THINGS TO DO IN MÜ: 16 DECEMBER - 22 DECEMBER

It seems like we'll be having another snow-less warm Christmas this year. So no excuses for sitting around at home, while the sun is shining. Here is our special list of things to see & do this week in Munich!

Monday, 16 December:
IMPROV-THEATRE: BAKE THIS - Munich's first improvisation theatre in English is performing at Hot Shot, where you can have a huge steak or a huge burger and enjoy their show last show for this year. Starts at 8pm.

Tuesday, 17 December:
EXPLORE THE STARS: The Volkssternwarte is offering tours called "Münchner Sternstunden". Have a look at the observatory and watch the starts over Munich through a telescope, lay back at the planetarium and learn everything about the solar system and its planets. Starts at 8pm, tickets 5€/3€.

Wednesday, 18 December:
ARTS & TALK: Lothringer13 Shop hosts a series of art workshops / talks / events called Munich/Blackness. This week Jay Rutledge will be taking over the stage, a journalist with a focus on Africa. Starts at 7pm. Free, just turn up.

Thursday, 19 December:
MUSIC: 8 Musicians from Munich, Heidelberg and Paris play Gipsy Jazz in Kunstbar und Lesesaal Provisorium. Join for a relaxed evening of improvisation and drinks. Starts at 7pm.

Friday, 20 December:
CREATIVE NETWORKING: It's this time of the month! Another inspiring session of Creative Mornings is coming up, and this month's topic is "Make" with an artist duo Leo and Bjørn who will be giving insights into their creative practice. It's free, but register now to ensure a seat! From 8.30am until 10am.

Saturday, 21 December:
SOFT CIRCUIT WORKSHOP: If you still need some unique hand-made Christmas presents or just want to stay away from the crowds in huge shops and get crafty in good company, this is your chance! Come to Anna's soft circuit workshop at the FabLab and make a glowing Christmas card, a Christmas tree toy or a winter monster. For adults, from 1.30pm until 4.30pm, costs 30€ + 7.50€ (materials). Register by sending an e-mail to anmeldung@fablab-muenchen.de

Sunday, 22 December:
ADVENT IN WERKBOX3: It's the fourth advent and Werkbox3 will be opening its doors for a weekend of screen-printing and ink drawing workshops, a fashion show and a flea market. And it's all free.

Have a lovely week everyone!

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ: 11 DECEMBER - 15 DECEMBER

Wednesday, 11 December: 
THERE AND BACK AGAIN: The second part of the Hobbit is out! If you can't get enough of the Middle-Earth, head to the Cinema for the 3D double feature in English: The Hobbit. Part I: An Unexpected Journey and Part II: The Desolation of Smaug. Starts at 8.15pm, tickets 19.90€.

Thursday, 12 December:
OPEN SCENE: Film Museum is participating in a film project called FOOTSTEPS IN JERUSALEM – A TRIBUTE TO DAVID PERLOV. They will be showing Perlov's famous documentary "In Jerusalem" (1967), as well as two contemporary documentaries inspired by Perlov's poetic representation of the city. Duration of the triptych: 90 min, starts at 7pm, tickets 4€. St.-Jakobs-Platz 1.

REPAIR CAFE: Come and get your bike ready for the winter at the WinterFit Bike Kitchen. There will be all the necessary tools, bike experts to consult you and alcoholic drinks to encourage you. From 7pm until 9pm, at Machwerk, Schulstr. 1.

Friday, 13 December:
MEETING PEOPLE: Every Friday there is a Grand English Speaking International Stammtisch G.E.I.S.T, where you can meet people interested in an active life in Munich: plan trips or walks together, attend events of all kinds, speak various languages, etc. From 8pm until 11pm, Rechthaler Hof Restaurant, Arnulfstr. 10.

Saturday, 14 December:
CREATIVE XMAS PRESENTS: Stijl Design Markt: A Christmas design market with beats and drinks. More than 100 local designers will be selling jewelry, fashion clothes, furniture, paperwork, etc. - a perfect place for a Christmas-present hunt. Tickets 6€/4€, from Saturday noon until Sunday 6pm, at Alte Zündapphalle, Grafingerstr. 6, Kultfabrik am Ostbahnhof.

