Oberammergau, Germany
May 10, 2009 by Helen Page
Filed under Sightseeing
Oberammergau’s world famous Passion Play:
Oberammergau water-colour facades
Oberammergau, a small colourful alpine town in Germany is inundated by visitors once every ten years. This town is world famous for its Passion Play, a play about the “Suffering, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ”.
Oberammergau began out of a desperate promise that the people made if their village were spared from extinction. In the middle of the Thirty Years’ War from 1618 – 1648 compounded by the plague of 1632 the entire village was threatened with extinction. The surviving villagers made a pledge that if there were spared from extinction, they would forever more stage a play about Christ’s Passion. No further deaths occurred after the pledge and the people have kept their promise since that time.
When they fulfilled their pledge for the first time, the stage they put up was in the cemetery above the fresh graves of the plague victims.
The next Passion Play
The 41st Passion Play is in 2010. Up to 2,000 people will transform themselves into Jews and Romans in this 5-hour long spectacle at the Passionsspielhaus. The premiere takes place on Saturday, May 15, 2010 and the Passion Play will be staged for a total of 102 days, running up till early October.
In 2010, for the first time, the performance will begin in the afternoon and the second part will be performed in the evening hours. The first part starts at 2.30 p.m. and ends at 5.00 p.m. The second part starts at 8.00 p.m. and ends at 10.30 p.m.
Bookings are usually open well in advance of the event and there are various event and accommodation packages available. On Saturdays and on Friday, October 1st and Sunday, October 3rd, you can buy admission tickets without a package. These are intended for our guests who are able to reach Oberammergau conveniently in a day’s trip and who do not require accommodation. The advance sale of tickets without a package began in spring 2009.
Oberammergau is also famous for its wood carving and there are about 120 wood carvers in this village. A Carvers School in town offers courses by specialist carvers. Dorfstrasse is the main street in Oberammergau. We were here in winter and it’s a really pretty place with interesting wall paintings. Look out for the Rococo church of Saint Paul and the famous Pilatushaus with its painting of Christ before Pilate on the facade.
See our photos on Oberammergau
Tours to Oberammergau
Passion Play booking information
Tour Routes in Germany
February 27, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations, Featured
Suggested Tour Routes to make the best of your holiday in Germany
Touring Germany is a pleasure, whether you drive yourself, take a coach or relax on a boat; that’s because there’s a lot to see and the roads are excellent, so travel is easy.
Whether you’re looking for romantic castles, picturesque villages with twisting alleys and narrow gabled houses, mountain landscapes or vibrant nightlife in a modern metropolis, everything is within easy reach.
Try this Tour Route
You’ll notice that my suggested general tour route below misses out Duesseldorf, Stuttgart etc. because although major cities they aren’t really what people go to Germany for (unless you’re picking up a Mercedes or BMW).
This Europe tour roughly goes in a circle, so you could go either direction. No problems driving in Germany. You could do the Rhine cruise bit at the beginning if you wanted. The tour would take around 17 days to do, but it would be nice to take a bit longer.
Note: links to the towns go to photo albums on the Travel Signposts website
Frankfurt – Remagen – Cologne – Bremen – Hamburg – Lubeck – Celle (Luneburg Heath) – Hannover – Berlin – Leipzig – Dresden – Weimar – Erfurt – Wartburg – Wurzburg – Bamberg – Bayreuth – Nuremberg – Rothenburg – Romantic Road – Nordlingen – Dachau – Munich – Lake Chiemsee – Berchtesgaden – Garmisch (Bavarian Alps): Linderhof/Ettal/Oberammergau/Steingaden/Neuschwanstein – Lindau (Lake Constance) – Meersburg/Konstanz (ferry) – Freiburg – Lake Titisee (Black Forest) – Baden-Baden – Heidelberg – Rudesheim/Boppard (Rhine Cruise) – Koblenz – Cochem – Rudesheim – Marksburg Castle – Frankfurt
The Falkenhaus, a baroque masterpiece in Wurzburg
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map Page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
There are many fine half-timbered houses in Wertheim
Book your hotel in Germany online
Participate in the conversation by leaving your comment below.The Bridge at Remagen – Rhine River Cruise
February 26, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations
The Bridge at Remagen – Rhine River Cruise
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank (Rhine) | Left | KM | 633-632 |
| Altitude | 71m/230ft | Population | 6,500 |
Few places can stir the memories as the bridge at Remagen, Germany, midway between Coblenz and Cologne. In fact, the history making events surrounding the bridge have inspired poems, feature movies, books and several TV programs, all with good reason.
