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Home Page > Travelogues > Germany > Bayern > Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Vacationers to Bavaria had undoubtedly heard of
"Garmisch", more properly known a It
was the year-round nature of Garmisch-Partenkirchen that made
it so successful -- skiing thoroughout the winter, hiking and places to visit in
the summer. Garmisch's train station connected Deutsche Bahn travelers with
several trains and gondola rides leading to the
First, we'll present the Garmisch side. The town of Garmisch
was very much like a regular town, with
more of the eve The restaurants, and their
traditional cuisine, were noteworthy. Many espouse a hunting theme, as this
region was a popular destination for hunters. The interior designs often included the stuffed heads or skulls of deer, and venison (hirsch)
was often
available as a menu item, usually as a venison stew or hirschgoulash. A
particularly common sight was that of a deer skull with a cross between its
antlers, referring to the vision that St. Hubertus had centuries ago when he saw
a deer with a crucifix glowing over its head. (By the way, that also
served as the symbol for the famed German herbal drink, Jaegermeister.) Each year at the beginning
of hunting season, the Catholic churches in the region hosted a Mass in honor of
St. Hubertus
Partenkirchen, on the other hand, put on a more festive appearance. It had its own great downtown strip, which is shown in the fourth photograph. The places along this street were wonderfully flowing with flags and decor. Each individual building had its own photo-worthy moment, but we chose a favorite (the Gasthaus Zum Rassen) to feature in the fifth photograph. That particular Gasthaus brought back memories for Tom, who during his first-ever visit to Garmisch participated in a special Bavarian night held in the back room with three hundred of his closest friends. The room had long tables, waitresses in traditional dress, beer by the liter, and Bavarian musicians to provide the atmosphere. But this was only one of several places capable of hosting such rousing events. For those curious about Garmisch's
Olympic past, the old Olympic venues were still in use. But
naturally, given that they held the Games when winter sports were not widely
followed on the Winter stage, the venues were far from impressive compared to
those of, say, Salt Lake 2002. Still, the ski jumping venue As for biking and hiking in the summer, the region was a perfect destination. Bike trails through the forests and surrounding villages are plentiful. There were also a number of nearby lakes with bike trails to go riding with a picnic lunch. It was a wonderful way to relax. Would there be a downside to all this? Based on personal experience, there were two potential pitfalls. First was getting a room. The summer and winter months usually found the guesthouses booked solid a year in advance, although there were so many places to stay, we were usually able to find one at the last minute through the Garmisch-Partenkirchen website, one of the best town websites we had encountered for tourists. The second potential pitfall was the weather during the spring and fall. It can tend to get very foggy, which not only removed much of the beautiful surroundings from view, it made for absolutely treacherous driving. The road to Oberammergau and Ettal was a very windy and steep climb up a mountainside, which in dense fog needed to be done very carefully. Stick with the summer or winter, if possible. The dual-town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen was dually-wonderful, one of the most inviting towns in Europe. The beauty of the towns were only surpassed by the natural beauty of surroundings. You ought to check it out. Trips taken 18-19 August 2000, 17 August 2001, 9-12 October 2004, and a number of other times to numerous to mention -- Page Last Updated 01 September 2006 -- (C) 2004 Tom Galvin |
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