).

If you don't have the time (or desire) to head into the Alps, something like this countryside walk around Aying is perfect for a relaxing weekend getaway.  Frau A and I will visit the brewery some time too...

Bavarian Single Malt

Frau A and I hosted the German Beer Tournament last year, and are starting to plan the next tournament.  It might be German wines, sausages, or just more bier.

In the mean time we continue to look for new/unique things, so when Frau A saw a German-distilled malt whiskey, we had to try it.

Slyrs is produced in Bavaria, about an hour south of Munich in the start of the Alps.  Its home in Schliersee is not far from Tegernsee -- unsurprisingly, both Slyrs and the most popular malt beverage in this area trumpet the quality of their mountain water.  (Both lakes have essentially drinking-quality water.  Bavaria really has an excellent track record of keeping things clean and healthy.)

Slyrs was launched in 1999.  Its founder was a beer brewer, and it took a few "unsuccessful attempts" before the result was "harmonised".  The data look like typical single malts:  beechwood smoked grain, copper kettle, (American) white oak barrels...but foreshot and feints are not used again (as in Scottish whiskey) but dumped, and the mash is washed only once (vs. multiple times for scotch). 

But how does it taste?

First, the packaging was the essence of German quality and understatement.  This is NOT an economy bottle, however -- check out the prices here.

Personally, I loved the taste.  Slyrs was exceptionally smooth -- maybe the mountain water working its magic?  There was one note in its flavor that was unusual and we couldn't place it.  Not bad, just different.  Frau A likes it too.  It finishes so well, it might be the best "scotch" for non-whiskey drinkers.  (Of course if you prefer strong smokey/mineral/earthy whiskey, this will be too soft.)

We were both surprised and impressed.  This will stay in the liquor cabinet.

Now we're interested in trying their other products, especially the "whiskey liqueur" -  diluted to 30% alcohol, added honey, plus accents of vanilla and caramel.  Sounds perfect for post-skiing relaxation this winter. 

Also, we have moved a Slyrs distillery-tour higher up the to-do list.  Maybe we'll pick up some of their whiskey-infused chocolates or fruit spreads while we're there.

Follow-up:  we also tried Slyrs' "cask strength" whiskey called "Raritas Diaboli".  Whoa - 55.9% alcohol, and it tastes every bit of it.  A little too much alcohol for our preference.  They claim that it has hints of cinnamon, but I couldn't get any subtlety past the alcohol.  We're going to try again with a few drops of water to see if it "relaxes" a bit.

Germans are experts with malt, so it's not too surprising that they're moving on to whiskey.  It's a good start.

Pigeons

I wonder about odd things sometimes.

Such as pigeons. and pigeon babies (squabs).

First, these things are everywhere so they must breed. But why don't we ever see baby or even juvenile pigeons?  

Second, do they have nests? I always just see them hanging out on the roof or ground, but I've noticed one or two who nest in the vines at Sendlinger Tor.  It seemed like unusual pigeon behavior, though it's perfectly normal for almost all other birds.

Thanks to the Discovery Channel, I've now learned that pigeons do nest, but usually they're hidden completely out of sight and that the babies don't leave the nest until they're almost grown (and are not noticeably different than adult pigeons).

Incidentally, pigeon was one of the first words I learned in German. Working in real estate, I quickly learned some of the common words used in construction and repairs. Taubenabwehr or Taubenabwehrsystem are ones that pops up quite often in the urban buildings. Literally translated as pigeon defense (system), this is the description for the nets and spikes you'll see on buildings with ledges and other attractive perches. What's interesting is that they chose a word for defense that implies an all out battle. Abwehr is a military type defense. Though I think most who have fought battles wtih pigeons would agree on the linguistic choice.

More Changes in Munich

We've attended a couple of really fun public events at the Siemens world headquarters.  From watching Germany destroy Argentina in the 2010 World Cup to sledding down the slope last winter, we've had some fun at Wittelsbacherplatz! Annual events include the Hamburg Fish Market and a Christmas market, as well as special events.

Over the next four year, both Siemens and Wittelsbacherplatz will be getting a major makeover.

A jury including the Siemens CEO and Munich's Mayor have awarded the commission to Danish firm HenningLarsen Architects.  Given the significance of the location and Siemens place as a local leader of industry,  this is a project that will receive great scrutiny.

Architecturally speaking, it will be a headquarters comprised of 6 buildings, linked together to foster communication and creating 6 courtyards which will encourage interaction - both among employees and between Siemens and the city. The 3rd pillar of the plan (after Communication and Interaction) is Innovation, which will utilize Siemens innovations (and I'm sure, others') to construct a building that surpasses most current sustainable building standards. In fact, it's targeted to get a LEED Platinum rating - the highest "green building" rating -, which is rather impressive given that it's a refurbishment and not new construction.  If you're not familiar with the LEED Ratings, you can check out info from the US Green Building Council. (Those look a lot like solar panels on the roof...)