Originally built between 1916 and 1918, the bridge was constructed as a two-track railway bridge, named after General Luettendorf. Located in a small German town on the Rhine river, it had operational significance during WW I, but it was during World War II when the bridge truly became well-known.
The story of the Remagen Bridge is on one hand, the story of the fight to capture it as well as to defend or destroy it. On the other hand, the episode marks the beginning of the end of WW II in the west of the German Reich. The action at the bridge is a moving human story and a brilliant stroke of military daring.
The Battle for the Bridge
Although the Germans intended to destroy the bridge, they were unsuccessful. Several attempts failed, thus the Americans were given a clear passage over the Rhine, altering the course of the war. Hitler laid the blame for the failure on five officers who were collectively responsible for the whole bridge complex, calling them the “traitors of Remagen.” Four were immediately executed, however one was already in American hands as a prisoner. Later, historians called these men “innocent scapegoats”.
Though the Americans held the bridgehead from early March 1945, the Germans were still not ready to give up their efforts to destroy the bridge at Remagen. On March 15, twenty-one fast bombers flew in to attack the structure, but they too were unable to destroy it. Hitler then ordered divers from the German navy to attempt underwater attacks, though they arrived too late to finish off the weakened structure.
Shortly after three o’clock on the afternoon of March 17, 1945, with a sickening roar of torn steel, the bridge at Remagen finally collapsed and fell into the Rhine. Of the 200 engineers working on it at the time, 93 were wounded and 28 killed. The destruction, ten days after it was liberated by the U.S., did not, however, alter the American advance east of the Rhine, as a pontoon bridge had already been completed.
The Remagen Bridge Today
Visitors approaching the bridge today, either on the Rhine river or along its banks, will see two towers, all that is left of the original bridge on the west bank. The east bank has two similar dark towers.
In honour of the Americans who died there, an American flag proudly flies atop one tower on the west bank. What remains of the bridge is home to the Peace Museum, dedicated to the bridge in which the events and the dramatic scenes of March 7th, 1945 are portrayed. Numerous photographs and artifacts are on display, while the letters and documents exhibited make fascinating reading. In addition, the museum contains a unique permanent exhibition dedicated to the history of the Nobel Peace Prize and its holders.
Peaceful in our decade, the tangled remnants of the famous bridge silently speak of momentous events in history. The upper levels of the museum offer fine views of the fast-flowing river and frequent river traffic. Just below is a ramp leading to the water, so you can walk down and stick your toe in, just to say you touched the Rhine, a river which has been labelled “flowing history.” The museum was opened on March 7th, 1980 on the 35th anniversary of the capture of the bridge at Remagen.
NOTE: The Battle of Remagen was portrayed in 1969 in John Guillermin’s movie’Bridge at Remagen‘ with George Segal and Robert Vaughn.
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and
Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Book your hotel in Germany online
Can you please comment below? I'd appreciate it.Regensburg, Germany – Danube River Cruise
February 26, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations, Featured
Regensburg, Germany – Danube River Cruise
See our Regensburg Photos HERE
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank (Danube) | Right | KM | 2379 |
| Altitude | 336m/1,102ft | Population | 14,700 |
Regensburg is also called Ratisbon, and is situated at the confluence of the river Regen into the Danube. The present-day old city was a Celtic settlement (Radasbona), which later became the site of a Roman stronghold and legionary camp, Castra Regina (founded 179AD). The Roman north gate (Porta Praetoria) and parts of the walls survive.
The capital of the dukes of Bavaria from 530AD, it was made a bishopric in 739AD and shortly afterward became a capital of the Carolingians. The only imperial free city in the Duchy of Bavaria from 1245, Regensburg became very prosperous in the 12th-13th C. However, it was taken by the Swedes and later by imperial troops in the Thirty Years’ War (17th C) and was destroyed by the French in 1809, passing to Bavaria in 1810. The astronomer Johannes Kepler died here in 1630, and the painter Albrecht Altdorfer (d. 1538) was both a city architect and councillor.
Despite repeated bombings in World War II, Regensburg sustained little damage and most of its medieval buildings survived. Its imposing patricians’ houses (12th-14th C) are unique in Germany; and the Steinerne Brücke (Stone Bridge, 1135-46) across the Danube is a medieval constructional marvel that was repaired after the war.
