münchen

for valentine's weekend we took a wonderful trip to munich.  'if i weren't so afraid of the nazis, i would definitely live here.'  that is the only quote i captured from ben on this trip - but trust me, there were more.  unfortunately my pregnant brain just couldn't keep up.  but, i did take some pictures (not as many as i would have liked), that pretty well capture the story:

beautiful morning light shines on neuhauser strabe

on friday morning we had beautiful sunshine with cold temps.  poor emre was quite sick with a cold, so we bundled him up for a long walk.  we took the train to karlsplatz where we visited the famous obletter toy store - germany's largest toy shop.  it was amazing!  we got some goodies for emre to enjoy and some gifts for down the road.  after that we headed down the pedestrian promenade neuhauser strabe, stopping at shops along the way and buying some treats from a fruit vendor.  we ended up in marienplatz, in front of the glockenspiel.

glockenspiel

marienplatz square

poor sick baby - he wouldn't let go of his new backpack

an old pharmacy we passed along the way

after walking the indoor & outdoor markets - while emre napped - we headed back towards marienplatz to find schuhbeck's orlando, a restaurant our friend ali had recommended.  it ended up being the perfect spot for a warm lunch & rest (i really needed the rest).  from there, we walked back to the hotel for nap time.

after a nice long family nap, we were ready to hit the streets again.  ben wanted to take me to an italian restaurant, also recommended by our friend ali.  we headed back to marienplatz on the train where we walked... and walked... until we finally found the spot.  one look at this restaurant and i told ben it wouldn't do - i was way underdressed, not to mention we were in the company of a two year old.  so we headed back across town to a different restaurant - but, they were fully booked (it was valentine's night).  so we headed back across town to haxnbauer, a traditional german spot we had passed earlier.  it turns out this place is famous for their grilled meats, and they were just able to squeeze us in.  it was a wonderful dinner that left us completely full & smelling of barbeque.

at the beginning of our long walk to find dinner

ben was quite proud of his stroller navigation system

the next day the weather was even better - in the 60s with sunshine.  we decided to head to a different part of the city to explore before hitting the english gardens.

poor emre was still sick - passed out again in his stroller

my handsome guy

we ended up at the english gardens in time for lunch.  luckily i had read about a restaurant, seehaus, overlooking the pond.  it was packed with folks enjoying the warm temperatures, but we were able to get a table & enjoyed some delicious schnitzel while emre played in the stones.

these two have way too much fun together

enjoying an after lunch treat - ice cream from gino's italian gelateria!

after lunch & some more walking, we headed back to the hotel where i rested while ben & emre played with his new trains.  that evening we needed a break from the german cuisine, so we ate at a trendy italian spot, l'osteria, near karlsplatz.  the pizza was great, but the restaurant was incredibly loud.

munich to garmisch-partenkirchen

on sunday we boarded the db bahn train for a day trip to garmisch-partenkirchen, a small ski town on the edge of the alps, a 1.5 hour ride from munich.  the weather was cold & rainy and on sunday pretty much everything in germany is closed (even grocery stores, which i would have liked to explore), so a nice trian ride seemed like a good idea.  we especially thought emre would enjoy it, with his adoration of trains, but he slept the entire way there.

entering garmisch-partnkirchen

the db bahn train

reminded me of lake placid

everything was closed

ben said it was his favorite kind of shopping - window shopping

those germans - they have a sense of humor!

this beer garden is probably great in the summer

we wandered the town until we found trattoria pane & vino - a lovely little italian restaurant where the owner was italian & served us our meal while emre finished up his nap (we both had the pasta amatriciana, a dish we discovered in rome, and it was delicious).  emre eventually woke up and enjoyed some buttered noodles before we headed out for more walking.  we had planned to stay until 5:00, but after about 10 minutes of walking in the cold rain, i turned to ben and said 'so how much longer do we want to stay?'  everything was closed & i was freezing.  we agreed to head back to the train station & made the 3:00 train.

on board the train, warm & dry

a train ride, with snacks...

...and trains to play with?  emre loved it!

that pretty much ended our trip - with the exception of dinner that night.  we were all tired that night so we decided to eat near the hotel & ended up at kam yi - an authentic chinese restaurant right across the street from our hotel.  it was incredible!  overall the trip was so easy, with direct flights and excellent (and clean!) public transportation (there was a metro stop underneath our hotel) around the city, and even delicious water you can drink straight from the tap.  we'll definitely be back.