We've been to the Nymphenburg Gardens many times, in spring and in summer. So it's only fitting we see it in winter, too.
On our recent Eisstockschießen outing, we spent an hour walking around the castle grounds before the Eisbahnen opened. Herr J and I will both say that photography at -15° is a challenge and that handwarmers are a necessity - both for keeping my hands flexible and for keeping his batteries warm!
We hadn't had that much snow recently, but after a good solid two weeks of subzero temperatures, the canals and ponds were covered in thick layers of ice.
This was my favorite view...though it looks like little ice floes, the dark part is also frozen. I guess the lake froze, partially thawed, and then froze again around the slabs of ice that remained. Whatever happened, it was a really cool effect on the ice!
There was one little pool of water, in which the little black ducks congregated.
To me - who is not used to much more than flurries or ice storms once per year - the different forms of ice are fascinating. I'm sure someone can explain it all in terms of temperatures and different crystalization structures, but the result is beautiful.
Despite the warnings of possible death, the ice fills up with people enjoying all types of winter sports. In addition to eisstockschießen, you can ice skate (rentals are also available), play hockey, sled, or just slide around.
This clever lady paired ice skates with her baby buggy!
It's only for a short time that the ice is thick enough for sports, but it's times like this that make winter not so bad!
One of the biggest lessons I've learned living in Munich (as someone who grew up in the Southern U.S.) is to make the most of every season. Especially Winter, my area of least expertise. Winter activities like skiing and sledding have been fun, but there was something new we hadn't tried yet. It's an activity that dates to at least the 16th Century, has European and World championships, and has been "demonstrated" at the Winter Olympics two times. It's called eissstockschiessen.
Below, you see the Nymphenburg Palace and a worker preparing the ice for eisstockschiessen and skating.
We'd wanted to try eisstockschiessen before, but somehow never made it in the last years. It needs to be consistently cold so the water freezes to a safe thickness - at the mercy of nature, lanes open and close with little warning. There are lanes all over the city, but the ones on the Nymphenburger Kanal (near the Nymphenburg Palace and Gardens) are the most popular. They have the capacity for 40 lanes (marked by the end boards on the ice) from the castle all the way to the bridge where the local tram stops.
Here is a view down the canal:
Since the temperature had averaged -10°C for the previous two weeks, we checked online and the lanes were open. Not knowing how crowded it gets on weekends, we called ahead and reserved one at 9am. We arrived a little late (9:15) but the rental shack was closed and the one person who seemed associated with it was out on the canal ice, driving a mini Zamboni to clear the lanes (see this in the first photo above). That is not very German (imprecise!), so we killed some time taking photos of the palace.
After 30 minutes and no indications that he would be finished soon, we ducked into a cute little corner cafe and warmed up with cappuccino, a krapfen (filled doughnut) and piece of marmorkuchen (marble loaf cake).
Now fuelled up and with full feeling in hands and face again, we headed back to see if we could rent the equipment and get our lane. The trailer was finally open for business. A lane costs €4 per person, for 4 hours - very reasonable.
Required equipment includes the Eisstöcke (plural of Eisstock) to toss/slide (like the "stone" in Canadian curling) and the Dauben (targets). The kanal lanes include end boards to contain throws that would send an Eisstock into the next lane. We saw many people come later (we were still the first that cold morning) with their own sets of Eisstöcke and Dauben - serious players indeed. Theirs were often bright metal, whereas the rental Eisstöcke are wooden (but good enough for us!). The rental Dauben were simply rectangular blocks of wood dusted with orange paint.
Here is Frau A showing the bottom of a stock.
The game is a lot like bocce or shuffleboard. The goal is to slide your Eisstock closest to the Daube. It's a great group activity -- especially the arguing about who is closest and the fun of knocking someone else's Eisstock away.
We played 1-on-1 this morning, but it's usually played with 2 teams of 4 people. This means that in each round, 8 Eisstöcke are thrown. The points are tallied at the end, and the next round starts from the other end of the lane. Usually the team that captured the most points on the prior round goes first, so the other team has the last chance this time to knock their Eisstock away from the Daube and score the points.
There are official rules to the game, since it is played competitively (and internationally). However, most people tend to have their own variation on the rules. For example:
First to 10:
In each round, the team with the Eisstock closest to the Daube receives 1 point. First team to 10 points wins.
Quick First to 10:
In each round, the team with the Eisstock closest to the Daube receives 1 point. If that same team also has the Eisstock that is second-closest to the Daube, they receive 2 points.
4 Rounds:
There are only 4 rounds, and the team with the most points at the end wins. In this case, the scoring is like in Quick First to 10 but not limited to 2 points. A team can receive up to 4 points (if all 4 of their Eisstöcke were closer than the opponents' closest one).
6 Rounds:
There are only 6 rounds, and the team with the most points wins. The closest Eisstock receives 3 points, and for each other Eisstock that is still closer than the opponents' closest toss, the team receives 2 points (up to 9). This is usually part of tournament play, so that a win after 6 Rounds gives a team 2 points (a draw 1, and a loss 0). Then teams move on to other competitors for the next games.
The official rules are, of course, much more precise and include a target area around the Daube. Only Eisstöcke within the target can get points, and the Daube can only be struck and moved within the target area (if it is pushed outside the target area, it is brought back to its position before the contact).
We took a video... I had to swing as hard as I could to toss the Eisstock, staying relatively low on the ice so not to fall! We saw many Germans who wore strap-on spikes while they played for stability.