The Cathedral of St Peter (1275-1524) is one of the most important Gothic churches in Bavaria, with 14th C stained-glass windows and two Romanesque chapels in the adjoining cloisters. Its Boys’ Choir (Regensburger Domspatzen) is well known. Other notable churches include the Romanesque St Emmeram’s, parts of which date to the 8th C; the Alte Kapelle (Old Chapel), the earliest parts of which date from circa 1000, with an elaborate Rococo interior; the 12th C Romanesque Schottenkirche St Jakob, founded by Irish monks; the 13th C Dominican Church; and the Minorite Church (c. 1250-1350), incorporated into the town museum.
The buildings of St Emmeram’s Abbey (founded 7th C) have been the palace of the princes of Thurn and Taxis since 1812 and there are remains of the 13th C Herzogshof, the residence of the Bavarian dukes. The town hall (14th-15th C) contains the Reichssaal (c. 1350), in which the Imperial Diet was held from 1663 to 1806.
The city is an important cultural, industrial, and commercial centre, a road and rail junction, and a head of navigation on the Danube with a busy port area. Products manufactured in the area include electronics, steel and motor vehicles, and wood. Regensburg is also a tourist base for excursions into the Bavarian Black Forest (Schwarzewald), and is famed for its sausages! The University of Regensburg was founded in 1962.
See our Regensburg Photos HERE
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and
Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Book your hotel in Germany online
Please comment below and let me know... I would really appreciate it.Rüdesheim, Germany
February 26, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations, Featured
Rüdesheim, Germany – home of Siegfried’s Musikkabinett
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank (Rhine) | Right | KM | 527-526 |
| Altitude | m/ft | Population | 10,000 |
Rüdesheim has been famous for its Drosselgasse since the end of the 19th C. The Castle Broemserburg houses the famous Wine Museum. The Museum of Medieval Torture attracts surprising number of tourists every year.
The beautifully designed and kept facades of the city houses of local gentry and rich wine merchants bear witness to the years of prosperity here.
Rüdesheim’s most famous landmark is the 10.5 m/33 ft high statue of Germania which commemorates the creation of the German Empire in 1871. The commanding position of the statue provides breathtaking views of the Rhein valley.
Siegfried Wendel’s museum, Siegfrieds Mechanisches Musikkabinett, has an extensive variety of mechanical musical instruments, distributed throughout a 15th century castle near the town centre.
One of the largest collections of self-playing musical instruments, robotic automatons and the like in the world, it is just a few metres distant from the famed Drosselgasse in the ancient Brömserhof. You can experience some of the most sophisticated examples of fine mechanical art put to the service of popular entertainment. The collection encompasses a great range including the most varied instruments, ranging from a delicate musical watch right up to the gigantic concert piano-orchestrion.
One room is devoted to mechanical instruments that produce the violin sound. The room includes a Hupfeld Phonoliszt Violina, a one-of-a-kind Hupfeld Phonoliszt Violina Orchestra, a newly-made Hupfeld Phonoliszt Violina with six violins; the only example of a Poppers Violinovo (piano, percussion and a single violin with one bow that bounces back and forth between two playing strings) and, last but not least, an unrestored Mills Violano (double).
The castle’s wine cellar houses the fairground organs of the collection. The highlight of this group of organs was the 80-key Gebruder Bruder with a rare Oriental style facade. Also there are a Style 107 Gebruder Bruder fairground organ and a 57-key Gebruder Wellershaus fairground organ.
Siegfried Wendel came up with the idea of collecting mechanical musical instruments during his honeymoon in Los Angeles when he visited an open-air museum which housed a large collection of mechanical pianos. Wendel’s collection contains more than 350 exhibits and has been open to the public since 1969. It is presently located at the Brömserhof, in the Drosselgasse on the recently acquired family property.
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and
Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Book your hotel in Germany online
What's your next move, after having read this post?Passau, Germany – Danube River Cruise
February 23, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations
Passau, Germany – Danube River Cruise
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank (Danube) | Right/Left | KM | 2225 |
| Altitude | 290m/951ft | Population | 51,000 |
Passau is strategically located at the confluence of the Danube, Inn, and Ilz rivers, on the Austrian border. It’s a picturesque and worthwhile place to visit for the tourist, with lots to see.
Originating as the Celtic settlement of Bojodurum, it was later the site of a Roman camp, Castra Batava, and was made an episcopal see in 739. The bishops became princes of the Holy Roman Empire in 1217 and ruled Passau until 1803, in spite of citizens’ revolts for municipal freedom. Fires in 1662 and 1680 caused great damage, and subsequent rebuilding gave the town a distinctly Baroque character.
