Friday Photo Favorite: Feed Me!!

Not so little Greylag goslings in the English Garden, Munich. 

English Garden - on the Kleinhesseloher See

We take a lot of walks in the English Garden, but when friends came to visit recently we tried something new.
After walking by it many times, we finally rented a boat and went onto the Kleinhesseloher See (Lake).

Our prior post here has a Google map, but for reference the boathouse lies just north (left) of the Seehaus.
The biergarden to the right of the Seehaus is big -- perhaps a football field long with seats for 2500 people!

Moving left to right in the photo above:  kids in front of the Seehaus ready to launch radio-controlled boats... 

...in the middle, people enjoying the sunshine with a mass of beer, and swan/ducks hoping for handouts...

...and on the far right, picnic tables with the Sckell Säule (pillar) in the background.

The Sckell Säule is a monument to one of the lake's designers/creators, Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell.
Skell was the second designer, and expanded the lake to its current size of 86,000 square meters. 

Some people didn't even bother with finding a table at the biergarten and just found a place on the grass:

We took a paddleboat.  I sat in back - no pedaling!  Here we are going around one of the lake's three islands:

Our boat was square but could hold 6 people.  Others chose paddleboats that look like small motorboats...

...or chose a rowboat to get an upper body workout too (well, possibly just relax like these three):

Of course the fastest things on the lake were the waterfowl:

The "motorboat" styled paddleboats have a cover that can be raised and lowered:

These kids couldn't decided if they wanted the cover up or down, but definitely wanted to dip their feet in!

This girl had the same idea - sit on the side and splash around.

We headed back to shore after a half hour, then passed the Chinese Tower on the way back for a photo:

It was a great day.  Thanks L and M for visiting!  (and thanks for doing the pedaling for me)

Lobster Cocktails, Italian Style

Since we had an extra tail left from Herr J's lobster cocktails, we decided to experiment with a little more Italian flavor and have a picnic in the English Garten.  (This is what I've been wanting to do all summer but have always been foiled by the weather.)

We brought some serrano ham, manchego cheese, and the rest of the wine. And of course, the football. Herr J is teaching me to throw a good spiral!

Though our presentation wasn't as nice (plastic cups, foil and tupperware!) as before, its was a great late afternoon picnic.

For the Italian style lobster cocktails, we added to the lobster: olive oil, fresh grated parmesan, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and a little bit of garlic. I was skeptical about the parmesan-lobster combo at first, but it was very tasty!

Kocherlball

On Sunday, Herr J and I got up early to attend the Kocherlball, one of Munich's many summer festivals.

This one is a little different from the average beer+wurst+crepes+bandstand that is put up in any square, especially because it takes place early in the morning. 6:00-10:00, to be exact. And I HIGHLY recommend you arrive early if you want a seat. By 5am would be best - you won't be the first ones there....plenty of folks will be there early to stake out a prime table, and will enjoy breakfast and conversation by candlelight until the sun rises.

As usual, you are welcome to bring your own food, or to buy various breakfast foods (weißwurst, kaiserschmarrm, bread/cold cuts, various meats, and other sinfully wonderful variations on fried dough). Many groups will cover the beergarden picnic tables with fine table cloths, vases of flowers, and even silver candelabras. The drinks (beer, coffee, etc) you buy from the beergarden.

The point of the festival, however, is dancing.

In the last decade of the 18th century, the cooks and domestic staff met each year early on a summer Sunday morning to dance at the Chinese Tower (in the English Garden). Hence the name loosely translates to "Cooks' Ball" and takes place early in the morning before they had to go back to work. The tradition continued for a century or so, until it was banned in 1904 for being of questionable morality.

The event was revived in 1989 for the 200th anniversary celebrations for the English Garden and it continues today.

In addition to the dining and drinking, they have bands to play traditional music continuously in front of the dance area.

