MUNICH

Munich, Bavaria’s capital, is home to centuries-old buildings and numerous museums. The city is known for its annual Oktoberfest celebration and its beer halls, including the famed Hofbräuhaus, founded in 1589. In the Altstadt (Old Town), central Marienplatz square contains landmarks such as Neo-Gothic Neues Rathaus (town hall), with a popular glockenspiel show that chimes and reenacts stories from the 16th century. It’s Germany's third largest city and the capital of Bavaria (one of the 16 German Federal States) in Germany. The city is located in South East Germany on the River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps.

Munich, located at the river Isar in the south of Bavaria, is famous for its beautiful architecture, fine culture, and the annual Oktoberfest beer celebration. Munich's cultural scene is second to none in Germany, with the museums even considered by some to outrank Berlin in quality.

• The current population of Munich in 2020 is 1,538,000, a 1.12% increase from 2019.
• Munich is 500 meters (1,600 feet) above sea level. The climate is continental, with cold winters and mild to pleasantly warm summers.
• The oldest building in Munich is a bathroom. During archaeological excavations at the Marienhof, workers found a latrine from 1260. The toilette was located outside the primary city gates, showing that the Munich of the 13th century was already bigger than historians had thought so far.
• Munich harbors the oldest cinema in the world. The Neues Kino Gabriel is most likely the oldest cinema in the world. It has existed since 1906 and it’s been open ever since. The Guinness Book of World Records names the Pionier Cinema in the Polish Szczecin as the oldest cinema; however it wasn’t established until 1907.
• The first photograph in Germany was taken in Munich. Two Munich scientists, Carl August von Steinheil and Franz Ritter von Kobell, shot a photograph of the Frauenkirche, the most famous landmark of Munich, months before the photographic process of daguerreotype was introduced in France in 1939. The negative of the film roll still exists today. The four-centimetre wide relict can be marvelled at in the Deutsche Museum in Munich.
• Plasticine was invented in Munich. Pharmacist Franz Kolb owned a pharmacy in the city, and his invention was intended for his artist friends, who had problems using modelling clay in the cold winter months for their work.

Since the administrative reform in 1992, Munich is divided into 25 boroughs or Stadtbezirke, which themselves consist of smaller quarters. The district is administered by the Landratsamt München and politically led by the Kreistag.

Munich has an excellent infrastructure, which is continuously being expanded. It is the most important transport and traffic hub that connects the north with the sound and the west with the east. Train or car: Munich can easily be reached from anywhere thanks to the good connections. 8 motorways lead to the provincial capital. Germany’s second largest airport is located in Munich and handles approximately 41 million passengers yearly.

Munich has an excellent infrastructure, which is continuously being expanded. It is the most important transport and traffic hub that connects the north with the sound and the west with the east. Train or car: Munich can easily be reached from anywhere thanks to the good connections. 8 motorways lead to the provincial capital. Germany’s second largest airport is located in Munich and handles approximately 41 million passengers yearly.

Munich is a centre for biotechnology, software and other service industries. Aircraft engine manufacturer MTU Aero Engines, the space and defence contractor EADS, the injection molding machine manufacturer Krauss-Maffei, the camera and lighting manufacturer Arri, the semiconductor firm Infineon Technologies, the DRAM company Qimonda, as well as many foreign companies like Precision Plus, McDonald’s and Microsoft have their German or European headquarters in Munich.