Germany
Well, Andrew and I finally made it over to Germany to visit Paul and Heather. We had a blast! Unfortunately, we did determine once and for all that the travel gods do hate us. We traveled without reservations because it is the off-off-way off season in Germany, so we planned on walking into hotels and naming our price all over Bavaria. Instead, we ran into conferences in Munich and Berchtesgaden and Mozart's birthday celebration in Salzburg that left us with very limited options. On the other hand, we were able to ski on the Konigssee, which hasn't frozen solid in 20 years, so it wasn't all bad luck. I've included some of our pictures below.
Steinbach brewery in Erlangen had fantastic beer and lots of dogs in the bar, a dream for our own future pub.
Can I go downstairs, too?
The FORD Ka. Despite having a larger wingspan than the Ka's wheelbase, I still want one!
A break in the city wall in Ingolstadt, one of my favorite cities.
Andrew found tons of birds to photograph. The wood ducks were my favorite.
Horsey-go-round!
Stone carving (yes, carving) in the Ingolstadt cathedral.
The monstrous entry to the Frauenkirche in Munich.
The small but amazingly intricate Asamkirche.
The story behind this church is that there were two brothers caught in a terrible storm at sea who prayed to God that if he spared their lives, they would build him the most beautiful and ornate church possible. They lived and kept their word, as you can see.
A gate in the city wall of Munich. These city walls were very interesting to me, as Enland didn't have structures that immediately reminded me of feudalism like these did.
The massive and beautiful Theatinerkirche in Munich near the Residenz. This was the nicest part of Munich (esp. since the beergartens were closed).
Inside the Theatinerkirche (note the size of the person).
The view from our breakfast table in Berchtesgaden.
Andrew skiing on the Konigssee.
Elk on the Konigssee.
Along the trail at the end of the Konigssee.
The church in Berchtesgaden at night.
The wonderful restaurant in Berchtesgaden where we gorged ourselves on local beer, spaetzle, schnitzel and strudel!
A cool church in Salzburg.
A view from the top of Salzburg.
On the other side of the valley, you can see the old wall of Salzburg.
Along the river in Salzburg.
The view of Greenland on our flight home. It was an amazing sight and a great treat after a long trip over the Atlantic.
posted by sara at
10:53 AM
2 Comments:
Holy... wow. It looks like you didn't have too much difficulty getting good photos. (Except the one of Andrew...)
By
Umlud, at 7:23 AM
Feudalism and gates and England: you should have checked out Carlisle. However (if I remember my history correctly), the political situation in England proper meant that there was little chance of insurrection in much of southern England for the majority of its history. You have to go north (or in to Wales) to see the rapid escalation of castle technology as local lords tried to hold on to (imperial) power. However, much of the castle fortification technology didn't progress to the levels seen in Germany because Germany was a fractured set of principalities until rather "late" in the game, with armies marching to-and-fro across its face through much of the "Middle Ages" and into the Rennaisance. Thus, castle-building technology had to improve constantly, especially for large cities like Munich. The city walls are more a testament to the longevity of these conflicts into the late Middle Ages, rather than a statement of medievalism. (Of course, I could be wrong in many of the details presented above...)
By
Umlud, at 8:13 AM
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