Sunday, 15 December:
DIY ART FESTIVAL: A wild mix of DIY culture: Kafe Kult is organising the 9th non-profit Kafe Kunst Fest with installations, performances, live-bands, craft market with peculiar items and vegan food. See the huge list of participating artists here. Anna will be taking part with her wearable tech stuff as well, showing her new project and offering a XMas card/ XMas monster workshop. Come along for a lot of fun!


picture by Gareth Foote

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ THIS WEEKEND: 7 - 8 DECEMBER

After spending two past pre-Christmases in London, we are totally in the mood to embrace all the Christmas kitsch Munich has to offer! It is definitely not the same without all those advents, authentic Christmas markets and the best lebkuchen in the world! Anna is even so desperate, that she is probably going to bake plätzchen for the first time in her life...

Here are some exciting things for the weekend, to fill your gaps between drinking glühwein and swallowing sweets:

Saturday, 7 December:

AUGMENTED REALITY: Augmented Reality Show with Markus Layman, a mix of new technologies and magic tricks. We're particularly intrigued by the promise to combine this show with a critical discourse on technology and society. Shows are on Saturday and Sunday, tickets 18€/15€, starts at 8pm.

ARTS & ACADEMIC RESEARCH: If you are into artistic research and combination of practice and academic theory, you might want to pop in the LaborARTtorium, a weekend of lectures, performances and installations organised by LMU's PhD program ProArt. Starts at 9.30am on Friday and Saturday. See the full program here.

Sunday, 8 December:
BRUNCH & MAKE: An open studio space / cafe / shop HUIJ offers a special second advent brunch. Go for the classical version with apples, or try something new: a vegan strudel with red cabbage and pear or a veggie strudel. 11.30am - 15.30pm.

VINYL FLEA-MARKET: All you second-hand vinyl lovers like us! There will be a flee-market at the bar Favorit, Damenstiftstr 12. The entry is free, and if you want to sell some of your old treasures, it is also free. Starts at 7.30pm. 

XMAS & HOT DRINKS: Have a cup of the comforting hot liquid from the biggest Feuerzangenbowle (hot punch with rum, red wine and sugar) in the world (9.000 l.!!), which will be installed at Isartor. To keep your eyes busy, the organisers will be showing the German Christmas classics "Die Feuerzangenbowle" from 1944. Starts at 11am every day, from 6 Dec until 6 Jan, just turn up.
 

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ: 2 DECEMBER - 6 DECEMBER

Winter has arrived. The roofs and trees are covered with snow, small crowds are shivering at the bus stops as they watch the crazy cyclists go by on snow-covered bicycle lanes. Perfect time for spending the evenings at home on the sofa with a nice cuppa and your telly. We really don't blame you if that's how you feel, for we feel the same. So this is just a small reminder of what you'd be missing out on this week!

Monday, 2 December:
SAUDADE: Get into winter mood with Portugal's Queen of Fado. The wonderful Mariza and her Band will bring sad but beautiful Portuguese songs from the streets of Lisbon to the philharmonic hall at Gasteig (8pm, tickets from 34EUR)

Tuesday, 3 December:
ARTS EXHIBITIONS: From time to time, checking out the arts exhibitions beyond the walls of Munich's established museums can be really rewarding. We suggest to do it today, starting with the "Brainy Days" exhibition by the amazing artist duo Herakut in the muca. Then, at 5.30PM, head to lothringer13 for a public tour of "A piece that nobody needs" by Pratchaya Phinthong.

Wednesday, 4 December:
TOLLWOOD & FILM: The Tollwood winter festival has started last week, featuring a gazillion of food stalls, bazaar tents, shows, concerts, kids activities etc. The socially critical motto of this year's festival is "artgerecht" (species-appropriate husbandry), so don't miss the chance to combine a leisurely visit with experiencing how the live in a battery farm from a hen's perspective (check out the impressive artist installation right at the centre of the festival area)! Here you can scroll through the December program day by day (or click on any particular day at the top of the page). The ENCORE PLUSVIEX street theatre today at 5PM looks weird enough to arouse our interest!

