Munich
Germany became a single united country only in 1871, it is the heart of
Europe, and Bavaria is the southern end of the country. Munich
(München) is considered Germany's most livable city, and hosts the famous
Oktoberfest every year.
Virtually everything was bombed flat in W.W.II and rebuilt since. After the war, Germany's destroyed cities
debated how they'd rebuild — reconstructing the old towns, or bulldozing and
starting over from scratch. While Frankfurt voted to go modern (and is today
nicknamed "Germany's Manhattan"), the people of Munich rebuilt their
old town center. Buildings cannot exceed
the height of the church spires. Munich's downtown is one of Europe's original
great pedestrian zones.
Marienplatz, or Mary's Square, marks the old
center. The neo-Gothic New City Hall — Neues Rathaus — is only about 100 years
old. It dominates the square. The Glockenspiel performs at the top of the hour
as the Bavarian royal couple — celebrating their wedding day — oversees a
joust.
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| The wedding couple is sitting at the table, the jousting takes place in front of them. The characters rotate from both sides. |
Leah: “Munich was so much
fun! We saw the Glockenspiel; a famous
clock that puts on a show at noon that lasts 5-7 minutes, it was so cool! I wanted to go to Dachau, but my mom said it
would be too disturbing and I’m glad I didn’t go.
We also visited the BMW museum and posed inside some nice BMW’s, and ate at
the Hofbräuhaus, where I discovered I loved German sausage!”
Munich is Germany's beer capitol, and the Hofbräuhaus is one of its oldest (founded in 1589 by the Duke of
Bavaria, Wilhelm V) and best beer halls. You may wonder why a non-beer drinking
mother and her children would go to the Hofbräuhaus? It is really quite simple – it is what
tourists do AND you can get a delicious, traditional German meal while
listening to lively music. It also has a very interesting history, read on…
(especially if you love beer and your initials are CGA)
Its beer quickly
became quite popular thanks to the first brewer, Heimeran Pongratz, and the
famous “Bavarian Beer Purity Law” of 1516 that stated that only natural
ingredients could be used in the brewing process. In fact, the beer became so
famous that it once saved the city from annihilation. When King Gustavus
Adolphus of Sweden invaded Bavaria during the Thirty Years' War in 1632, he
threatened to sack and burn the entire city of Munich. He agreed to leave the
city in peace if the citizens surrendered some hostages, and 600,000 barrels of
Hofbräuhaus beer.
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| The ceilings and some walls are painted with lively scenes. |
Additionally, Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart lived around the block from the beer hall in the late eighteenth
century. In a poem he wrote, Mozart claimed to have written the opera Idomeneo
after several visits to the Hofbräuhaus fortified him for the task.
Last, the Hofbräuhaus
in Munich was one of the beer halls used by the Nazi Party to declare policies
and hold functions. On February 24, 1920, Adolf Hitler proclaimed the
twenty-five theses of the National Socialist program at the Hofbräuhaus, which
reconstituted the German Workers' Party as the National Socialist German
Workers' Party, known as the Nazi Party.
Who knew so much could
be accomplished in a beer hall?
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| Now this is a brass band! We LOVED seeing the traditional German clothing. |
John: “Munich was very fun. I
enjoyed especially eating at the Hofbräuhaus. They had delicious potato salad
and schnitzel. I have decided that Germans make the best potato salad IN THE
WORLD! It is seriously delicious.
I also enjoyed getting awesome new suits at the Hugo Boss outlet. Dachau
was a sobering and interesting experience to remember to forgive, but never
forget. Words can’t describe it so I won’t even try.”
The catholic cathedral
Frauenkirche (Church of the Lady), is an historic spot for our family. Outside its doors in
1989, Ryan proclaimed the truth of our church to locals passing by. Of course we had to stop and get a photo! Unfortunately it had lots of scaffolding on
it, covering one whole tower, but we still enjoyed seeing it and thinking about
him.
