On the sixth stop on the journey to meet and marry Louis August, dauphin of France, Maria Antonia was tiring and had developed a cold. A number of the royal contingent were sick as well.

They had been traveling through days of rain, with the roads turning muddy. After moving from location to location, on April 26 it was time for this royal retinue on this bridal journey to Versailles to have a break. What better location than Nymphenburg Palace, a palace said to have beautiful gardens, second only to Versailles.

Amalienburg

I was ready to settle in for an extra day myself. I arrived at the bustling Munich train station taking a moment to get my bearings in the maze of terminals, platforms and exits. With the help of some folks taking a smoke break outside the station, I found my way through a construction barricade to the tram line across the street. I hopped on a Line 2 tram as it was leaving for Amalienburg, a small village that Munich stretched out to meet over the centuries.

The tram was great, a smooth ride through the outskirts of Munich to the community of Amalienburg. I wasn’t able to determine how to pay through the automated system, so I likely still owe the transportation system eight or ten euros for my round trip.

Nymphenburg Palace

What an amazing destination for a two-day break. The Nymphenburg Palace where Maria Antonia was a guest dominates the village in the nicest way. The expansive grounds include formal gardens as well as wooded paths.

From the time the exquisite and luxurious palace was created as a hunting lodge by Elector Ferdinand Maria and Electress Henriette Adelaide in the late 1600’s, the grounds were open to nearby residents to walk and enjoy the gardens. That carries through to today. As I arrived prior to open hours for the palace, a few people were getting in their morning run.

This was the first morning I really felt a longing to join locals on a run. I knew better, but a runner nursing an injury can always yearn, especially in the flowered long walkways and trails through this estate.

Bavarian Dynasty & Palace History

A tour of the palace was a delight, the most thorough audio tour I have experienced in similar venues. The baroque style and mythological symbolism spread throughout the palace were almost more than I could take in during one tour.

Portraits of the family in one room, a room of portraits referred to as the Gallery of Beauties include a number of mistresses of King Ludwig I in another.

The light streaming in and the expansive view of the formal garden made it hard to continue the tour from this grand reception.

The Wittelsbach family, who had ruled Bavaria for about 700 years until the end of the dynasty in 1918, continue to maintain a private residence within this now-public palace. Maria Antonia was hosted by Prince Elector Maximilian in that family lineage and gave the entire Amalienburg Pavilion over for her comfort.

Palace Gardens and Woods

Given the formal beauty set off by the natural wooded paths on almost 500 acres, I expect Maria Antonia must have been right at home. Just a year or two before her family’s pledge to the French royal family, she was a kid who preferred running in the park and chasing butterflies on her family estate to any formal study with her governess.

It’s been a refreshing two days walking the halls and gardens of a Bavarian dynasty. Maria Antonia benefited from her rest and so did I. Time to move on across Bavaria to our next stop, Augsburg.

Bonus Photo

A fellow traveler who had just arrived in the Munich station on an overnight train from Italy explained the significance of the clothing and staff of this traveler. In the European custom, his dress indicates he has done an apprenticeship, and now will travel as a carpenter for at least three years. The practice dates back to the days of the guilds and the middle ages.