OTHER CHRISTMAS FAIRS: If you think Tollwood is too crowded or too far away or simply too Tollwood, but still want to enjoy a nice cup of Glühwein and spend some money on cute Christmas junk - easy enough! Just check the full list of Christmas fairs in Munich provided by the city and pick the one you prefer.

Thursday, 5 December:
FILM & MUSEUM BIRTHDAY: The Filmmuseum celebrates its 50th birthday! A full week of celebrations ends tonight with a "Zuschauerkino" special that promises to be quite exceptional! First, five movies by renowned directors of today that had been "discovered" in the "Zuschauerkino" over the last 50 years will be screened, including Werner Schroeter and Wim Wenders. After that, the "Zuschauerkino" of today will be screened. The only rule that applies to the films (preselected by a jury) is a maximum length of 13 minutes. The film makers will be present and there will be a Q&A after the screenings. Filmmuseum, 7pm, tickets from 5EUR.

Friday, 6 December:
ARTS TILL LATE: Villa Stuck, the arts museum located in a historic building designed by Franz Stuck, is open until 10PM every first Friday of the month. Moreover, from 6 till 10pm the entrance to all exhibition and the historic rooms is free! The FRIDAY LATE openings are also often accompanied by live acts, DJs and guided tours through the historic rooms. Don't forget to try the "Sünde Cocktail" (sin cocktail) at the museum café!

Weekend will follow in a separate post!

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ: 25 NOVEMBER - 1 DECEMBER

Two months have past since the birth of this blog, and we continue our quest of discovering Munich's arts & culture beyond the mainstream. Yet, if it wasn't for other wonderful and inspiring Munich bloggers such as Rachel, the mucbook team or the guys from MunichOpenMinded, we would not even not know where to start. So check out the blog roll we added below on the right, where we assembled some of Munich's most essential and most beautiful arts & culture blog sites, and be inspired!

We are having a lot of fun with this blog, and as long as it stays so, we will continue. So far, our audience is quite small, and we do not really have the means of widening it. But who cares? YOU are here, and that's what matters! You don't even need to like us on Facebook, subscribe to our email feed or share our posts via Google+, or generally tell the world that you found this amazing blog! Just come back whenever you like, you'll find the doors open.

Enough said, here's some action for the last week of November!

Monday, 25 November:
PURA VIDA GYPSY PUNK: To be honest, we were not really impressed by the Arctic Monkeys in Zenith a few weeks ago. In general, we are not very frequent concert goers, and there are others who can tell you a lot more about Munich's vivid music scene. However, there are some gigs that we just cannot miss, and tonight is one of them.  Gogol Bordello is playing Tonhalle at 8PM, and this is Pura Vida indeed! Tickets are still available at about 30EUR. Dancing your feet off is guaranteed!

FELTING: If you've always wanted to learn how to felt, here is your best chance. There will be a free Christmas needle felting workshop at Siebenmachen at 7pm! There are still free tickets available here.

Tuesday, 26 November:
THINK & DRINK: This one unfortunately is only for our German speaking readers, yet we could not ignore it. Cafe Luitpold will be transformed into a philosophical salon tonight, and actors and professors of sociology and economy will discuss "Karl Marx, the bourgeoisie and the 99%", while the audience will drink and think. 8PM, entrance is free, booking advised.      

Wednesday, 27 November:
THEATRE PARCOURS: A co-production of the SPIELART theatre festival, Münchner Kammerspiele and about a dozen theatres from all over the world, SITUATION ROOMS is a "simultaneous video walk" for 20 spectators, constructing a globalised world of governors and refugees. 20 tickets are quickly gone, despite 3 to 4 shows per day until end of November, and you can no longer book any tickets online. However, apparently for almost every show there are tickets left at the box office, so just turn up and try your luck. 

Thursday, 28 November:
TALKING DIGITAL: "It's like Discovery Channel with beer" - that's the motto of the Nerd Nite, a series of talks of nerdy enthusiasts that has been going on since 2009. This time the Nerd Nite (from 8.15pm) is integrated into the Zündfunk Netzkongress 42 (from 12pm), a congress that will discuss our digital past, present and future at the Volkstheater. You can get tickets for the congress and the Nerd Nite here. The topics of the Nerd Nite this time: cryptography, computer games, zombies and existentialism.

MUSIC LOVERS: If you prefer great live music to nerdy talks, this one's for you: Kafe Kult is hosting two fantastic bands tonight at 9PM, the experimental indie band Beißpony from Munich and the "queer feminist trio" Lovers from Portland. Here are the details of the event.

Friday, 29 November:
CREATIVE NETWORKING: Creative Mornings are hosting another talk, this time Maximilian Heitsch will be talking about courage. Max is a founder of the Aaber Award, an independent exhibition platform for Munich's young artists, in which Anna had the pleasure of participating this year (you can read more about it in her blog). Max is very young, energetic and inspiring, we highly recommend this event and feel sad that we won't be able to attend this time. It's free, but be sure to register first thing on Monday, as tickets go away quickly.

Saturday, 30 November:
CULT FILM: Some films run for a day, some for a month, some are so popular that they run for as long as a year, but this one is extraordinary: For more than 35 years "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is screened at Museum Lichtspiele each Friday and Saturday at 11pm. There is even a theme-decorated cinema hall! Sounds like one for the Guiness book of Records? Well, it's in there already.

Sunday, 1 December:
X-MAKERS: Another exciting event by the organisers of Make Munich: XMake Munich. The tickets are just 5€ and there will be plenty of exciting talks, workshops, music, food and other things throughout the day, from 10am until 6pm, Arcisstr. 21, 5th floor. All you nerds and creatives, don't miss out! Anna will be offering a soft circuit workshop on Christmas cards with flickering lights,  accompanied by two wonderful friends from London, one of them a real wearables pro who actually got her into this business!

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ THIS WEEK: 18-24 NOVEMBER

Monday, 18 November:
FILM SCHOOL FESTIVAL: The 33d International Festival of the Film Schools is on in Munich until Saturday. Short films created by the film directors of tomorrow. Check out the timetable and don't forget to buy your tickets in advance for the evening programs, since they can be sold out pretty fast.  Each program features 4 to 5 films. Having been to many of the previous festivals, we can't remember a single time that we left uninspired.

Tuesday, 19 November:
SONG SLAM: Song Slam in the music club Milla, Holzstr. 28.
8 song-writers perform their 8-minute-long pieces. In the end the audience chooses the winner who gets a bottle of Schnaps. Tickets 8€. Starts at 9pm.

Wednesday, 20 November:
BOOKS & LITERATURE: From 7th to 24th November there is a book exhibition and a literature festival at Gasteig. To find out about exciting talks, workshops and other events check out the full program.

EXHIBITION: Platform 3 - a newly established city space for art and artists' studios - has an opening exhibition this evening. In collaboration with Burear Mirco Borsche. My friends Steffi and Klaus have their studio there. And another friend - Polly - will be performing at 8.30pm. Starts at 7pm, free.

Thursday, 21 November:
GEEKS: Make Munich Cafe organises another gathering of 3d printing enthusiasts. This time there is a competition for the best lampshade, which will be awarded with an ice-cream. Werk 1, Grafinger Str. 6. Free, just turn up and talk about your past or future 3d projects.

Friday, 22 November:
RUSSIAN FOOD & CONCERT: Victoria Lye will be playing piano and singing jazz, soul and Russian chancons in the Russian-Ukranian Restaurant "Café Sereno" at 7PM. Sounds like a nice mix of food and music. Entry free, but you should reserve your seats.

Saturday, 23 November:
GAMES: Münchenglück - a card game where you are single, jobless and homeless in the beginning and need to look for all those things. Comes with Lebkuchen, warm drinks and nice people. Hosted by Siebenmachen, a very cute shop which sells handmade design items. It's free but there are only 8 places, so make sure you drop a line to info/AT/siebenmachen.de. Starts at 3pm.

CINEMA: It's the 50th anniversary of an essentially British sci-fi show Doctor Who.  It's the day when the very first episode was screened 1963. To celebrate this very special occasion, the BBC is releasing a special episode The Day of the Doctor, which will be screened in cinemas around the globe. Munich must be a stronghold of Doctor Who fans in Germany, since it is the only German city where the 50th anniversary special will be screened in two cinemas (Cinema and Cinemaxx), and both are already almost fully booked. Be quick, there might be some tickets left for the 11pm show at Cinema!

Sunday, 24 November:
ARTS & PEOPLE: So, you have heard that the state museums are practically free (1€) on Sunday, but  you don't know who to go with and find visiting museums on your own kind of sad? Luckily, you are not alone. Just sign up for the Meetup and stroll around the Pinakothek der Moderne with a bunch of nice, open minded people. With or without the meetup, the Traumbilder exhibition in the recently reopened museum is definitely worth the trip.

Coming up:
FELTING: Also, if you've always wanted to learn how to felt, there will be a free workshop at Siebenmachen next Monday, at 7pm! It's a tiny place, so make sure you register asap here.

THINGS TO DO IN MÜ THIS WEEK: 11-17 NOVEMBER

EMAIL SUBSCRIPTION People have been telling us that they are not receiving any updates from the feed, and we finally got around to fix the problem. Now you can subscribe to the email feed (use the form on the right next to the blog entry) and get a weekly email packed with all those awesome things you could do in Munich day in, day out! Well, maybe except for Mondays, since it looks like we are constantly late with suggesting anything for the first day of the week. Maybe we should always start the week on Tuesday, and reserve Monday for lying in bed all day and thinking about all those amazing things we did last week. Seems like a good idea to us, what do you think? ;)

Monday, 11 November:
Too late to recommend anything for tonight, so lay back and chill out!

Tuesday, 12 November:
BRIT POP: About seven years later than the rest of the world, we got word that Arctic Monkeys is a pretty good band. To be honest, we heard about that earlier, but today we are going to get the final proof. Arctic Monkeys are playing Zenith tonight, and it looks like you can still get tickets!

Wednesday, 13 November:
THEATRE IN THE CINEMA: The first ever live cinema broadcast from the stage of the Royal Shakespeare Company! Richard II with David Tennant in the title role. 8PM, 190 minutes (with a break), 18€. A few tickets are still left!

Thursday, 14 November:
DOCUMENTARY & DISCUSSION: The weekly "Open Scene" in the Filmmuseum in cooperation with the Munich American Peace Committee will be screening the documentary "Dirty Wars" (USA 2013) by Richard Rowley an Jeremy Schahill, followed by a discussion with very interesting speakers. Both the screening and the discussion will be in English. 

APROPOS Filmmuseum: The Film School Festival starts next week, and the Ticket Web Shop should be open from today!

Friday, 15 November:
CABARET & PARTY: Now this is a Must-See, Must-Listen and a Must-Dance! The traditional "Piroschki Party" organised by the makers of the JULA-festival once again brings the Belarusian band "Serebryanaya Svadba" to Munich. If you have ever seen this band on stage, you won't want to miss the chance to see them again. Music, dancing, cabaret and the pure joy of life!  NachtKantine (Kultfabrik),  9:30PM, tickets are a bargain - 12€ in advance and 15€ at the door.

Saturday, 16 November:
CINEMA & BRUNCH: KINObrunch at JULA-festival. Short films of young directors from Middle and Eastern Europe. 12pm - 3pm. Tickets 8€/ 6€. Arena Filmtheater, Hans-Sachs-Str. 7. Also, check out the full programme of JULA, they have plenty of theatrical and musical highlights between 13-17 November.

Sunday, 17 November:
URBAN CULTURE: Festival of Independents - MUNICH/NOW/HERE in Haus der Kunst. The festival looks at the specific urban context of Munich and explores the impulses emanating from the city's independent scene. Includes exhibitions, events, seminars, concerts and workshops. From 15th November until the 1st December. Day ticket excl. concerts 5€, festival pass 65€.
My personal pick for Sunday:
Knit Nite - a DIY get together of knitters, 3pm.
Repair Cafe organised by HEI (Haus der Eigenarbeit) - bring your broken toaster, lamp or cd-player and get it fixed, 3pm.
City of Commonists - a lecture on DIY movement and common urban spaces by Christa Müller, 7pm.