Munich, Part 1

Munich was great!

I visited Munich for 8 nights. I was there for work, but I managed to squeeze in a bit of sight seeing and shopping, and I have a report to share. I had never been to Munich before. In fact, I'd never been to Germany before!

Autumn is a beautiful time to visit.

Because I was working, I didn't have a chance to leave the city. I'm definitely motivated to return one day to see more of this beautiful region!

TOC:

• Tendril Hat
• Yarn Stores
• Trippens!
• Marienplatz

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Tendril Hat

I'll start this post with a project that I made.

I've recently been knitting chemo caps for Knots of Love and I loved one of the hats so much that I ordered yarn to make one for myself. I cast on the day before leaving for Munich, and I finished it on the transatlantic flight. This is a pattern I'd been wanting to make for years, but the chemo cap project finally motivated me to give it a try.

This pattern, called "Anenome" by Cat Bordhi, is a wonderfully funky pattern. I was happy to have this hat in Munich because it was quite chilly. If you read my review (a Ravelry membership is free), you'll see that I modified the pattern somewhat.

Knitting a tendril

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Munich Yarn Stores

I visited two yarn stores, each different, but each wonderful in its own way. Also, the salespeople at both stores were great! English was no problem. The owner at Die Mercerie recommended several fabrics stores. I also want to call out to Marion at Ludwig Beck, who, when I told her I was from San Francisco, wistfully lamented, "I am in crisis. Please wave to the Golden Gate Bridge for me!"

Die Mercerie

Die Mercerie is within walking distance of the Google Munich office and my hotel so, naturally, this was the first yarn store that I visited.

This charming store has a cafe in the back. I was there three times and, each time, the cafe had knitters amiably chatting and knitting away. They carry a large selection of foreign yarns, including Shibui, Noro, and Koigu, as well as yarns with their own label. They carry tools largely from Merchant and Mills. Check out the Die Mercerie website to see more of their offerings.

One of their pattern-with-yarn-purchase patterns. Yes, I bought the yarn for this sweater. ;)
Another sample
Near Die Mercerie

Ludwig Beck

Ludwig Beck, on the right, is smack dab in the middle of Marienplatz

Ludwig Beck, a high-end department store that carries beautiful clothing and accessories, also carries yarn. You'll see the large store (6 floors above street level) as you exit the subway at the Marienplatz, right in the center of the city—you can't miss it. At one point the yarn was located in the basement of the main store, but it's now one block away in its own street-level storefront.

The address of Ludwig Beck's yarn store.
A "Kurzwaren & Wolle" shops translates to "Haberdashery and Wool" and the also sell Mettler thread, embroidery floss, trims, elastics, and lots of buttons

They close at 8pm most evenings, and I had exactly one hour to check out the main store and the yarn store. I started in the main store at street level where they carry purses, hats, gloves, and scarves. I bought two lightweight wool scarves and a pair of teal gloves. (I was sorry that I didn't pack gloves when I found myself walking in freezing 30°F weather early Sunday morning. By law, most shops, grocery stores, and restaurants are closed on Sunday in Munich, so nothing was open where I could buy a hot drink, or gloves—anything to warm my frigid hands.)

I skipped the rest of the main store to hurry to the yarn store, where I found a bounty of goodies! This store is more than a yarn store—it's also a haberdashery. They have an entire wall of buttons, a large selection of trims and elastics, a large display of Mettler threads (my favorite sewing thread), and embroidery floss.

They organize the yarn by color, not the more typical fiber type or yarn weight
A full selection of Mettler threads! I prefer Mettler over Gutterman, which is most prevalent in U.S. stores, so I bought two large spools of black
Elastic and trims
I bought some of this decorative elastic in navy
Keerti, a colleague, is perusing some threads
A sample
HA!
I forget the name of this saleswoman, but she was wonderful
Some of my purchases
Button wall
P.S. I had some free time on Friday, my last afternoon. I went back to Ludwig Beck and checked out all 7 floors. What a great store! The 6th floor is stationary and chocolates, the 7th floor carries CDs, but all other floors sell clothing (mens and womens, some designer and some with their own label), shoes, and accessories. I bought a cardigan and two more items from the accessories area. This store is unique: there used to be a Ludwig Beck in NYC, but it closed.

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Trippens!

I admit it.

I landed in Munich late Friday night. Saturday morning, I made a beeline for the Trippens store. And, of course, I wore some Trippens to the Trippen store.

I got there too early and cooled my heels in a nearby cafe.

But finally, they opened.

Swoon.

Thinking of Margy...
Every Trippen store features these tiles which represent their earliest styles
I bought some Trippens!
Called Dream
Did you know that Trippens also makes bracelets? I didn't!

Margy and I also plan to visit the Trippen store in Paris.

A few more pics from nearby the Trippen store. (It's located in a lovely area near the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. I would love to see more of the area but I didn't have the time.)

These cobblestone streets are all over Munich

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Marienplatz

The center of Munich is an area called Marienplatz. The plaza is where you can find the famous Glockenspiel. The ring around the plaza contains many shops, restaurants, and hotels. Tourists flock to this area, but you'll find lots of Germans, too. I was here several times, but not long enough to fully explore their offerings.

I saw the famous Glockenspiel in action on Sunday morning. I didn't record it, but here's a recording from Youtube:

On Tuesday after work my colleagues, Kathy, Keerti, and I, skipped the conference party and headed to Marienplatz to visit Ludwig Beck and eat. The Marienplatz at night is beautiful!

The shops were closed, of course, but I enjoyed some of the eye candy in the windows!

Amusing purse
The window of a jewelry store featured this amazing shell neck piece!
This "booty bag" amused me so I googled them. Herrensackerl makes bags for your cables, makeup, whatever!
At Ludwig Beck. I love how they've stenciled the knit fabric!
We had dinner at a great vegetarian restaurant, Prinz Myskhin, named after a character in a Dostoevsky novel

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That's all for now, though I have more to share on Munich. Margy and I arrived in Paris yesterday and it was fabulous to see her! The time changed in Europe last night which gave us another hour to sleep (or blog, as the case may be). We are both posting to Instagram, so check out my feed and Margy's feed.