You'll see old and young alike, many in trachten or even older traditional uniforms. Even this sleepy little guy is decked out in his finest Bavarian duds:

And the dancing certainly is nothing scandalous today - it's traditional folk dancing, mainly from the Oberfalz (Upper Palatinate) and Niederbayern (Lower Bavaria) regions...polkas, waltzes, and other traditional dances.  Not that many people actually knew the steps, but everyone still had fun trying something waltz-style or following instructions from the band leader.  Apparently the Münchener Francaise is one of the popular local dances (especially after it was taught for Munich's 850th anniversary).  I'm not sure how there is enough room to do it here, but there are German instructions online if you're curious like me. I can picture a ballroom of men and women in formal trachten, dancing as in old Vienna!

For those who want to learn the dances (or brush up on long-forgotten skills), the Culture Department (das Kulturreferat) of the City of Munich offers free Bavarian folk dancing courses on the three Thursdays leading up to the Kocherlball. Herr J and I did briefly join the fray for a dance or two, but perhaps next year we'll prepare ahead and learn the steps.

Until next year, here's a video of the dancing:
 

A lovely morning at the Chinese Tower!

Photoblog - Back to the English Garden

Following our initial post on Munich's English Garden, Frau A and I went back for more photos.  (Frau A also wanted to see if any new chicks had hatched from the water bird population.)

We took the U-Bahn north, from downtown to Münchener Freiheit.  It's one stop past Giselastrasse, just off the top of the map you see here.  The idea was to walk south through the park from Kleinhesseloher Lake, photographing the Chinese Tower, Monopteros, and surfers (yes, surfers, you'll see) on the Eisbach.  Lastly, the State Chancellory is just outside on the park on the way home.

On the map you can see a creek running along the west side of the park, which feeds eventually back into the Isar river.  Atop the bridge railing as you enter the English Garden, the park service installed a new flower planter.  Very nice.  The Germans really like flowers and have high quality displays throughout the city.

We kept walking west to the Kleinhesseloher See.  This is most famous for the beergarden that sits on its shore, called the Seehaus.  It seats 2500 people!  In addition to the Seehaus, one can rent paddleboats and canoes to take on the water.  On our last visit, we weren't experimenting with HDR Photography, so this time I bracketed and tonemapped the waiting paddleboats.  More HDR to come.

In the next photo's background you can see the throngs enjoying food & beer at the Seehaus -- in good weather it is always packed.  Perhaps this guy wished he'd picked a paddle boat instead -- look's like he's taking a rest from rowing his sweetheart around?   She looks relaxed though.

These guys know how to enjoy life.  Take refreshment with you onto the water, put your feet up, and soak in the sunshine.  (The sun gave us a colorful reflection on the water too.)  Notice the geese hanging around, just in case any humans care to share their snacks.

On the southern tip of the lake, where it narrows to a feeder heading towards the Isar river, Frau A saw the feathery babies she was hoping for.  This train of goslings was motoring after mom & dad.  The guy in back seems to be yelling for everyone to wait up.

We brought breadcrumbs to feed the waterfowl - some come out to get a more strategic position.  It's harder to see in the web-sized photo, but you can see this baby's tiny teeth.  Notice also that the adult in the background has a tag around its foot, part of the wildlife management in the English Garden.

Next along the way was the Chinese Tower.  There's a beer garden here also (not shown).  There was a German "oom-pah" band playing on the second story (hidden from this view) -- common entertainment in good weather.  The sun was really bright now - even with bracketing and tonemapping there are still some blown highlights, but that's just my inexperience showing.

 

We continued walking south to the Monopteros.  This was a prime candidate for HDR too.  I got some serious vignetting, but it doesn't distract too much so I didn't try to fix it in post processing (also a bit lazy... could correct for some distortion as well...).  As usual, HDR brings out texture in stone and contrast in the clouds that you wouldn't get in low-dynamic range output.

As you near the park's south exit, you should always stop at the Eisbach to see the surfers.  The Eisbach is a small man-made river flowing through the English Garden (and another small Isar tributary).  One section at the end has a standing wave, perfect for surfing -- the surfer stays in place as the water flows by.

Technically, this was illegal... but never enforced.  That's probably why they made it legal in 2010 and now just post warning signs.  The surfers only have a few meters in which to go back & forth, so you can catch the spray on camera:

There will often be a lot of spectators, watching from both banks of the small river, or loooking down from a small bridge that spans the Eisbach just a couple of meters before the wave.  The guy below was probably the best surfer we saw that day and gave us plenty of opportunity to get some good photos.