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| Ready to teach, just like dad, outside Frauenkirche. |
Contruction began in
1468 and it was finished in a quick 20 years.
It holds 20,000 when filled to capacity and is a symbol of Munich, as no building can be taller than the spires on this church (323 feet). Red brick was chosen instead of stone as
there was no stone quarry nearby, and the brick was readily available, hence it
was much more economical.
The cathedral suffered severe damage during World War II— the roof collapsed and one of the towers suffered severe damage. A major restoration effort began after the war and was carried out in several stages, the last of which came to an end in 1994 (Or did it? We saw scaffolding on it). Below, a replica of Munich with Frauenkirche upfront. John literally has the whole world of Munich in his hands.
Dachau, founded in 1933,
was the first concentration camp, the longest running camp at 12 years, a model
camp, and a training ground for camp commandants who studied such subjects as
crowd control and torture. The camp at Dachau was built to hold 5,000, but on
Liberation Day the American GIs found 30,000 packed inside its walls. Some
3,000 were so sick that they died after liberation.
Under Hitler, Germany's prison system overflowed. A network of
concentration camps provided a solution. When inmates arrived, they passed
under the infamous "Arbeit macht frei" ("Work liberates
you") sign. They traded their property, rights and human dignity for a number
— tattooed on their wrist. Hope was not
allowed. During sick parade, the ill and infirm were beaten and ridiculed in
public each evening.
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| The main corridor, with foundation-only barracks on either side. The trees saw it all. They were planted when the camp was built. |
When, finally, Allied troops liberated the camp in 1945 they found train
cars filled with dead bodies. In the chaos of those last days, new arrivals to
Dachau simply weren't unloaded. At the sight of this misery, battle-hardened
American soldiers broke down and wept.
A monument, as big as the train cars that brought in the inmates, stands in
the middle of the camp. It's a black steel tangle of bodies — like the real
ones found woven together at the gas chamber door. At its base, in French,
English, German, Russian and Hebrew, is the message: Forgive, but never forget.
Ellie: “Munich was great. I found
it especially cool that Daddy went there on his mission, so we saw some of the
same sights that he did, and even stood in the same places that he had
described to us. The clock tower was way cool, but it took forever (5-7 minutes). We left
before the music stopped, and we were still there for a good couple of minutes.
On the way to Munich, I discovered my great liking for suit shopping when I
helped my mom find suits for both John and my dad. Strange new hobby, I guess.
Our experience at Dachau is hard to explain. You can’t use the word “fun”
to describe something like that, but it was really cool. I was deeply touched
by all that these prisoners had left behind for us to see. I was saddened by
everything that went on there, as well as appalled. The sight, in its own way,
was beautiful though, as it marked the suffering and the hope of the prisoners
as they spent their last days there.”
As a postscript, I would like to add a few comments. Munich was definitely worth the stop, and I
really enjoyed seeing the city where Ryan, as well as my two brothers, Dave
& Jason, served their missions 20+ years ago. It is vivacious, beautifully rebuilt, and a
delight. There is definitely more we
could have seen and done, but I was so pleased we had the time to make a quick
stop.
One thing I personally loved not mentioned by the kids was the variety and
beauty of classical music being played by musicians in the pedestrian
zone. I believe Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons”
was my favorite. It was an added delight
to the senses, as the beauty of the buildings enchanted the eyes, and the many
stands of fresh cherries (which we purchased of course!) tempted our taste
buds. What a fun afternoon!
Additionally, I must comment on Dachau.
It was a most sobering experience, and I took very few pictures as I
felt it was in some way not respecting the memory of what happened there. The camp was tastefully presented, with
plenty of the original structures in tact.
The museum chronologically cataloged many artifacts, documents, stories,
and photos of the prisoners, Nazis, and other people who were associated with
the camp. It was something every human
should see and “Never Forget.”
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| How we see Europe - hand in hand, older kids paired with younger kids. A beautiful sight! |
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