We have just come back from a lovely week in Bavaria, Southern Germany where the snow on the tallest peaks of the German Alps is just starting to melt. Unfortunately the melting glaciers forced the temporary closure of the main local attractions a couple of weeks earlier; the Partnach Gorge. And since I have seen the "mad" Bavarian King Ludwig's castles and the beautifully frescoed Oberammergau on previous trips to this region, we decided to stay locally this week, and just enjoy a change of scenery from Tuscany. And what a scenery!
We stayed in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, a name that even for the locals is a mouthful, so they just abbreviate it to Garmisch. It turns out that the two towns Garmisch and Partenkirchen were forced to become one by decree of Adolf Hitler in order for Germany to be eligible to host the Winter Olympics in 1936.
It is still very much evident that there are two centra, and the more quaint is certainly Partenkirchen, nestled up against the "hill"side, and sporting (mainly) pedestrian only King Ludwigstrasse with its colorfully painted and decorated housefronts.
The winter sports tradition is still very strong, and which Finn doesn't remember cheering for Matti Nykänen during the annual ski jumping week in G-P?
We had wonderfully sunny spring weather and enjoyed some lovely walks with the alps looking down on us, breathing in the freshest of fresh air. Sofia is, as always, on a road of discovery; the life of a one-year-old!
She made some fun discoveries daily, like the sensation of walking barefeet on the carpet in our room, or running down the long corridor, getting entangled in the long curtains, the Sofia-sized rocking chair in front of the giant fireplace in the lobby, and how great it is to be first in line for the mid-afternoon snack at daycare!
I managed a couple of "creativity outlet" sessions at the local Arts & Crafts center, and realized afterwards that I completely ignored the beautiful mountain scenery outside the windows, in favor of a warm sunset scene from Africa... I wonder what that was all about?
But I was happy to try a new technique and discover how the paints flow together on the silk, and I wanted to put together a motif that I would be pleased with afterwards. And for a first try, I was quite pleased with the outcome, which you can see here, however still stretched out and unwashed.
Now I've got to make time to get it framed too!
I had the obligatory Wienerschnitzel, potato Knödel (a sort of a giant dumpling), Weissbier (wheat beer) and Apfelstrudel at a local Bräuhaus on King Ludwigstrasse in Partenkirchen while being entertained by traditional Tyrolean dancing and accordion music.
Thankfully Sofia was quite mesmerized by the entertainment, moreso than any of us by our barely average run-of-the-mill food unfortunately. So we enjoyed the locale and the company!
Prost & Grüss Gott!