Check out this Eisbach surfing video on YouTube, taken from the bridge.  There are regular surfers, beginners just lying on the board, and even body surfers!  The water is cold, hence the wetsuits.

Finally at the end of the afternoon, one more chance to bracket photographs and try HDR - at the Bavarian Chancellory building.  This is outside the English Garden, inside the small Hofgarten.  Lots of glass and stone make for a good subject to tonemap.

There is just so much to see in the English Garden.  Frau and I will return again in Autumn to see how things have changed and photograph some other nice spots.

Silly Goose!

We've been visiting the English Garden the past few weekends to see the babies growing.  Last week we saw some unusual behavior from a Greylag Goose near the Seehaus.

First we see him happily swimming with his family.

 

But then another goose catches his eye and he quickly turns to go after it.

 

A goose snapping at something was not unusual in itself. These guys can be pretty aggressive with other birds and will persistently beg you for food by nipping the back of your knee to "let you know" that they want bread. They'll also eat it from your hand without hurting you - they're much rougher on other birds than on people. Obviously they understand "don't bite the hand that feeds you" quite well!

What was unusual was first, that the other goose swam underwater to evade attack

and second, how aggressively the attacker continued to pursue him, trying to catch and bite him.

 

 

By this point, they've zigzagged back and forth in front of us for a seemingly long time (probably under a minute), with the victim spending most of the time fully underwater (circled in orange) and kicking up a trail of muddy water. 

The strategy works, and clearly he can swim underwater much faster than his pursuer can on the surface.  Realizing this, our attacker changes tactics and tries to catch up with a quick flight and a divebomb.

And...he fails....

But decides to give it one last try!! (you can see the other one still underwater, below his left wing)

 

Finally he gives up on the chase

and returns to his woman and children...

 

...with a big spash! 

 

We could never figure out what started the attack - it seemed unprovoked to us, but we don't speak goose very well. All I know is that I'm eternally grateful I'd set the camera to shutter priority. It's the only way to get decent shots of things that are bundles of endless, unpredictable energy...like baby ducks and silly geese.

Photoblog - Munich's English Garden

Warm weather has finally come to Munich.  (At least the Springtime version -- inconsistent, and still chilly in the shade, but the air has changed.)  That means everyone will be spending a lot more time in the English Garden.

We're really looking forward to this and pulled out a few photos from last year to tide us over until our first 'Saturday in the park'.  (Yes, the English Garden is physically larger than Central Park in New York City, but they have completely different auras.  More on this in a later post...)

From Odeonsplatz downtown, you can walk through the Hofgarden to the south entrance to the English Garden.

This building below greets you just before entering the English Garden, and I've always loved its yellow against a blue sky.

The same water (it's an artificial stream) seen above runs through the English Garden, and the walking path follows it for a while from the southern entrance.  Sometimes it flows lazily, other times it is swift with runoff from the melting snow in the mountains.  There is even one point where people can surf!  (more here)

 

One of the most popular parts of the Garden is the Schoenfeldwiese (Schoenfeld meadow) -- partially because it's a huge open space with lots of sun, and partially because nude sunbathing is permitted here.  Many a tourist have had a memorable cultural experience/shock!  I organized a game of American football here once, and that drew funny stares from the Germans!

From the meadow you can look back towards the city and see the two spires of the Frauenkirche (middle/right), the yellowish Theatinerkirche (far right), and the Bavarian State Chancellery (Bayrische Staatskanzlei, left). 

 

Here's a zoomed view of the two churches: 

Both of the prior photos were taken at the far end of the Schoenfeldwiese, at the top of a small hill where the Monopteros sits.  The Monopteros is a Greek-style "temple" that replaced an older wooden "Apollo Temple".  It was completed in 1836 using leftover material from the Residenz.

How safe is Munich?  I've taken early walks to this point and seen people "camping" out -- overnight with just a sleeping bag.  They enjoy watching the sunrise from here and therefore just crash.  No worries.  Now that's different than Central Park.  I don't have a photo of sunrise yet, but this is what they see (below).  Now you know why Frau A and I will do more photoblogging from here this Summer.