April 18, 2005
First Weekend
For two months last year, I lived in a long-term stay hotel in Munich. I wasn't truly a resident...I woke up in a hotel bed and fought off "Housekeeping!" all day, and walked the streets with Benny knowing that they weren't mine. But now I wake up in my own bed with all of my stuff around me (still in boxes), walking a rainy street that is my street, or sitting in a biergarten that is now my biergarten. I feel too lucky. It seems surreal that I actually live in this beautiful city, that I can go back to the places I discover again and again, that I don't have to "go home"!
Saturday
In a year that will be full of firsts, I went to the "HIT" market near my house for the first time. I know, I am completely immature but I love those unfortunate words that Germans innocently use when naming things...in this case, the company that works the "Fleischmarkt" or meat counter. (sorry Mom)
I liked the HIT market for the most part. I found fresh, prebaked pizza crusts, which I scooped up immediately despite Chris' doubtful comments. I grew up in a pizzeria and I know a good crust when I see one. It's such a good idea to have prebaked crusts on hand, rather than that flimsy premade dough, because you can top them and bake them on the grill. Perfect for a girl who is still digging through moving boxes for forks!
Sunday
This was my first real, leisurely afternoon as a Munich resident. I did what everyone else does on a sunny Sunday -- I went to the Englischer Garten (English Garden). If you've been to Central Park in New York City, you'll feel a bit of deja vu. The park is enormous and nothing short of gorgeous. We bought rolls at Heck am Eck (also cute) and had sandwiches on the lawn. Note to future tourists - put this on your Must See list. Note to fellow foodies in the area: the forest near the lake (Seehaus) is full of baerlauch! They're selling it for 1,99 per 100 gram at the store so do what these kids are doing and get it for free!
The neighborhood where we entered the park is Alt-Schwabing, a section called Biederstein. It's a great area, a lot of fun to explore, and gives the impression that you'd need a whooole lot of money to actually live in this trendy part of town. It's near the Munchener Freiheit (U5/U6); you can also reach it via Dietlindenstrasse (U6). We stopped for coffee and wine at a more-authentic-than-usual Spanish restaurant on the corner of the Gomezranier-Str. and the Felitizsch-Str. Tables dot the sidewalk and you can watch the human traffic going to and from the English Garden, as well as the flashy convertibles. I ordered a white wine, which, when it finally came, was nicely chilled and served in a 0,25 wine glass. I also ordered a portion of olives but it took two repeat visits (and blank looks) by the waiter to nail that part of the order down (since he didn't write it anywhere). As a matter of fact, the service was so slow that an entire table of Germans left before ordering -- and they're usually the patient lot. The restaurant seemed understaffed on this particular day -- 30 minutes for olives seems excessive. But when the olives arrived, they successfully passed my "Olive Test" (If a place doesn't have good olives, don't bother to come back for anything else.) They came in green and black with whole cloves of garlic, sprigs of rosemary, and hints of anise and red pepper. I was pleased. 1 enormous glass of wine, 1 hefty portion of lovely olives, and a cappuccino -- 7,50 Euros. Not bad! I saw someone else eating a plate of octopus salad - I'll definitely be going back for a taste of that. Also, today and every Monday -- paella for 8 Euro.
El Cortijo
Feilitzschstrasse 32
80801 Mnchen
Tel.: 89 331116
Stay tuned for the results of my pizza crust purchase!
