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Friday 31 August we drove a mere 50 km's up the road into Germany to Berchtesgaden. We could have seen this area without moving the caravan, but we decided we were ready for a change of scenery. It was our shortest move yet, only a 40-minute drive away, which meant we got there about 10.30am.
Berchtesgaden is a very beautiful area with little villages, towering alps and fast-flowing rivers. As beautiful as this area is, it has a sinister background with nearby Obersalzburg becoming the southern headquarters for the Nazi Party in 1933. An extensive Nazi compound was built here and Hitler's summer house, Eagle's Nest, is perched at the top of one of the many mountains. Unfortunately when we got there, and for most of our time there, it was very overcast and raining, we didn't make it up to see Eagles Nest. It wasn't until the morning we were leaving that the clouds cleared slightly and you could see one of the alps towering above with snow on the top.
The day we arrived, we decided to visit Dokumentation Obersalzberg, an extensive museum that provides an in-depth look at Hitlers reign and how he came to gain so much support and power. When you enter the information center you are greeted by a very clear black and white photo of 5 to 6 men hung from a house or shop balcony, the expressions on their faces are painfully clear, this image remained with us for the rest of the day. You can also walk through the tunnels of the underground bunkers that were built by the Nazis and were to be used as a last-stand against the allieds, but were fortunately never used. In the bunkers there were purpose-built generator rooms, storage rooms, lift shafts and each entry door had air-lock rooms with first-aid facilities attached to protect from gas attacks.
The next day, 1 September we were off to Salzburgwerks, a large salt mine that is still in operation but has opened a lot of its tunnels to tourists. You get issued with a standard pair of mining overalls, hop on a little train and down you go a few kilometers into the mine. This was a fantastic tour and very well done. The tour leader spoke in German but we were given an English audio guide. It was great for Cara as well as it wasn't too long and boring…we were kept on the move, going from one interesting thing to the next. We hopped off the train and were led through various chambers showing how the salt is mined and other interesting facts about salt.
In the tunnels there are giant slippery slides that take you from the top level down to the next, which is a fantastic, fun way to move people quickly. Cara wasn't interested in going down the slides; I think she still remembers the log ride in England! There are steps and ramps you can go down as well, so Cara and I used these while Loche went the fun way. There is also a large underground lake and you hop on a boat and are taken across it, it is very serene and dark and then lights come on all around to put on a lovely show.
We weren't allowed to take cameras into the mine so unfortunately we don't have photos of it - we only have a few of us dressed in our mining gear before we went underground.
That afternoon we went for a drive and stumbled across Konigssee a beautiful lake 5km south of Berchtesgaden. The village looked so lovely and lined with little shops we thought we'd park and explore it more. We had a walk through the streets and saw a group of locals in formal dress. They caught a boat and we think they were headed for a wedding at the chapel across the lake.
The next day we packed up and headed into Munich. We were told by Coco (who we met in Venice) of the Municipal caravan park in Munich, right next to the Munich Zoo. So we thought we'd stop there for a few nights. The park is right on a river and we had a pitch next to the river with lovely views. We thought it best to give Cara a sleep and tried to put her down and about 10 minutes later there was this loud music playing that sounded like a live band. I got up to see if there was a band playing at the caravan park and soon realized it was a log raft coming down the river with a band on board. There were four rafts in all and they came down at around 10 minute intervals, all with live bands and all with very lively participants on board. It provided for a wonderful atmosphere, but not conducive to trying to get a 3 year old to sleep. So we gave up and got her up to see what all the fuss was about. I was talking to the manager of the park before we left and he said the rafts come from 25 km's up stream and the people are on them from about 8am in the morning, so by the time they get to the end (which is right where we were), they were fairly well inebriated!!!
The following morning we got up and decided to head into Munich to have a look around. The park was well situated with a bus stop just down the road that took you to the train station. It was only 4 stops on the train to the centre of Munich. We just missed the first train and waited 10 minutes for the next one. We hopped off the train in the centre of Munich - Marienplatz and walked up the stairs and found ourselves in a square with heaps of people around looking up at the main clock tower. It was almost 11 o'clock and unbeknownst to us, every day at 11am this clock tower (known as the Rathaus-Glockenspiel) chimes and re-enacts stories from the 16th century with 43 bells and 32 life sized figurines. We had no idea what everyone was looking at 5 minutes before 11, but I figured we should wait around because something must have been about to happen (it was lucky that we missed that earlier train). I took some video footage of it so check it out on the video section. For more information on the stories of the Glockenspiel visit Wikepedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rathaus-Glockenspiel
From Marienplatz we decided to just have a wander around. We ended up near another square where the open-top buses were leaving. We hopped on a bus and decided to do an hour-long tour through the city, which worked out really well as it gave us an overview of the city and allowed us to work out the parts we'd like to explore more. We hopped off where we hopped on and then walked back towards a large open food market. We stopped to have some lunch and then headed toward Hofbrauhaus - apparently the most famous beer hall in Munich. It goes that if you haven't been to Hofbrauhaus then you haven't been to Munich!
