Munich to Oberammergau

We decided to only spend the early morning in Munich before heading into Oberammergau. There is so much in Munich and you could easily spend another week here, but it was about time to slow down and get to the countryside. The man at the front desk of the hostel gave us a few recommendations of where to go, so we started driving into the city center. Deutsches Museum is one of the largest museums in the world, so we could easily spend the entire morning there before heading to Oberammergau. What should have been a 10 minute drive turned into 30 because of traffic, so we decided to just park and walk around the current location.



On the map we saw the Kunstpavillon and Alter Botanischer Garten, the Art Pavilion in the Old Botanical Garden. A park was just what we needed to escape the hustle and bustle of life in Munich. In the park there was a beautiful fountain with a statue of a man and a horse the middle. As we were walking around looking at the flowers, we realized that one of the statues seemed out of place. In the water and right next to the horse there was an object that looked like a rug. As we walked around the fountain to observe from a different angle, we realized there were large feet coming out from under the rug. At the far corner of the fountain there was a giant lamp with water coming out of the spout. It reminded me of the Disney movie, Aladdin, but I was surprised to find a relatively modern statue next to the more tradition horse statue. The pair seemed out of place, but we continued walking anyway. Further into the park we saw a statue of a little girl from behind. It appeared as though she was hugging a dog, and I knew I had to take a picture of it for my Aunt Karen. My aunt loves dogs and she would love the statue. As we approached the statue it was apparent that this was not a friendly hug, but instead a malicious strangle. The little girl was strangling a wolf and had a disturbing expression on her face. The scene reminded me of Little Red Riding Hood. The next stop was a large bunny head in a greenhouse. Once again it seemed harmless walking up from the back, but once you saw the front there was a completely different and disturbing sight. A pattern was beginning to form without my realization.
  

A few strange statues later, we realized there must be an art exhibit being showcased in the park and before long we found the information booth right next to a circus-like tent. Celebrating the 200 anniversary of the Grimm Brothers, 200 years of the botanical garden, and 30 years of RischArt Projekte, "Es War Einmal" brings fairytales to life throughout the gardens. "Es war einmal" translates to "Once upon a time" and is the theme for the RischArt Project this year. Using fairytales to transform and enchant, various artists were invited to create art based on fairytales. Learning the meaning behind the scattered artwork helped solve our unanswered questions.



After leaning the history behind the art, we headed for the colorful circus-like rooms. The purpose was to enter the rooms and allow your imagination to take over and run free. There was limited visibility and audibility once you entered. As I weaved and dodged hanging strips of plastic I soon lost my mom and found myself alone in rooms of every shape and size. The vibrant colors mixed with the crisp white strips of plastic and the bright blue sky above created a serene atmosphere and I was lost in the moment. I was amazed how my mind soaked in the moment and took off. I couldn't tell you what I was thinking about or what was going on outside the room, but I was euphoric.

Skipping breakfast, it was time to leave the circus house of imagination and get some coffee pulsing through my veins. We sat in lounge chairs by a fountain with water running below our feet. We probably should have bought something while sitting there, but the restaurant seemed fairly empty and they didn't seem to mind our presence.

Before hitting the road we got some cherries and apricots which would probably be gone before arriving at our next destination, but they were so scrumptious in Prague that we couldn't resist buying more. After driving circles and circles around the parking garage we finally managed to find our way out and were on the road again. Next stop, Oberammergau.
 

The drive to Oberammergau was peaceful, weaving in and out of the mountainside. The weather was overcast, but the limited visibility showed true beauty. The location of the small towns embedded in the landscape was idyllic. My mom kept commenting that we were entering Brigadoon, a book, film, and musical about a town unaffected by time or the influences of society that only appears once every hundred years. Once again, we found a hidden gem in Germany.

After checking into our hotel in Oberammergau, we went exploring. The hotel was was a mom and pop business with a store on the ground level full of wooden figurines. They probably thought we were staying for two months after brining up everything from the car. This would be one of the last days before flying back to Copenhagen and then the States, so it was time to organize and consolidate the explosion in the car. We each had our big suitcase, a carry on, and countless loose belongings that have been accumulating in the car for the past week. We struggled up the stairs and into our room before prolonging the packing to to explore the town.


Our first stop was the Passion Play Theatre, Oberammergau's claim to fame. The Passion Play is the story of the life and suffering of Jesus of Nazareth, a tory of hope and salvation for the world. The tradition of the Passion play began with a vow during the 30 Years War during occupation of the Swedish army. The plague spread across Bavaria and more than 80 people became victims. In 1633 the councillors called upon God when vowing to perform the Passion Tragedy every year if the Plague would end. The epidemic ended in 1634 and the people of Oberammergau fulfilled their vow. Over time the play became too expensive to perform every year, so the town decided to hold performances every 10 years. In 1930 the stage was rebuilt in the monumental form it has today. We weren't able to see the entire theater because another play was being setup for the following night, but we were able to walk up into the stands. I didn't realize how large the theater was until entering the large auditorium.

Walking through the town you couldn't take one step without seeing a depiction of Jesus Christ. There were statues, paintings on the sides of buildings, wooden carvings, and I wouldn't be surprised if Jesus was sculpted into a hedge in the gardens. It didn't occur to me how religiously oriented this town was until walking around. Step by step and with each turn in the road, Oberammergau was beginning to look more and more like Brigadoon.

Our next stop was the Oberammergau Museum, one of the oldest cultural historical museums in Bavaria. Founded in 1910, the museum displays a collection of woodcarvings which have been produced in Oberammergau for over 500 years. A historical film about the making of the Passion Play 2010 was shown, but unfortunately cut off halfway through. I was particularly impressed by the elaborate and detailed "Frozen Theatre" exhibit. This part of the museum displayed the Crib as a link between Fine Art and the drama of theater. Religious theater and the art of woodcarving evolved hand in hand, influencing and inspiring each other through the centuries. The majority of the cribs depicted the Nativity scene, but also scenes from the suffering of Jesus Christ or biblical events. These scenes were sculpted with wood, clay, and even paper cutouts.






A special exhibit in the Oberammergau Museum was the Zwischen Stein und Wolke, translating to "Between Stone and Cloud." This exhibit showed the work of Ernst Neukamp (1937-2006) and how it drew connections between heaven and earth, stone and cloud. There was a great simplicity to his work that was intriguing. Neukamp used bold colors and dark silhouettes to draw your eyes into his work, searching for meaning.


Our final sightseeing stop was at the Pilatushaus, the museum's collection of Paintings Behind Glass. In 1955, a large part of the collection of the Murnauer brewer Johann Krötz was added to the collection, and by the end of the 19th century there were over 1000 paintings. When you look at verre églomisé paintings you see the smooth, untreated side of the glass and the paint on the other side. At first you can often see reflections, lights, and mirrored backgrounds of yourself. With the right distance and correct angle you are able to recognize the picture. Verre églomisé have their own unique charm, and the fragile picture medium is difficult to paint on, but fascinates its' viewers. I admired the fine detail of the Cribs and the history of the passion play, but this was my favorite exhibit. I enjoyed looking for different meanings and pictures within the painting as a whole.

The downstairs level of the Pilatushaus contains shops and demonstrations of people practicing the famous woodcarving while making toys, puppets, and instruments. There were children gathered around the tables with their eyes glued to the master fingers carving with precision and perfection. Of course we weren't supposed to take pictures inside, and I did anyway.




It was still relatively early and a lot of the restaurants were closing from lunch, but not quite open for dinner. With grumbling bellies, we went back to snack on left over cherries and apricots while attempting to pack all our belongings into one suitcase and one carry on each. It was a difficult task, but we managed to succeed. With near certainty that my bag was over 50 pounds, I decided to deal with it once I was at the airport or near a scale. By the time our bags were packed we were full of fruit, but decided a more substantial meal would be worth our while.


We had dinner at a beer garden hidden from the main street and down a hallway. It was exactly what I expected a beer garden to look like with large wooden tables, women in dirndl, and beer. We decided to share tomato soup, Bavarian sausage salad with bread, and veal goulash in a creamy sauce with fresh mushrooms, buttered noodles and seasoned salad. We weren't quite sure what Bavarian sausage salad was, but it was worth trying something new. Germany must be a vegetarian's nightmare. Nearly everything has meat in it, even the tomato soup tasted like it was seasoned with sausage. I certainly wasn't complaining, but I could imagine a vegetarian being unpleasantly surprised to find soup tasting like meat. After dinner we went to get ice cream, no surprise there. Besides, we're on vacation and this rich dark chocolate flavor was arguably the best ice cream yet.

I couldn't help but begin to be anxious about the fast approaching end of our trip. It was nice to finally take things at a slower pace, but there was still sadness in the back of my mind knowing I would soon be leaving this beautiful wonderland. During dinner my mom and I had a nice conversation about our aspirations, goals, and what is important in life. Being on vacation is more than a relaxing break from everyday life, but also a reminder of how you envision your life. The past six and a half weeks have been a reminder that I don't have to be in Denmark, Germany, or Europe to live life as a vacation. Everyday can be filled with joy and happiness wherever I am.

We ended the night by laying in bed and watching one of my favorite movies that my mom hadn't seen. It was nice to share this comedy with her and just laugh the night away. You're never to old to snuggle with your mom.