Paul Mc Namara's WorldView

Some photos taken on a September Saturday at Königsplatz in Munich, Germany.

I recently completed a 3-weekend skiing course based on the principles of Parallel Skiing out of Munich. It was a super-enjoyable course with great instructors who were incredibly patient and good-humoured. It was well-organised with every detail was taken care of like a different set of skis for each days tuition (the idea is to start on very short skis and learn how to stop using parallel movement and then progress to longer skis). The next course begins next January but if you send an email to , you will be contacted in November next about the upcoming course.

I’m a late adopter when it comes to using the internet on a phone. This has mainly come about due to the dearth of services that were available, my reluctance to commit to any type of contract and I wanted to get away from being online when I am away from the office or my apartment. However, now that I do a weekly commute and the fact that the train services I use don’t have any wireless services meant that I was out of touch for long spells on Mondays and Fridays. That was annoying when it meant being out of the loop while news was breaking on Monday or social plans were being made on Friday. This all came to a head when I needed a new phone and after a terrible experiment with an Lg, I found a review of the nokia 6220 classic on youtube that suggested it had the features of the N82 but without the huge pricetag. I got it and I got a kick out of using features like GPS, google maps, twitter, etc. However, the frequency and cost of topping up my credit was a problem. I went into t-mobile in Munich and they offered me a priceplan of 10 Euro a month but I had to commit to a contract. Since then, I haven’t looked back. My costs have good down, my train journeys are not so boring and now I’ve written my first blog post on the phone. Have a nice weekend.

Normally, I would jump at the chance of a ticket for a Bayern game. Not tonight. The race for the Bundesliga title is already over and while the game is interesting for the relegation battle that Armenia Bielefeld are involved in, I’m just not interested enough to spend €20 to see it.

Photos from Haidhausen last Sunday.

According to the New York Times

Munich has not exactly reinvented itself; that would mean a break with the past. The beauty, tradition and healthy dose of kitsch are all right where you left them on that unforgettable yet somehow hazy trip to Oktoberfest back in college. Instead Munich has succeeded in winning me over by blending tradition with a new feel — epitomized by the city’s strengths in art and design.