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In
early March, my chorus went up to Dortmund for the German
Barbershop Convention. Later that month, Marty and I went
on a skiing trip on the Zugspitze with some of his colleagues
(I didn't ski, though, since I don't know how). The weather
was pretty crazy in March, but we had some nice days and
I got out and walked and took a few pictures. Also in March,
we met a new friend, Lukas!
Click
on each picture to see a larger version.
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March 5 - 7, 2004
Dortmund, Germany
A
modern stained glass window in a Dortmund church, depicting
the city map of Dortmund.
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A different church in Dortmund. For some reason there
was a carousel right outside it.
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Vocal Spectrum, a barbershop quartet from St. Louis, performing
at the German Barbershop Convention. |
The Ambassadors of Harmony, a men's barbershop chorus from
St. Louis, performing at the convention. The groups from
St. Louis came to sing in the concerts at the convention,
and they were all fantastic! |
The Harmunichs in Dortmund, after our 4th place finish in
Germany. |
Chromagic, a quartet from Munich, after competing in the
quartet competition. |
Later in March...
back in Munich...
A
view of Hochstrasse from below. I wanted a picture of
this version of the Münchner Kindl (on the bridge).
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A
closer shot of the Kindl.
This
bridge is just behind Mariahilfplatz in the Au.
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March 19
In
the parking lot at the foot of the Zugspitze, just before
we went up to the peak in the Eibseebahn. Marty with his
ski equipment.
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On the peak. The Münchner Haus was built as a weather
station in 1897. This is the highest point in Germany --
2964 meters above sea level! |
Here you can see the address of the Münchner Haus. |
Today it has grown into a large station at the top of
the mountain, and the destination of the lifts coming
from the bottom of the mountain.
It's
also where you climb to, when you climb the Zugspitze
(as Marty
did last summer).
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The view was a lot better the day we were up there in
March, than when Marty went in August.
I
believe this is looking into the Höllental, but there
was some debate over that among our party.
|
Looking down into Germany from the Zugspitze. |
That lake below is the Eibsee, where we parked and took
the gondola up. |
Another view of the glorious Alps. |
We were up really high! |
The ski area isn't actually at the peak. When you reach
the Münchner Haus you then have to take another lift
down to the slopes. But you can see the slopes from up there.
I wasn't skiing, so I stayed on the peak for a while and
took some pictures before I went down to join the skiers
for lunch. |
The ski slopes were gorgeous, you could see that even from
on top of the mountain. |
This is the Hütte (lodge) where the skiers break
for food, drinks, music, and sunbathing.
|
The lift down to the ski area also runs to the Hütte.
You can see a gondola going down the cable in this picture.
|
Down on the level of the ski slopes, looking at the Hütte
from the front. On top of the mountain behind the Hütte,
you can see the station at the peak. |
A better view of the station (where I had just come from). |
Whenever the skiers wanted a break, they'd leave their gear
on the snow beside the Hütte and sit down at the tables
in the sun. It was cool out but the sun was very warm. |
Marty was apparently serving as an unofficial Georgia ambassador
that day. Here he is trying to win some recruits. |
Some people were sunbathing over on the side. A couple of
hours later there were about sixty people doing the same
thing, some of them stripped down to shorts and tank tops.
You could rent deck chairs. |
The natives were also taking the sun. |
Going for a little spin after lunch. |
It takes a lot of technology to keep those slopes in good
condition for the skiers.
|
This is the easy slope.
|
Where you grab the lift to go back to the top. |
It was probably the first time in my life I wished I could
ski. Everyone was having such a super time. |
But there were opportunities for non-skiers too. A few of
us walked up to this little chapel (just above the Hütte)
to sit in the sun and watch what was going on. In this picture
I'm the person sitting on the rocks closest to the camera. |
Most of the time when I'm in the mountains, it's so hazy
that you can't really see all the Alps spread out in the
distance. This was probably the clearest day I've ever seen
up there. It was stunning. |
I wasn't the only person who wasn't skiing! |
Look at that gorgeous blue sky. |
Marty and Susie on the Zugspitze. |
And at the peak of the Zugspitze (you may remember that
cross from Marty's Zugspitze
pictures last year -- check out the last one). |
Back at the Eibsee. These are the cables that took the gondola
up and brought it back down. The car holds about 45 people,
plus all their ski equipment for the day. In my opinion
it's a great way to get to the top of the Zugspitze. |
March 29
And last but not least, March brought a new friend to our
lives. Here's Carol at home in Munich with her new baby,
Lukas. He's so sweet! |
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