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A lovable state with a long history. The name "Free
State of Bavaria” indicates that Bavaria is a republican
rather than monarchical state. The largest federal state (in terms
of area) and its nearly twelve million inhabitants are proud of
their history, which dates back to the 6th century. Nowhere else
in Germany are age-old customs cultivated as matter-of-factly
as here; people wear colorful traditional dress not only during
major folk festivals such as the annual Oktoberfest in Munich.
Bavaria has its own anthem and a pronounced dialect. In many countries
the "Bavarian” has come to epitomize the cliché
of the "typical German”. Bavaria owes its great tourist
appeal to both its rich cultural and historical heritage as well
as the charm of its beautiful landscapes. The Alps with the Zugspitze,
Germany's highest mountain (2,962 meters), the Alpine foreland
with its exquisite lakes such as the Chiemsee and the Königssee,
the Bavarian Forest with its national park, the Franconian Jura,
the Fichtel Hills, the Steigerwald, the Spessart and many other
scenic areas of the state offer tourists incomparably enticing
opportunities for rest, recreation and enjoyment of nature. The
mountains are a hiker's paradise; the lakes in the Alpine foothills
and the new artificial lakes created in Franconia in the course
of construction of the Main-Danube Canal invite vacationers to
indulge in water sports. The state is richly endowed with extensive
parks, such as Schönbusch Park in Aschaffenburg, the Hofgarten
in Ansbach and the English Garden in Munich, as well as magnificent
palaces, above all the palaces of the "fairy-tale king”
Ludwig II: Linderhof, Neuschwanstein and Herrenchiemsee. The royal
residences in Würzburg and Bamberg are likewise of imposing
beauty, as is the Veste Coburg with its rich collection of copper
engravings.
Agriculture and industry. Until 1950, agriculture was the
principal economic sector in Bavaria. Over the following decades
this primarily agrarian state has come to be a modern industrial
and service center. However, in large parts of Bavaria - not only
in the Alpine foreland - farming and forestry still play a key
role. Bavarian beer (brewed according to the purity regulations
of 1516) is world-famous; the hops used in its production are
grown in Bavaria itself. Franconian wine is likewise prized by
connoisseurs. Today approximately 43 percent of the state's gross
domestic product stems from production industries and well over
half from the service sector. The twin cities of Nuremberg (496,000
inhabitants) and Fürth (108,000), linked by Germany's first
railway line in 1835, form an industrial center focusing on electrical,
mechanical and vehicle engineering, the printing trade, and the
plastics, toy and food industries. Nuremberg Lebkuchen is known
all over the world, the Fürth mail-order house "Quelle”
at least throughout Europe. Regensburg (126,000 inhabitants),
which has a well-preserved medieval townscape (the Stone Bridge
dates from 1146), today lives from automobile manufacturing and
the textile, machinery and wood industries. It also has an efficient
Danube port. Ingolstadt (111,000 inhabitants) is the site of automobile
manufacturing and oil refineries. Würzburg (128,000 inhabitants)
boasts not only printing press, electronics and food industries
but also the state's three largest wine-growing estates: the Staatlicher
Hofkeller, the Juliusspital and the Bürgerspital. In eastern
Bavaria, glassworks (Zwiesel) and porcelain manufactories (Rosenthal,
Hutschenreuter) carry on traditional crafts. International trade
fairs such as "bauma” in Munich and the Toy Fair in
Nuremberg are famous the world over.
"Gemütlichkeit” and high tech. The state
capital Munich (1.25 million inhabitants) is a metropolis with
all the appurtenant institutions, yet the city has its own distinctive
atmosphere. In addition to the proverbial sociability to be encountered
in the Hofbräuhaus, for instance, both the city and the surrounding
region have a vibrant and dynamic economic life: automobile and
aircraft industries, electrical and electronics industries, insurance
firms and publishing houses. With its renowned university and
other higher education institutions, the Bavarian State Library
(with over six million volumes one of the largest libraries in
Europe), the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, the nuclear
research reactor and many other institutions, Munich is an important
center of science and research. Its airport, named for Bavaria's
long-serving minister-president Franz-Josef Strauss, is a major
international air traffic hub.
Culture and folk art. Bavaria spends well over DM 100 million every year to conserve its cultural heritage. Munich boasts not only the unique Deutsches Museum, which houses the world's largest collection devoted to the history of science and technology, but also numerous historic buildings and art museums such as the Alte and Neue Pinakothek, Lenbach House and the Schack Gallery. Nuremberg, the city of Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) and Hans Sachs (1494-1576), preserves some of the finest examples of late medieval treasures in its churches. The National Museum of German Culture is itself worth a special trip to the city. The churches in the Banz and Ettal monasteries, the Vierzehnheiligen basilica and the Wieskirche near Steingaden, which appears in the UNESCO World Heritage List, are outstanding examples of Baroque and Rococo architecture, as is the former residence of the prince-bishops in Würzburg. The latter's staircase, which was created by Balthasar Neumann (1687-1753), is considered one of the most beautiful in the world. The towns of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Nördlingen and Dinkelsbühl are virtually open-air museums, linked with other sights by the "Romantic Route”. There are 31 permanent stages and 29 open-air stages in Bavaria. Every year the Bayreuth Festival showcases the operas of Richard Wagner, who lived in Bayreuth from 1872 to 1883. Other outstanding festivals include the Munich Opera Festival, the Passau European Festival Weeks, the Ansbach Bach Week and the Würzburg Mozart Festival. Folk music is popular all over Bavaria as well, especially during the numerous folk festivals such as the "Leonhardi-Fahrt” equestrian procession in honor of St. Leonhard in Bad Tölz, the Augsburg "Friedensfest” commemorating the Peace of Augsburg of 1555, the "Death of the Dragon” pageant in Furth im Wald, the Würzburg Festival of St. Kilian and the Kiefersfelden jousting tournament. A tradition since 1634 is the Oberammergau Passion Play, which is performed every ten years (next performance in the year 2000).