Public transport and modern art

Experienced on Public transport
Experienced on Public transport

As we set out to travel to Munich’s modern art museum today, it occurred to us that we have now got a firm grasp on Munich’s public transport system.

When we first arrived in Munich, fresh off the plane from Beijing, we caught the S-bahn and U-bahn to our hotel. While it was not all that difficult, it was tense. Working out how to buy tickets, watching for the right stop, and so on. The process was made easier thanks to an excellent website called ihatetaxis.com, Google maps, and a free app for navigating the Munich public transport system. But it remained a long way from calm.

Today we caught two sorts of trains and a tram without blinking or referring to any guides. We’ve come to the conclusion that it takes about four days to become acclimatized. After four days we’re generally feeling comfortable. A few more days and it’s feeling like home – just in time to move on!

Munich’s Neue Pinakothek Museum was worth the outing. It covers 19th and early 20th Century art and while the collection is not huge there are some excellent pieces. The boys, and Declan in particular, were thrilled to recognize a number of artists from afar. The rooms with paintings by Monet and Van Gogh were particularly engaging.

The Museum also has one feature that endeared it to me. The rooms are set out in a circle – you enter at one end and proceed through to the other without doubling back. That’s how all museums should work in my view.

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