Munich - Places to Visit
Alte Pinakothek
The Alte Pinakothek is one of the oldest and most important galleries in the world. More than 800 masterpieces by European artists bring to life the development of art from the Middle Ages to the end of the Rococo period. Venetian art is represented by its master painter Titian, as is Dutch baroque art by Frans Hals. Rubens occupies (with one of the largest collections of his works in the world) the center of the museum. A further highlight is the Old German art by Altdorfer and Dürer. Both Dürer's epochal self-portrait from 1500 as well as his "Four Apostles" can be admired in the Alte Pinakothek
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Outstanding works of European art and sculpture from the late 18th to the beginning of the 20th century are in the spotlight of the Neue Pinakothek. One focus is on the German art of the 19th century - this collection, which goes back to the private collection of King Ludwig I, is one of the most comprehensive of all. Works by Caspar David Friedrich show highlights of early romantic sentimentalism. Society painters such as Wilhelm von Kaulbach and Karl von Piloty represent the newly awakened interest for German history. The hall, with works by Hans von Marées, one of the most significant German artists, can be compared with no other museum. With Thomas Gainsborough, Francisco Goya and Jacques Louis David, the Neue Pinakothek possesses celebrated portrait and landscape painters from England, Spain and France. There is also a wonderful collection of French impressionists: artists such as Monet, Manet, Degas, Pissaro and Renoir are represented with principal works. Cézanne, Gauguin and van Gogh stand for the pioneers of the modern age. In addition to art, the Neue Pinakothek also shows important plastics of the relevant epoch.
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This new attraction in the Olympic Park is a huge freshwater and marine aquarium with over 30 tanks containing domestic species of fish and Mediterranean marine animals. Over two storeys various stations show the visitors the way the water flows from the River Isar, along the Danube and into the Black Sea and the Mediterranean.
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Within Munich's City Centre you have a wide choice of shops, boutiques and department stores. One of the representative boulevards planned by King Ludwig I, Maximilianstrasse is one of the most exclusive addresses in Munich. Sauntering between the Bavarian Parliament, Maximilianeum, and the Nationaltheater, the Bavarian State Opera, you can enjoy the flair of one of the boulevards that have rendered Munich the nickname "Italy's most northern city". Along rows of classicist buildings you will find internationally renowned luxury shops as well as a haute-couture phenomenon "Mooshammer", which can only be found in Munich. Theatinerstrasse and Fünf Höfe, connecting the central square Marienplatz with Odeonsplatz and Ludwigstrasse, is a primary address for luxurious shopping. It is also the home of traditional cafés and restaurants, in addition to an arts cinema showing original international films with subtitles. The entrance to one of the largest art exhibition areas, the Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, leads into Munich's latest shopping centre, called Fünf Höfe or Five Courts. Exclusive shops, bistros and cafés are located in this fascinating ensemble of modern art and architecture. Kaufinger Strasse, the boulevard between Marienplatz and Karlsplatz/Stachus, with the medieval city gate Karlstor, has been a pedestrian zone and Munich's busiest shopping area since the 1970s. Half way between Marienplatz and Stachus you can turn left into "Arkaden", a roofed alley which is home to more individual shops and cafés. Sendlinger Strasse is clearly one of the most typical shopping districts of Munich: the small street leading from Marienplatz to the medieval city gate Sendlinger Tor in the south of the old town is home to many family-run retailing shops. It is the ideal place to go if you are looking for arts and crafts, unusual gift shops or arty posters. After shopping, there are plenty of little cafés and restaurants where you can sit down, relax, and enjoy the evening. The Glockenbachviertel is not only home to Munich's gay and lesbian scene, but also an exciting place to live and go shopping and clearly one of Munich's most picturesque boroughs. It harbours fashionable bars as well as snug bistros and attracts young people of all backgrounds. It is the best place to go if you are looking for exciting shops, for example on Hans-Sachs-Strasse. In the 7te Himmel - German for "cloud nine", you can find individual fashion and jewellery. "Artefakt", on Hans-Sachs-Strasse number 13 employs young designers who dye and paint their fabrics themselves, exclusive and unique clothes for the courageous. And the café SAXS on Hans-Sachs-Strasse number 5 offers more than 160 seats on its sunny terrace. Turning left or right from Leopoldstrasse you will encounter the flair of the village that Schwabing used to be only a few decades ago, and the legendary home to artists, intellectuals and writers throughout the 20th century. Behind the facades of the art-nouveau period on Kaiserstrasse, Hohenzollernstrasse, Ainmillerstrasse and Franz-Joseph-Strasse are boutiques, second-hand shops, innumerable book stores and jewellery stores. Schwabing even has its own little victuals market: the Elisabethmarkt, at Elisabethplatz, sells fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs and seasonings for all tastes, and is one of the most authentic sites of the borough.
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