The town is dominated by the Oberhaus Fortress (1219), the site of a museum, and the Cathedral (1668), which incorporates the remains of an earlier Gothic structure. The cathedral contains one of the largest church organs in the world, with 17,000 pipes (1928). The Bishops’ Palace (1712-30) and numerous fine churches in varied styles recall the era of the prince-bishops. The Gothic Town Hall (1298-1389) has paintings depicting episodes in the town’s past, including its association with the Nibelungen legends. The Niedernburg Convent (founded 8th century) contains the tomb of Gisela, the first queen of Hungary.
Passau was an important medieval trade and shipping centre. The Inn salt trade and the making of knife and sword blades were traditional occupations.
It has become the economic, cultural, and communications centre of southeastern Bavaria. Passau has city and state libraries, a municipal theatre, and other cultural institutions. Industries include a bell foundry, brewing, and the manufacture of optical instruments, textiles, and tobacco. There is also a tourist trade and a steamer service to Vienna.
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and
Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Book your hotel in Germany online
How about you, what do you think?Nuremberg, Germany – Danube River Cruise
February 23, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations, Featured
Nuremberg, Germany – Danube River Cruise
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank (Pegnitz Canal) | Left/Right | KM | n/a |
| Altitude | 280-400m/918-1,312ft | Population | 490,000 |
This former Free Imperial City is the second largest town in Bavaria, and principal town of the region of Franconia. In German tradition, Nuremberg is often referred to as the Mastersingers’ city, the city of Dürer, toy city, and even Christmas market and gingerbread town. Indeed, Nuremberg is still known as the `Treasury of the German Empire‘. The city walls, originally built in 14th and 15th C, with numerous gates and towers still maintain both the historical identity and integrity of Nuremberg.
Nuremberg was first mentioned in an imperial document in 1050. The Stauffer Emperors extended the castle which had been built on a sandstone hill ("Nuorenberc" = rocky hill) into an imperial palace. With their support Nuremberg flourished as a centre of trade in the Middle Ages and was granted the status of a Free Imperial City. By the 15th C Nuremberg was wealthy and provided an ideal climate for the arts and sciences.
Following the Thirty Years War, however, the city fell into decline. In 1806 it became part of the Kingdom of Bavaria and flourished once again, this time as an industrial centre. The darkest chapter in Nuremberg’s history was ushered in when the Nazis chose it as the site of their Party Rallies and in the 1930’s it became a symbol of National Socialism. The old town centre was reduced to rubble in 1945 as a result of Allied air raids.
The birth of German industrial tradition and its technical achievement is often associated with Nuremberg. Martin Behaim (1459-1506) designed the world’s very first globe here. Peter Henlein (1480-1542) produced the first pocket watch (Nürnberger Ei), The first German railroad came into operation here, serving Nuremberg and Fürth in 1835. The pride and joy of the Nurembergers are the famous poet Hans Sachs (1494-1576); painter and printer Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) and the master of Renaissance sculpture Veit Stoss (1445-1533).
Points of particular interest:
National Museum of German Art and Culture: Founded in 1852, the National Museum of Art and Culture is the world’s largest museum of the art and culture of the German-speaking world with more than 1.2 million exhibits. (Kärtäuserg; 1; Tue-Sun 10-6; Wed 10-9; Mon Closed; Admission €5.00)
Fascination and Terror Documentation Centre – Nazi Party Rally Grounds: Nazi Party buildings reminiscent of their building megalomania now house a modern information centre documenting the history of the rally grounds and the ruthless misuse of power under National Socialism. (Bayernstr. 110; Mon-Fri 9-6; Sat-Sun 10-6; Admission €5.00)
Albrecht Dürer’s House: Introduces the world and the work of Germany’s famous Renaissance artist with a multivision presentation `Albertus Dürer Noricus’ (Albrecht-Dürer-Str. 39; Tue-Sun 10-5; Thu 10-8; Admission €14.00)
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Book your hotel in Germany online
Let's talk more about this... can you do me a quick 30-second favor and leave a comment below?Miltenberg, Germany – Rhine River Cruise
February 23, 2009 by Tony Page
Filed under Destinations, Featured
Miltenberg, Germany – Rhine River Cruise
See our Miltenberg Photos HERE
| RIVER CRUISE GUIDE | Bank | Left/Right | KM | 123-126 |
| Altitude | 258m/849ft | Population | 9,800 |
Miltenberg is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the city of Aschaffenburg, the districts of Aschaffenburg and Main-Spessart, and the states of Baden-Württemberg (districts of Main-Tauber and Neckar-Odenwald) and Hesse (district of Odenwaldkreis).
