A German Barbecue

Yesterday, Benny and I slept in a bit and then got up to go to church. Colleen wanted to join us, so we met at Marienplatz under the golden statue of Mary at 10:15. We chose to go to St. Peter's Catholic, as it was right near the central square and seemed rather welcoming. We scooted past the tourist crowd in the back and took a seat in an empty pew. Of course the service was all in German and some Latin, but we still had the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful architecture, stained glass, frescoes, and of course, the music. The choir was amazing and the organ was beautiful as it filled the huge space. As people went up for communion, we slipped out the side door and wandered for a bit.

We made our way to one of the gates at the end of the old city and took a few pictures there. Benny and I had discussed going to the Residenz Museum, but decided that we'd rather go to the main square, watch the glockenspiel and go back to Grafelfing. So, we watched the glockenspiel, which Benny had not yet seen, and left Colleen with a walking tour group in Marienplatz, and went back to Grafelfing. We managed to time it so that we arrived back in our neighborhood right when the annual wine festival was beginning for the afternoon, so we stopped in to sample the wine, have a bratwurst sandwich, and listen to the band warm up. After taking our glass back for the deposit, Benny and I headed back to the house for an afternoon nap and listened to a RadioLab podcast. The cat joined us for the afternoon nap, so that was kind of fun. After our naps, we put our shoes on and got the soda out of the fridge downstairs so that we could meet Petra (from the library), since she had agreed to take us to the barbecue.

So, we met Petra just outside of her car and rode with her to pick up Dr. Veltze and were then on our way to Lyme, Amanda, Colleen, and Mary's place, where their landlord had graciously agreed to host a German style barbecue for us. What an amazing spread of food! He cooked pork chops, chicken legs, and lots of sausage and pork belly on the grill. His wife had made huge bowls of potato salad, green salad, sauerkraut, tziki (sp) sauce (the Greek yogurt sauce for dipping), and roasted red peppers. Petra had brought lots of freshly baked bread, including pretzels, for us to share. And we all contributed drinks, although the landlord had a case of beer that he provided, which several people enjoyed. The family dog, Popalina, was a lot of fun and thoroughly seemed to enjoy the extra attention.

The weather was nice and warm for most of the afternoon, although the rain started to fall just as we were finishing dinner. So, we moved to the covered patio where we enjoyed coffee, espresso, and lots of dessert until almost 10:00. The conversation and cultural exchange was wonderful, as the landlord, Herr Igenher, had lived in Canada for several years and traveled quite a bit, and Dr. Veltze relayed some of her stories of traveling in South America. There were lots of laughs and jokes, and we discovered that despite some cultural differences, food seems to be the great equalizer and icebreaker.

When all of us seemed to be winding down, we went home, with Petra dropping Dr. Veltze off before going back to Grafelfing. We got home around 10:30 and headed straight to bed. Our last Sunday in Munich was a wonderful mix of relaxation and experiencing the culture in a way that most tourists never get to.