Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany, in the heart of the Alps. Garmisch and Partenkirchen were originally two different towns that were joined by a decree of Adolf Hitler to bring the 1936 Winter Olympics to Germany. The International Olympic Committee was going to pass over Germany as the host, because there were not enough hotel rooms in the host town, so Hitler forced the unification of Garmisch and Partenkirchen to create a larger town, which would be more appealing to the IOC.
Being located at the base of the country's tallest mountain - Zugspitze (more than 9,000 feet) – the town made the perfect candidate for the Winter Olympics in 1936 where the first alpine skiing competition was held. Today Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a tourist and winter sports centre and has some of Germany's best skiing areas.
During the winter the slopes surrounding the town are amazing for skiers and sightseers alike. During the summer months hours can be spent hiking the many trails and enjoying the panoramic views. With all the alpine lakes, boating is also popular, and both boats and mountain bikes are easy to rent in the area. There is a cogwheel train trip up to the top of the Zugspitze mountain which is an event in itself and a shorter 10-minute cable car ride with amazing views.
Aside from the scenic location, what makes this small town so endearing are all the enchanting Upper Bavarian-styled homes, beautifully adorned with painted scenes and window boxes exploding with flowers. The Bavarians have a long history of decorating the exteriors of their houses and businesses with both religious and historic paintings. Almost every buildings in Garmisch-Partenkirchen have unique murals on the outside walls of the buildings. Some depict an event or animals and other paintings make the buildings look like they have things (windows, statues, etc.) that really are not there. Just walking around the town is a real treat.
Also worth seeing in town is the 18th century parish church of St. Martin just off Marienplatz with beautiful stuccowork by the Wessobrunn school of painters. Another St. Martin's Church across the Loisach River is even older. This Gothic church dates from 1280 and has a huge St. Christopher wall painting.
Photos by sergey
Sources: Wikipedia, Wikitravel, Yahoo
Magnificent!! Thank you for these awesome photos. They just became my new office screen saver(s)
ReplyDeleteProud to live in bavaria =) great photos!
ReplyDeleteAmazing detail
ReplyDeleteHundreds of thousand of American troops and their families will also speak to the beauty of Garmisch as the home to a US (possibly NATO?) recreation center. I remember as a young child in 1972 visiting Garmisch with my military dad and the rest of my family. It was magical...
ReplyDeleteI also went to Garmisch in 1962 when my dad was stationed in Landstuhl. I was 8 years old then and still remember vividly how beautiful it was...
DeleteThank you for these beautiful photographs! I spent many happy, wonder-filled years living in this town. I miss it still.
ReplyDeleteWas stationed in Germany while serving in the Army, and without a doubt, Garmisch is the most beautiful place in my world travels, and I remember all the places identified in the pictures; even skied the Zugspitse over the Christmas and New Year holiday.
ReplyDeleteAmazing plase to visit any one ,i liked only wached that,excellent street plan, ΜΠΡΑΒΟ !
ReplyDeleteMy girlfriend and I visited here. It is truly a beautiful place and the houses are amazing. Does anyone have a link to what they look like inside? Traditional decoration or just normal modern design? My girlfriend would have loved to tour them.
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