FollowBavaria has a good regional rail system, and this morning we get a train to an alpine town close to the Austrian border. It’s called Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and it’s very attractive.
We get a gondola up to one of the local peaks and have lunch. Great views from up here.
Olympic stadium just outside town.
The stadium looks worth a visit, so we jump on a bus. On arrival it’s better than we could possibly have expected. The stadium is just as it was in 1936, concrete terraces, ticket offices, everything.
Better still, you can walk straight in and go anywhere. No charges at all.
History bit: The Germans wanted to host the 1936 winter games, but didn’t have a resort big enough. So you-know-who had the bright idea of simply joining 2 villages together to make one that was big enough. Garmisch and Partenkirchen have been a single town ever since. The 1936 games were a huge success, and Germany was actually awarded the winter games again for 1940, though obviously that one never happened.
Of course the ski jumps are new. This has to be the single most imbecilic sport ever devised.
Despite the obvious likelihood of severe injury or death, the kids are keen to learn.
There’s a great slalom course here too. Here’s Val planning her run.