Here are some of those more experienced players on the lane next to us. You can seel ice skaters taking advantage of the open space at the end of the eisstockschiessen lanes. (The shack rents ice skates too.) And again, the nice view with the Nymphenburg palace in the background.
They were pretty serious, and brought out the measuring tape a few times to settle a debate (we were too slow with the camera, unfortunately).
As with most Winter activities here, the proper way to finish is with a hot mug of glühwein (mulled wine). The shack was happy to sell this too, but oddly theirs included raspberries. This is unusual, but tasted nice -- although most raspberries ended up tossed onto the snow.
When we returned, we looked up the weather. No wonder we were chilled -- it was -15°C at 9am, and the high that day was -10°C.
Which explains my attire. Although it isn't easy to move, I recommend (for warm weather people like me) as many layers as you can manage. After thermal underwear, fleece leggings, 2 fleeces undercoat, and a down jacket, I added Herr J's balaclava to protect my face. (And you can't see the handwarmers inside my gloves.) Yes, I'm slowly learning to deal with Winter, but Herr J will usually carry extra handwarmers just in case...
The ice has mostly melted now, but fortunately we returned the following weekend with a friend to get in a few more games that season. We're looking forward to more next year. (Or maybe we should try the Summer version!)
So, Frau A wanted to go back in late Summer to see how the babies (and potential babies) were developing. Plus, it's a great excuse to re-visit one of the most popular Sunday destinations in all Munich.
The front facade of the main building still is covered in scaffolding, but they've planted lovely beds of "wildflowers" (carefully planted, I'm sure!) and we had beautiful clouds.
As ususal, the water in the front of the grounds is full of waterfowl. We saw a new kind of goose we hadn't seen before...
...plus the usual swans, mallards, and gulls (like below):
Some of the swans were still fighting. This "guy" (photo below) was mercilessly harassing another swan, with lots of splashes and honks. You could hear the thump when his wings hit the other bird. They're a lot tougher than they first appear!
This huge, older swan is often out front and seems to pose for pictures.
We then moved from the front of the grounds through the palace to the back, where the gardens start (with still more water).
The swans here were swimming peacefully - no fighting. But these all had a family unit, so we're guessing the roughhousers in the front were lone juveniles.
When you reach the end of the gardens, there is a small waterfall peppered with Greek statues all around. A few ducks just like to relax on the edge.
Looking back over the waterfalls toward the castle, there's another beautiful sky.
And the very border of the Nymphenburg grounds, a fence prevents people from coming in using the waterway.
This mallard was taking shelter from the hot sun, not far from the fence above -- but keeping an eye on me just in case.
Unsurprisingly, a wedding party arrived to take photos in the garden. It is possible they ere getting married in a small building on one side of the gardens. They got lucky with sunny weather. We're guessing that they're NOT German by their choice of fashion, especially for the men... Then again, we were walking around in our traditional trachten (lederhose and dirndl) before attending a party, so we probably made the photos of some of the tourists!
We'll probably go back again in Autumn to see how things continue to change.
When we visited at the beginning of May, Nymphenburg Gardens didn't have many formally planted flowers, with the exception of beds of pansies in two locations.
I've always liked pansies, but never thought they were that special. Until our May Day morning walk.
The pansies planted by the main palace had the most amazing effect from the night's rain.
In front of the cafe were beds of a different variety of pansies. These were sprinkled with pollen rather than rain drops, but were the most vibrant, frilly pansies I'd ever seen.
For another early morning photowalk, we decided to check out the spring flowers and birds at the Nymphenburg Gardens. While it was a little early in May for all but the earliest babies, we did remember why this is such a great place to pass a few hours.
Of course, after arriving to find perfect sun and a view unobstructed by any people, it was just our luck that the front of the Schloss was covered in scaffolding. We'd been there just a week or two earlier to feed the swans in the afternoon and it was not under construction!
The canals and garden are a popular spot for a stroll, and when the water freezes in the winter it becomes a venue for Eisstockshießen (similar to curling).
The number 17 tram lets off just in front of the canal leading up to Schloss Nymphenburg (the far right on the map below). We usually walk up this way to see the swans that live in the fountains and lake in front of the Schloss.
I'm not sure why some swans puff up their wings like classical, royal looking swans and others keep them flat, but the the ones here often hold up their wings and look quite majestic. These two are enjoying a little morning preening or flirting or posturing...not sure whether it's two males or a male and a female, but it was mating season and they were all acting strange.
The palace itself long served as a summer palace for the Bavarian royal family. The first baroque castle was built around 1675, but was much smaller. The major enlargements - especially the vast gardens - were added in the first half of the 1700's in the reigns of Max Emmanuel and Charles VII Albert.
There are a variety of beautiful buildings surrounding the castle.
You can tour the castle also, but the gardens and grounds are a nice way to spend a couple of relaxing hours (and with no admission fee).
Once you pass through the gates into the gardens, you'll see vast gardens (more walking gardens that tons of flowers) with fountains, ponds, and statues of Greco-Roman gods and goddesses.
Looking back at the castle from inside the gardens, we see a goose family out for a stroll (along with a lot of human families and dogs).
As you continue through the gardens along the canal, there are lovely tree-lined paths, leading to the Cascade (#23 on the map), a set of waterfalls and more statues of gods (Poseidon is hanging out there, of course).
Throughout the park (especially on the north side), there are many little hidden beautiful areas, with small gardens, sculptures, and buildings from various eras. As well as wildflowers and various ducks, geese, and swans.
And of course there's a lovely little cafe and restaurant, where you can stop for a meal, or a traditional snack of kaffe und kuchen (coffee and cake).
Monday, March 19, 2012 at 9:01 
