A Bavarian Adventure

Fast cars, huge beer mugs, beautiful mountains, spectacular castles… the stereotypes of Bavaria (known as Bayern in Germany) abound. If you think I will say they are all a fiction… an over simplified and antiquated memory from a time long past, then you will be… wrong! Here is a chronicle for you that I hope you will find entertaining.

We left our apartment early Saturday morning armed with map books and printed Google directions to the land down under; Destination, Munich (München). The familiar and tame A115 highway led us out of Berlin and past Potsdam. After leaving the confines of the Berlin ring road (a wicked big route 128) we hopped on the A9. The A9 is the Autobahn in all its glory. A three lane pipeline to München. This was our first full blown Autobahn experience and it quickly lived up to expectations. The trucks were in an orderly row along the far right lane, plodding along at a mere 100 KPH (about 60 MPH). We were cruising along in the middle lane at around 140 KPH (about 85 MPH). The speedsters were zooming by in the left lane at what seemed like twice our speed. Audi, after Audi after Audi interspersed with BMWs, Mercedes and Porsches went screaming by so fast the wind from them literally pushed our Passat wagon to the side. Astounding! The trick, of course, is knowing when to get into that super fast lane. At those speeds, a speck in the rearview mirror quickly becomes and irate tailgater if you don’t time it right. I have to admit, I found the trip down a bit harrowing. At one point the boys (and my wife, “Lead Foot Coppes”) egged me on to see how fast we could go. I got up to 160 (about 100 MPH) and as the blood drained from my face and the knuckles of my clenched hands, I quickly decided that 140 was just fine with me.

There are contradictions in every society. For example I always found it odd that the US, land of freedom, has so many regulations about public consumption of alcohol. The Autobahn is a contradiction to me too. Here we are, living in a society that prides itself on conservation, recycling, fuel efficient vehicles and all things green, yet the cars screaming down the fast lane are designed for excess… excessive speed, excessive fuel consumption, excessive luxury and excessive cost. Humorously, there are billboards every now and then along the side of the road subtly reminding the drivers that speed is not a substitute for masculine endowment… but I think the guys driving 200 KPH are too busy dodging trucks to pay attention.

We took a brief detour in Northern Bayern to the small city of Schweinfurt (Pig Ford) to visit our friend Renate. The city was a ball bearing manufacturing center almost completely destroyed during WWII. Renate's dad was an engineer and, after moving there in 1952, he helped to rebuild the ball bearing business. The company built them a small house, and Renate's 90 year old Mom still lives there. It was lovely to see Renate and a real treat to meet her mother. We briefly toured the center of town; had a wonderful lunch, and headed to Munich. We arrived in München in time for an evening stroll and traditional German meal at an old beer hall. The food was great, the beer was even better! We sauntered back to our hotel in time to go swimming (all hail the Holiday Inn) and settled in for a not-so-good sleep on hotel beds. All except Cam, of course, who had built himself a “nest” on the floor and slept like a log.

We were up early again on Sunday and headed southwest toward the German Alps, destination Neuschwanstein. The weatherman promised a glorious day, but he forgot to say when. The entire drive down was like sailing in Maine in August. Thick fog covered the land and hid all the glories of the Romantic Road from view. We had our map, we had directions, but we did not have radar; it might have helped. After feeling our way through the village of Schwangau we eventually found the parking area for the Schloss. We could not understand why there were not any signs to guide us there. Little did we know that without the fog, the castle is visible for miles. Oh dear. Anyway, in a pessimistic mood we parked and trudged up the hill past the souvenir shops to the ticket office, picked up our tickets and were on our way up the winding path to the castle, just us, the forest, the mountains, and about 5,000 other tourists clambering over each other like ants at a picnic.

Neuschwanstein was made famous as the model for the castle in Disneyland. It is actually not very old and not a real medieval castle. Building began in 1869 based on drawings of a Munich opera scenery painter. Ludwig II, King of Bayern, dedicated the castle to the famous German opera composer Richard Wagner. The entire castle is decorated with paintings depicting scenes from his operas. What makes Neuschwanstein so amazing is its location. It is perched on the slopes of a small mountain, with a beautiful river carving through a gorge below it. Over that gorge, Ludwig’s father built an iron bridge dedicated to his wife Maria von Bayern. The Marienbrücke provides astounding views of the castle. From this perspective, the castle appears to be high in the mountains overlooking the Alps and lakes beyond. Although it is a magnificent setting, the scale of the castle and the mountains is a bit deceiving. It is not quite as impressive in real life as it is in photos. Still, it was worth the trip. It was especially nice driving back through the farm land to Munich and being able to see the lovely scenery that had been obscured by fog.

Sunday evening we headed back into the city center again for dinner. We ended up in the basement of the town hall (the Rathaus) in the Ratskeller restaurant, a wonderful maze of alcoves filled with tables and happy diners. Rat, by the way, means advice, not rodents. The Rathaus is an amazing building. It was built around the same time as Mad Ludwig’s Neuschwanstein. The exterior is covered with elaborately carved stone sculptures, complete with a plethora of gargoyles and a lovely clock tower (Glockenspiel) that entertains onlookers with a mechanized Coopers Dance, complete with a parade and jousting knights. This giant Cuckoo Clock is a site to see.

Monday we strolled through the old city seeing sites like the Viktualienmarkt, the Frauenkirche and the old east gate. Munich is markedly different than Berlin in many ways. It is a much older city and has winding, narrow streets. The Frauenkirche, for example, is an ancient church built between 1468 and 1488. Its twin bell towers are 100 meters tall. From the top of one tower, we had a commanding view of Munich with the Alps hovering in the haze to the south, and the modern Olympic tower rising dramatically in the north. That would be our next destination.

My memories of the Olympic stadium are jaundiced by the tragic murder of the Israeli athletes there in 1972. From the top of the Olympic tower we gazed down on the athlete housing where that terrible crisis took place. The crystal clear weather, warm sun, and astoundingly beautiful Olympic park displaced those memories with the here and now. The architecture of the park is still modern, despite being over 30 years old, and the park surrounding it is magnificent. A large lake adjacent to the sports facilities is cradled by a man made hill with slopes of green grass and walking paths snaking around it. We enjoyed a pleasant walk to the top of this hill, although it was a bit disturbing to learn that it was made from the ruins of Munich's bombed out buildings. We then returned to our hotel to enjoy our own Olympic water sports. These largely consisted of Jack and Cam laughing uproariously and disturbing the business men trying to relax there. Hopefully we will be allowed to return at some point in the future. :-)

The drive back was far easier than the drive down. I actually became comfortable with the high speeds. Interestingly, both of the kids commented that they were happy to be "home" That is a good sign that we are finally getting settled in.