Rendering by HenningLarson Architects

According the architects' site,

The top floor is well-suited for public events such as art exhibitions and allows the visitors to enjoy the skyline of the city while exploring the exhibitions. The public access to Siemens’ new headquarters creates a continuous flow of guests and passers-by and signals that corporate architecture of the 21st century should be open and inviting.

They've done a good job of holding public festivals and events in the plaza, so I'm excited to see what will really be open to the public in the building. I'm sure the courtyards will be open and will have a few nice cafes. But we'll have to see how the public events work with the tight security of most headquarters.

Rendering by HenningLarson Architects

We hope they keep this in the plans:

For more pictures and detailed plans, check out the architects' site.

via ArchDaily

Crazy Projects

I have a new project. It's one part excitement over Oktoberfest and one part looking for a creative outlet.

I'm going to make a dirndl. Or at least to try.

After much debate, I settled on a purple dress with dots, and a bright striped fabric for apron and trim. The brighter purple is just for a fun lining, so it shouldn't show. Luckily, the stores here have a big table or two full of trachten fabrics!

We'll see how it goes...I'll definitely take pictures along the way.  

A Little Friday Fun

A couple of videos about the "trials and tribulations" of life on LA's West Side....

First the original

And the response, Revenge of the Black Prius

I admit that sometimes I do miss Central Market, but I do NOT miss trying to find a parking spot.  Trying to navigate central Munich sidewalks with bags of food on a Saturday can be trying, but it's so much better than crowded parking lots at megastores!

Multiculturalism

The subject of multiculturalism has been a major topic of discussion in Europe over the past year, since the leaders of three of the most powerful Western European states stated publicly that state multiculturalism has failed. 

Angela Merkel kicked off the debate last fall when she gave a speech stating that Germany's approach to multiculturalism had completely failed, largely because it had failed to bring about enough integration (in German).  For David Cameron, Britain's efforts have been a failure because they have not stopped extremism.  Nicolas Sarkozy quickly followed suit, declaring that integration has been a failure and that France has been "too concerned about the identity of the person who was arriving and not enough about the identity of the country" to which they came.

There are too many issues wrapped up in here to really discuss it - immigration, unemployment, deficits, religion, the effect of declining working-age population on the welfare state, party politics, and so on.  And this isn't a blog about politics. But it is a blog about our observations while living in Germany, and particulary one where we like to share observations that break stereotypes.

The official policy here, as elaborated by Chancellor Merkel, is that

[Germany is] an integration country, [where] all people of foreign origin are welcome who are prepared to live according to the laws and values of society, or even become German citizens.

By no means are things here perfect - I'm not sure there's one country in the world that has figured out how to deal with these complex and emotional issues adequately.  And the sad truth is that certain groups have it a lot harder than others.  Coming here as an American with a couple of university degrees and a good job afforded me a pretty simple visa process. I realize it isn't always the case.

But one of the things that most surprised me upon moving here was the diversity.  Part of it is because I live in Munich, a decent-sized city and one that attracts many students and young people looking for education and careers.  Still, the variety of restaurants was shocking, as well as the number of ethnic groceries in the area (Asian, Turkish, and African are the most popular). 

As I lived here longer and started to follow the news, I realized that it went deeper than food and readily available Bollywood DVD rentals.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that immigrants and children of immigrants are becoming accepted here in very prominent positions.  And of course it's hard to forget the 2010 World Cup, where half of Germany's team were immigrants or children of immigrants. Its stars came from Poland, Turkey, Brazil, Bosnia, Ghana, and other lands and was a team of which Germans could be proud.

Even in the US - where we pride ourselves on being a melting pot and somewhere than anyone has the possibility to achieve his or her dreams - it's rare to see national-level politicians who are first or second generation American citizens.  Yet in Germany, which has a much shorter history of mass immigration, the last ten years have seen the election of a number of prominent politicians of Turkish and other descent, including Cem Özdemir who co-heads the Green Party. And this year, we saw Dr. Phillip Rösler (adopted from Vietnam as a child) appointed as both Economics Minister and Vice Chancellor.

This week, something even more surprising happened when Deutsche Bank nominated London-based Indian national Anshu Jain as co-CEO to follow Josef Ackermann. Though widely respected as one of the best in the business, he's neither German nor (yet) a fluent German speaker. (I'd imagine he'll be getting the best language training Deutshe Bank's billions can buy!).  In the context of a US or other global investment bank, this wouldn't be too significant, but the CEO of Deutsche Bank traditionally plays a more informal role as advisor to the government and sometimes as a representative of German industry. Therefore, there has been wide speculation worldwide whether or not a deserving but non-German(speaking) candidate could get the nod.  However, after weeks of succession struggles, the board has appointed the man Bild refers to as "Der Cricket-Spieler mit George-Clooney-Charme" to co-head the bank, along with a German counterpart to handle the political and relationships side of things for at least the first few years. )On a random side note, I know he can't write one from that position, but I would LOVE to read his blog as he moves from the London banking world to run a company in Frankfurt!)

I know it has its problems, the same as almost every large country these days, but I have a hard time saying that multiculturalism has completely failed here.  If Germany is a place where you can come and your children could run a top company or hold a Cabinet-level position, something must be working.