Monday had an interesting start because I could hardly move my neck. Thankfully the previous night's bath did manage to soak away the other small injuries that I had but my neck did get quite a beating so my mission for the day, apart from washing, shopping and cooking, was to track down some heat rub or something equally as soothing. It's been non-stop since I hit the ground runnig here in Munich so it was nice to have a lazy morning and fill my day with some domestic chores. I skyped mum and dad and it was great to have a chat face to face, technology advancement may have its flaws but it really has done some great things for keeping people connected. 
Roaming the streets of Munich I started to realise that parts of it were already becoming familiar which made me feel just a little less foreign. Making my way back to the Victory Markets to buy some ingredients for dinner I took a different route through as many of the shopping arcades and streets that I could - doesn't matter where you are, window shopping is a great past time. There are days that I'm completely anti-consumerism of course but today wasn't one of them, there is a magic about the presentation and warm lighting in shop windows of shiny new things that can put a smile on my face. I didn't buy anything of course, I have been wanting to replace the boots that I am wearing with a more comfortable, better quality pair and let's be honest, if they were pretty and stylish I wouldn't complain - and I found some too, they were the right style, shape, colour, fabric etc, every box was ticked and then I saw the price. I don't mind paying for quality, but four hundred euro for a pair of boots does not quite fit into my travellers budget. 

The Victory Markets were even more of a delight to my senses the second time around, and because I had a few items to purchase there was a new challenge to consider - actually making purchases with stall holders that don't speak much english. Luckily I have grown up with an Italian influence so overly expressive hand gestures come naturally to me and I could manage to describe quantities and products through some comically b******ised version of charades. For the most part my purchases were a success... I was a little stung by the price of the fish I bought but that was just my error in miss-reading the price that is based on 100g not 1000g as it is back home. It wasn't too bad though and as I was cooking a thank you meal for Ralf for his wonderful hospitality I was more than happy to pay the bit extra for it. In true Liana style - and the fact that I was cooking for a really great cook which always makes me nervous - I managed to throw together three quite delicious courses in a foreign kitchen (which any cook will know can be time consuming when you don't know where everything is) and the overall rating of the meal was a success. Oh and Julz, because you asked, the menu was cream of broccoli soup for entree. For main, crispy skinned salmon with a fennel, orange segment and toasted flaked almond salad (with a reduced orange juice dressing), and a blueberry and apple crumble with vanilla and agave syrup sweetened sour cream for dessert. Win. 

The next day I ventured a few minutes out of the city to Nymphenburg Palace which to say the least was quite an extraordinary location, even in winter when the garden is in hibernation and the grounds staff are turning the soil and preparing the garden beds for spring you can still enjoy the beauty of it all. There was a sweet little kiosk set up in the gardens where I'd hoped to grab a little something for lunch, as it turned out the kiosk attendant spoke very little English, I had no idea what any of the menu items were and all they had on display that I could point to were massive slices of delicious looking cakes... what is a hungry girl to do? So my not so healthy lunch consisted of a giant slice of plum cake and a latte macchiato, the only thing I am confident enough to order. This being my third beverage of that name that I'd had in Munich and to discover it served in an entirely new way again, had me more than a little amused. The first one I ordered was at the espresso bar near the victory markets and, as expected, I was presented with a tall glass and cafe latte type drink. Take two was at a cafe when I was wandering through the shopping arcades and this time it was a similar drink served in a large bowl, not an issue just a bit different. This time however the beverage was served in quite an odd shaped glass, was luke warm, and the expectation was to drink it through the giant (thick shake sized) straw they gave me... seriously, same drink, three different versions - I can only wait with baited breath for the next instalment. On my way home I did a little thrift shopping to scrape together a few costumes for Carnivale in Cologne. Ralf and his friends had made it sound like too much fun to be missed so I cancelled the few things I had arranged for Berlin (which I will get back to later next month) and booked a one way train ticket to Cologne.