During the Middle Ages there was continuous fight between the bishops of Mainz and the counts of Rieneck. Both attempted to rule the region and erected castles in the Spessart mountains. Later other tiny counties became involved in these fights as well.
During the 13th C the cities along the Main River emerged. Due to the trade on the river their wealth grew, and this became a very prosperous region. Prosperity ended abruptly in the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648), when the area was devastated and depopulated.
In 1803 the clerical states of Germany were dissolved, among them the bishopric principality of Mainz. In 1816 the state of Bavaria managed to annex the entire region.
The district of Miltenberg was established in 1972 by merging the former districts of Miltenberg and Obernburg. The original settlers in the area of present day Miltenberg were the Romans who built two castles here for the protection of the Outer Limes, the northernmost walled frontier of their Empire at the time.
The Road of the Nibelungen passes through Miltenberg as well.
At present, Miltenberg is a lively, romantic and medieval town. The timber-frame houses create an inimitable feeling of German life in the 16th and 17th C. In the same way, the gabled houses in their pristine condition reinforce the impression of town virtually transported from the medieval age into modern times. The extent of the timber-frame construction in this prosperous community is easily explained by the local legislation which granted the citizens of Miltenberg free construction timber for their city homes from the forests which were communally owned.
Furthermore, neither war damage nor fire inflicted any harm upon this unique medieval architectural set up. Historians agree that the relative economic slowdown during much of the 18th and 19th C in the area was nothing short of a blessing in disguise for the preservation of the authentic architectural monuments here. Even affluent citizens were not able to follow the vagaries of fashion and destroy their old homes and replace them with more desirable, contemporary constructions.
The key event in the history of this little community was the construction of the Fortress Mildenburg by the Archbishops and Prince Electors of Mainz in 13th C. Present day Miltenberg really developed under the protection of the powerful Fortress from 1230 on. The Prince Electors and Archbishops of Mainz used Mildenburg as a Tax and Customs collection point as much as frontier garrison on their outer borders towards the Principality of Würzburg.
Significant wine production contributed to the general wealth of the city and affluence of its citizens during the 14th C. Wine was being exported both to Nuremberg and Frankfurt. The special privilege to hold St Michael’s Fair was granted to the citizens of Miltenberg by the Archbishops and Prince Electors of Mainz in 1367. The census of 1620 showed not one farmer living in town. Their prosperity allowed the rich burghers to procure their food for the money from the neighbouring villages.
Unfortunately, both the excellent location and the affluence became heavy liabilities during the Thirty Years’ War which devastated Germany and large areas of Central Europe from 1618-1648. Miltenberg was besieged and pilfered and looted on several occasions during this long lasting continental conflict.
The town changed hands four times during the early 19th C as Napoleon chose to redraw the political map of Germany to serve his political interests and ambitions. Eventually, Bavaria took over the territory in 1816.
Castle Mildenburg
The present day Castle Mildenburg was originally built by the Archbishops of Mainz as a military outpost-fortress to secure their defense against the growing threat coming from Würzburg. The residential part of the Castle, the so-called ‘Palas’ was added much later by Archbishop Konrad von Weinsberg between 1390 and 1396.
Mildenburg was seriously damaged during the ‘War of the Landgraves‘ in 1552. The main building was reconstructed in Renaissance style in 1556. The Archbishops and Prince Electors of Mainz lost this property in 1803 to the Princes of Leinigen who in turn sold it as a private residence. The castle was thus in private hands from 1807-1979. Since that time, this impressive monument of German culture has been the property of the city of Miltenberg.
See our Miltenberg Photos HERE
Don’t know where a place is? Try this map (opens in new window): Map of Germany
Or visit our zoomable Google Satellite Map page
TRAVEL TO GERMANY WITH US: PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Other Germany pages:
Travel to Germany: a Europe Tour that’s a lot more than Beer, Lederhosen and Cuckoo Clocks!
When to travel to Germany for your tour: weather and seasons
Useful facts, dates and links to help you plan your tour of Germany
Book your sightseeing tours or day-trips in Germany online
Did I leave anything out?
