Globalista

Munich was a capital city for much longer than it’s ever been part of Germany. For centuries the Wittelsbach dynasty built up its “Athens on the Isar” as a seat of learning, culture and good food. It was the last of their line, “Mad” King Ludwig, who had the money and the love of art to ensure Wagner’s dreams were fulfilled when the rest of Germany thought the composer a dangerous and deluded spendthrift. Today Munich still dominates the south of Germany as a capital of both business and the arts. Over 300 book and newspaper publishers have their headquarters in the city, as does BMW. But the pleasure principle still applies. Indeed, with its love of music and the good life, its Catholicism and baroque architecture, Munich is often referred to as the most northerly part of Italy. The beer garden was invented in this pleasing, well-proportioned city, but wine, opera and haute cuisine are also part of daily life here. Nor should anyone forget shopping, another very important aspect of any visit to Munich, whose stores can rival those of Paris and Milan.