Must … write … last … vacation … post.
Geez, I’ve been lazy since returning to India. We have one room with a working heater, so we lounge on the bed with our iPads for hours on end. With only ONE last story to write about our wonderful trip to Bavaria, I have rolled off the bed and moved to the computer.
We visited Oberammergau twice, but dreary weather kept the camera in my coat pocket the first time. We escaped the sleet for a lovely lunch in a toasty guesthouse, and then drove back to Garmisch. On our last full day in Germany, we strolled through the town again, this time with blue skies and sunshine. Oberammergau boasts three attractions that draw thousands of tourists to this small town: a long history of woodcarving, traditional painting on building exteriors, and the once-a-decade Passion Play.
Oberammergau’s woodcarving tradition dates to the Middle Ages, and the streets are lined with shops selling work by about 120 local carvers. Store windows feature creations such as this one in addition to more whimsical pieces.
The Oberammergau Museum, housed in a former church, took us on a walk through the town’s woodcarving history – from the days of nomadic peddlers to present-day international marketing and contemporary sculpture, including a computer database of 1,400 Oberammergau artists. The exhibits reflected social history in Bavaria with displays of household items, furniture, figurines, toys and dolls, …
crucifixes, and
scenes from actual battles.
Click on this link for an interesting little article about woodcarving in Oberammergau.
The captivating “Lüftlmalerei,” or frescoes, painted on nearly every building in town depict religious stories, fairytales, traditional Bavarian scenes or architectural trompe-l’oeil (which I just learned means an artform that creates a 3-D illusion).
Here’s a bit more information about the Lüftlmalerei.
Oberammergau’s Passion Play originated in a prayer as the Black Plaque swept across Europe. Villagers swore an oath to perform the play every 10 years if God would spare their town. They kept their promise, and the play was first staged in 1634. This website, from the 2010 Passion Play, has lots of interesting information. If you want to see the play, start making plans for 2020! Here’s the entrance to the theater:
My mother reluctantly watched much of the 1984 performance (an extra staging of the show to celebrate the 350th anniversary), when my father ditched her in Oberammergau with my car-sick baby sister. He thought he could take my grandparents to see Neuschwanstein Castle and then zip back to pick up Mom and Megan, which he did … six hours later. (Mom, feel free to add details/make corrections.)
Leaving Garmisch on a warm April day with pillows, blankets and toys in the cargo area of the station wagon, Megan (4) and Katy (5) leaped over the back seat and settled in for another fun family trip. Destination: Neuschwanstein castle. Grammy, Grampy, and family friend, Kurt, were three abreast in the seat behind us. The scenery was spectacular, but only a few miles of the winding mountain road resulted in Megan’s predictable car-sickness. “Just drop us off in Oberammergau” I suggested to Paul. “You should be back in two hours, right?” So it seemed. I glanced at the clock on the dashboard – a little after 10. Shorts and light jackets were a poor choice for a village in the Alps; we needed to get inside. Shops were stocked with delicate wood carvings, so a cafe’ seemed to be a better choice. Warmed by mugs of hot chocolate, which also soothed Megan’s unsettled tummy, we walked to the Passion Play Theater to check July’s availability of tickets for traveling friends. With little discussion, protest, or explanation, we were ushered to three empty seats in the open-air theater. Although a roof covered the seating area, birds were flying through on a cool breeze. A German lady, sitting two rows behind us, brought up her mink coat to lay over the girls bare legs; the lines of the play were, of course, spoken in German. As we were seated, I remember several men on the stage in costume; one of them was Judas. At noon, the building emptied as cast members and the audience alike left for lunch. Unbelievable… We didn’t return for the second half of the play as I expected Paul to be waiting for us at the designated corner. Instead, we managed to be seated at the table nearest the window, in full view of the street. There, we drank countless cups of hot chocolate and ate big plates of fries and apple strudel while, at the same time, worrying that Paul had been in an accident. How would I be contacted? German restaurants will let you sit for as long as you like; our fraulein didn’t seem at all annoyed that we had camped out at her table for three hours. Alas, after hours of shared look-out duty, several trips to the potty, and unexpressed worry, our Ford station wagon pulled up to the curb. It was 4:20. If only someone had already invented the cell phone…would I have wished I had bought one?