Oktoberfest 2013 seen from up in the air: the non-beer side of it

 

This year the famous Oktoberfest takes place for 180th time in the beautiful Bavarian capital Munich! A friend of mine asked me few days ago why Oktoberfest starts (and takes place mostly) in September? Good question I have to say. But there is also a good reason for it: the difficult Munich weather! In 1810 and the following years the celebration took always place in the month of October (usually in the middle of the month). However in 1829, four days after the official opening, the first snow storm arrived and everything had to close down! Since 1872 this big beer party has been moved to the last 10 days of September (+first October days) so one could enjoy better weather& more pleasant temperatures....

This huge celebration is known of course to most of the visitors for the ...German beer! Every year during 2, 5 weeks (this year between 21.09-6.10.2013) around 6 millions liter of beer are sold&drunk there! However half of the surface at the fair ground is dedicated to having fun like a child: big wheel, carousels, rollercoasters...name it! These are all there waiting to be enjoyed the whole day&evening (recommended before the drinks:-) So this year I enjoyed the "Riesenrad" and one carousel-ride, which made me feel like a happy kid again;-)

 

Münchener Mittelalter-Weihnachtsmarkt/ Munich Middle-Age-Christmas market

 

For six years in a row on Wittelsbacher Platz (close to Odeonsplatz) one may visit (while living in the 21-st century) a Middle-Age-Christmas market....Its quiet a nice experience to sight the cute wooden houses and the way drinks and smoked fish are prepared "the old-fashined way"...Munich Christmas fairs go back to late medieval time. A "Saint-Nicolas-fair" is mentioned already back in 1410!

 

Nowadays one may enjoy he working craftsman and women and buy their art...Its a great Weihnachtsmarket, make sure to dress well, because if its not snowy and freezing, it might be raining+windy!

 

 
Next to clothes, spices, juwelery, one may also enjoy medieval spectacles and ancient music concerts on the weekends.

Christkindlmarkt am Marienplatz, Christmas market in the heart of Munich

Munich offers every year over 25 different Christmas markets, something for all different tastes! The "Cristkindlmarkt am Marienplatz" is however the oldest and definitely the most famous one...150 wooden houses create for a month Cristmas feeling in the heart of the city. Next to the stands with the mandatory warming up "Glühwein" and "Würstchen", one may gaze at candles, spices and Christmas decoration..

 

Every year one may find here the same stands: as the one with the bamboo angels for example. This year I have discovered a few new and interesting ones. A home made soap with sheep milk  from Austria or with olive oil from Italy: presented in very creative shapes and packaging (see first picture)...For the chocolate lovers there were all home-bricolage tools made out of...chocolate (a stand on Rindermarkt). Avoid the market after 18h as it gets too crowded and you might get a little be toosqueezed...however definitely worth a visit for all Weihnachtsmarkt-Liebhaber!

Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg

 

On a cloudy July day a great thing to do in Munich last weekend was a visit ot the botanical garten, Botanischen Garten München-Nymphenburg. This amazing piece of nature is situated directly next to the park of Schloss Nymphenburg and offers very beautiful and relaxing flora...One may find here over 14.000 different species as well as preserved rare plants and European bees.

 

The first botanical garden of the city was founded in 1809 near Karlsplatz, today's garden was created in 1914 at this location. In 1966 it became affiliated with the Botanische Staatssammlung München and the Institute of Systematic Botany at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

 

Several flowers were blossoming, so plenty of insects were present too-as you may see on the pictures. The garden is divided in alpine garden, arboreum, moor and steppe plants, rose gardens, and, and...The greenhouse complex is really impressive  and worth visiting! The cactus house and the huge water lilies house are just breathtaking...A great stop for all nature lovers!

 

München in black and white...

End of January i have started an analogue photography course. The first task was the shoot a b&w film, then we developed it, in the third session we have made the contact sheets and this week we made the first proof prints. I have scanned for you some of my favorite ones below.

Some pictures from Munich really look like old post cards of the city, i found this effect pretty charming. So enjoy them and have a good weekend!

München from the top of the church "Alter Peter"....

There is no doubt, best view of Munich one may enjoy from the church "Alter Peter" next to the Viktualienmarkt, Marienplatz in the beautiful Bavarian capital. On a clear winter day this view stretches up to the Alps!

Of course not to forget (or underestimate) is the fact that there is no lift and there are 14 floors to climb up first, but the reward then is amazing. Last week I had the pleasure to enjoy one of the most amazing sunsets in my life here....

Best of ...Oktoberfest....

Of course there are plenty of annoying things connected with the yearly Beer Festival/ Oktoberfest in Munich....And i dont only think of the drunk toursits and locals all over the city...i could also add to the first argument the crowds and the full public transport, the non-stop increasing price of one "Mass Bier" (this year at 8, 50 EUR, compared to 0,83 EUR in 1950), and, and....

But of course there are some good side effects too...
1. There is no other time of the year one may see on the streets so many people dressed in the traditional "Dirndl" (for the ladies) and "Lederhosen" (for the guys)!
2. A nice thing to do at lunch time on a sunny September/ October day is just to walk and watch all the beer tents (ouside as well as inside) and enjoy the amount of crazy (or old-fashioned or both) attractions...

3. And last but not least.. the city seems to be covered with Lebkuchen (heart-shaped candy) with funny messages...

Carnival (Traunsteiner Faschingszug) in Garmisch

Every Sunday before Mardi Gras/ Shrove Tuesday the so called "Traunsteiner Faschingszug" (a carnival parade) takes place in Garmisch, Bayern. The creativity and fantasy of the dressed up inhabitants is really impressive...

One can meet from Pirates of the Caribbean to weird creatures of the Middle Age up to some jumping pigs (dont miss the video, at the end of this entry:)

"Fasching" is the word used for carnival in parts of East and South Germany and Austria. The etymologists are not sure about the origin of the name "carnival". Most explanations are derived from the Italian and Latin expressions "carne levare" or "carne vale", indicating the last days when one could eat meat before the fasting. While the starting day of Carnival varies, the festival usually builds up in the week before lent, ending on Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday), before Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. In (Eastern Orthodox) areas Carnival ends on the Sunday seven weeks before Easter.

Quick Munich-impressions from a business traveller...

How much one see or/miss from a city when traveling to it on a business trip...I had to ask myself this question, actually I do ask myself the same question almost every time when I am at Schiphol (Amsterdam Airport) and I am part of the huge amount people in suits on the phone or reading their mails before getting on the plane.

This time in Munich (with busy, busy schedule) I still managed to admire for some seconds/minutes:
1. The cute and funny airplane-looking kiosk selling Bratwürste, between terminal 1 and 2 at the airport;-)
2. The huge and colourful "Maibaum" (second picture):
on the way between 2 buildings of work, while crossing the Viktualienmarkt, one of my favourite market places
3. The trees in blossom fitting to the fassades of the building in Haidhausen (next to my hotel)...