This place is amaying. We went in this free walking tour today....yes you heard me correctly, FREE! Anyway, it was really amaying, this guy guided us around the Old Town of Munich and told us stories about each of the places we visited. We watched the Glochenspiel do its thing and he explained that the story is of the Wedding of the Pricess of France to the King of Bavaria. Then below it is the story of the Black Plague. I know, slightly unusual to have the two stories side by side but apparently the men that are dancing (for those of you who know what i am talking about) are coopers (people who make wooden barrels) and what happened was, when they decided that the black plague was over they went into the streets to let everyone know by dancing. They were then ordered to do this every four years for enternity, so apparently this still happens! We also went past the more sinister areas as well. All of you know that Munich also had a large involvement in the WWII history. We went past the Hofbräuhaus which is where Hitler mad his first public rally to communist followers who resisted and were beaten in the square out the front. This place is not only famous for that but is the Royal Beer house of Munich. We went down the street where Hitler attempted his first overthrow of government (his attempt to rally people together and walk to Berlin) which ended in blood shed and his eventual jail sentence. Very informative and the area still has that uncomfortable sense to it with the undertones of the monuments that still stand. Munich has really fulfilled my cravings for history and tomorrow we are heading out to Neuschwanstein Castle for some beautiful scenery. Looing forward to it!