We arrived at Hofbrauhaus and found that it wasn't as crowded as expected, but then again it was a weekday and we were a few weeks early of Oktoberfest. Loche likened it to an Australian RSL club with lots of oldies in the middle of the day in for a cheap meal and brew. In Australia they would be wearing their war medals, in Munich they are wearing their traditional Bavarian leather pants, stripy shirt and feathers in their cap. There was a live brass band playing traditional German music that Cara couldn't resist getting up and dancing to (yes, she has her fathers taste in music!) We had a few beers, even managed to gain a half-stein trophy before heading back to the train home.
The next day we headed back into Munich to the Deutsches Museum - this is the worlds largest museum of science and technology and yes, it is very large! We decided the best way to handle it was to split up. I took Cara for the first hour and half and then we met for lunch and then Loche took her for another hour and a half after that. I checked the map and found there was a section in the basement dedicated to kids, so Cara and I went off to investigate while Loche looked at the engines and electrical sections. The electrical section had a demonstration on how electricity operates. It showed the electricity jumping a gap of 600mm creating arcs. Loche would have loved to know what they were saying, but the demonstration was of course in German.
The kids area was very well done with many different interactive activities available. There were building blocks and musical instruments, but by far the most popular was the water play areas that had boats to play with and water gates and water pumps. Toward the end of the day Cara fell into the water and ended up soaking wet, which was not a problem because there was a dryer and spare clothes available - they were well prepared - this obviously happens all the time!
The following day Cara and I had a layover day while Loche headed into Dachau - the first Nazi Concentration Camp, only a half hour drive from Munich. I had been before and didn't feel it was somewhere I wanted to take Cara, so we decided it was best Loche went alone. Cara and I went for a long walk along the many pathways/bikeways along the rivers near the campsite and returned home later in the afternoon. Loche arrived back glad he went to Dachau but felt the Dokumentation Museum we visited in Berchtesgaden was probably more informative.
On our walk, Cara and I happened to find the zoo and walked along the outside of it. From then on, Cara wouldn't let up about visiting the zoo and she wanted to go straight away. So off we were early the next morning to the zoo. The Munich Zoo would have to be the best zoo we have been to. The animal enclosures are not enclosed that much at all and instead of fences there are water barriers that keep the animals in their areas. You feel a lot closer to the animals and are able to take much better pictures because there are no barriers in front of you. The enclosures that do need barriers, generally had glass, so you can still see the animals - even at Cara's height. The zoo also had huge play areas and some car rides to keeps the kids happy. Cara couldn't wait to get there and she had a ball riding and driving the cars.
Interesting facts about Berchtesgaden:
- The bunker complex at the Dokumentation centre has around 30 km of tunnels and passages. About 750 meters are open to the public.
- Three permanently manned machine guns protected each entry point.
- After Hitler's rise to power the summerhouse had extensive work carried out. Properties along the boundaries were purchased or forcibly taken. One family who had 6 generations in their modest house refused to move. During the night the father was "helped" by Hitler's henchmen. He was taken to a concentration camp for 6 months. His daughter wrote an apology letter she personally delivered to Hitler, this had her father released. He never spoke of what happened after his release. His words were "the wall have ears we know nothing"
- Three days before the Allied forces flattened Hitler's southern headquarters word was sent out to the locals to go and take what ever they could scavenge.
- The salt mine was formed thousands of years ago when the sea levels were in the Alps. Once the water subsided a large pocket of water was trapped. After many more years the water evaporated leaving the salt.
- Tour of the salt mine takes you to 130 meters below ground level.
- Salt is now mined by drilling many holes into the rocky bed about 200 meters below ground level. These holes are filled with water, and then left for a year or so. The water, now a briny solution, is pumped away, which can take up to twenty years.
Interesting facts about Munich
- The city was settled by Benedictine Monks from Italy, around 1100.
- The city name Munchen is the medieval name for "Monks".
- Three gates are all that remains of the once walled city.
- The Bier festival was originally the celebration of the marriage of the future King, Bavarian Crown Prince Lugwig 1 to Princess Therese in October 1810. The celebration still continues today, under the name of Okertoberfest.
- If you ever visit Munich and are mechanically minded be sure to visit the Deutsches Museum. It is the largest museum of technology and science in the world. The 11 euros entry fee is well spent.
- Dachau concentration camp was opened 51 days after Hitler took control. It was originally a munitions factory from WW1.
- It was the first concentration camp and was used as a model for the other camps that followed.
- Prisoners were often political personnel, Jews, trade unionists, communists, ordinary criminals, gypsies, jehovah's witnesses, Catholic Priests and other christian religions.
- In 1935 there were jingles "Dear God make me dumb, that I may not to Dachau come."
- The Gas chambers at the Dachau concentration camp were never used, but the roof beams were used for hanging and a Pistol/Rifle execution range was employed.
- At least 43,000 prisoners were executed, but it is unknown how many died here. Records were not kept of Soviet and Jewish prisoners. Some believe as many as 200,000 people met their faith here.
- comments
Andrew L Hey Col, manage to drink one of those enormous beer stein's?? I'll bet you guys are glad that Jul/Aug in Europe is over!!
Col Hey Andrew, no we only managed half steins and were considering staying for the Oktoberfest, but decided after speaking to people it might get a bit too rowdy for us old folk!! Nicole is extremely happy peak season is over, while I quite enjoyed the people and the hustle & bustle of the summer season.