The Eisbach, part of the Isar River, attracts many local surfers and wakeboarders. On any given day of the year, you can find adventurous souls taking on the swift current and always frigid water temperature. 
The simple and beautiful Temple of Diana is located in Munich’s Hofgarten, which is the garden of the Muenchen Residenze, a current museum and former palace for Bavarian monarchs.
During an average stroll through the city, amazing views hide just around the corner! This alley angles directly towards the Frauenkirche.
My dad (and my dog Bronson) sent me these beautiful Valentine’s Day flowers.
The NS Documentation Center is dedicated to the infamous legacy of the Nazi Party. The projections included museum related content, for example photos from the liberations of concentration camps and excerpts from post-war interrogations of Nazi officials.
Not all of the light installations were projections onto museums. Here is the “light forest.”
These balls of lights are reminiscent of globes and some of them even depict maps of the surrounding area. The impressive facade of the Alte Pinakothek, a famous Munich art museum, provides the picturesque backdrop.
Portraits displayed within the Alte Pinakothek are projected onto its main facade.
The “Pinakothek der Moderne,” the modern art museum, had three large surfaces to project collections from Munich’s various museums.
A kaleidoscopic projection of notable objects in the museums’ collections became the focal point of the entrance to the Museum of Egytpian Art.

The week began slowly as I recovered from staying up late to watch the Superbowl and balanced beginning my research with activities with my floormates like badminton, yoga, and watching TV and movies (namely more Star Wars movies and the German version of “The Bachelor”). We limited our outdoor activities as it got colder and as the snow began to pile up through the week.

On Wednesday two floormates invited me to have fried rice with them for lunch. Thursday was the first day of Fasching, which is the Bavarian name for Karneval or Mardi Gras. To celebrate we had a coffee break and ate Krapfen, sugary donuts with jam filling, which are a traditional Fasching baked good. At night a few of us hung around and continued to celebrate. 

Friday was both exciting and eventful. I walked through the city with another Fubrighter and her husband because they wanted me to tell them about the buildings I am researching. We ended our walk at the southern end of the English Garden, Munich’s large public park, similar to what Central Park is to New York City. There we watched surfers and wakeboarders ride the waves created on the Eisbach, a segment of the Isar river. 

Once I arrived back at my dorm, I noticed a message in the dorm-wide group chat with my name, informing me that I had flowers in the package bin and I should get them so that they would get smashed. I realized right away that these were my dad’s Valentine’s Day flowers, which he sends me every year, even from abroad. My floormates certainly asked me plenty of questions about the flowers, and the girls were both impressed and maybe even a little jealous. 

Right after sunset, I braved the cold again to see a light and video art installation in the Kunstareal, Munich’s art district. Since the museums are closed, they have temporarily been projecting the collections on the buildings’ facades at night. While the art installations created an interesting experience, hopefully I’ll be able to see the collections indoors and at a normal temperature before my time in Munich is done! 

Aside from working on a small painting, Saturday was dedicated to friendship. I had video calls with both Fulbright and architecture friends, and was invited to share dinner with some floormates, who later taught me a new card game.

This site is not an official site of the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State. The views expressed on this site are entirely those of its author, Stephanie Kubus, and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations.