Leopoldstrasse

Lonely Planet review

Grab a table in a street-side café on Leopoldstrasse and watch the world on parade. What do you see? Bronzed lotharios in deep-buttoned white shirts. Faux blondes in tiny tees. Teens in tight premium jeans. Chic mamas walking designer dogs. Yup, no matter what you've heard or read, Schwabing's reputation as a boho stronghold of artists and students is a thing of the past.

Fact is, Schwabing is thoroughly gentrified, has some of the highest rents in town and is populated by lawyers, editors, professors and trust fund babies in beemers.

Some live in beautifully restored Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) buildings along such streets as Ainmillerstrasse and Gedonstrasse. Through it all runs urban Leopoldstrasse with its wide sidewalks, poplar trees and cafés and bars aplenty. Best of all, the English Garden is only a quick stroll away.

Like all grand boulevards, Leopoldstrasse is a catwalk for the masses, a wide and shady promenade in full view of passing traffic and perfect for showing off the goods - a new car, a new woman, a new outfit - especially on warm summer evenings. The task is made easier by the rows of street-side café tables packed with aspirants and arrivés. The tallest eye-catcher along here, though, is Jonathan Borofsky's Walking Man, a white 17m-high alien captured in mid-stride.