Trip to Garmisch Entry for 13 January 2006
It has been quite a while since I posted anything
here. Of course the only items you have seen in
this blog so far are those that I had available
from Iraq. Those of you who have followed
my photos and writings from there know that
I am back in Heidelberg Germany and still
on leave. I’m glad to be back home with my
wife Dee, our Dog Draco and Cat Sebastian.
The following photographs are actually from
the second of two trips Dee and I have made
to the Bavarian Alp resort area. Check out the
following link and description from that link.
Travel to Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Situated 97kms southwest of Munich at the
base of the Zugspitze, the country’s highest
mountain (2,963m), is the Olympic city of
Garmisch – Partenkirchen, the best and most
famous ski resort in Germany. The resort
offers excellent beginner schools, new and
advanced expert runs, as well as perfect terrain
for intermediates. Host of the 1936 Winter
Olympics, Garmisch – Partenkirchen is an
all-rounder with a sparkling heritage.
Garmisch and especially Partenkirchen
maintain an ancient village charm, while
merging as twin villages to form Germany’s
top Alpine resort. Fine jewellery and
handicraft shops, along with sports stores
and fashionable boutiques, make up the variety
of shopping opportunities in the centre.
There are 60kms of marked ski runs over
44 slopes at Garmisch – Partenkirchen,
with a longest run of seven kilometres.
Beginners get almost half of all slopes,
while intermediate and advanced skiers
get perfect terrain. Around 33,000 skiers
per hour are transported by one cogwheel
train, four cable cars, two gondolas, six chairlifts,
and 23 surface lifts, making up the 36 lifts at the
resort. Although Garmisch - Partenkirchen
lacks a ski kindergarten, it provides a children’s
school for ages four upwards. You won’t spend
too much time searching for accommodation,
with the middle of each town offering wonderful,
often luxurious hotels to farmhouses at the resort,
which has over 9,600 available beds. Fantastic
old Bavarian restaurants permeate Garmisch,
while both towns have big hotels providing
elegant après-ski, plus facilities including a
casino, bars, discos, concerts, theatres and
a cinema. A common lift ticket links the two
largest nearby Austrian Alpine villages of
Lermoos and Seefeld, with Garmisch –
Partenkirchen. The top of the Zugspitze is
accessible by railway and cable car, completing
a classic journey, and affording a panorama
which extends far over the Alps and Bavarian
lowlands. The summit can also be reached from
the Austrian side of the border. November to
May means a long ski season, with the start
and end of the season, as well as mid-January,
offering the best deals. To arrive at Garmisch -
Partenkirchen with the least fuss, fly to Munich
or Innsbruck and hire a vehicle for an awe-
inspiring journey through the mountains.
The following series of photographs were
taken with my Canon EOS Rebel XT.
This is only the second time I've had it
out on an extensive shoot. I will be posting
the results of my shoot with my
Minolta 370x 35mm on the next post.
That one will include our photos from
our 2005 visit there.
I kind of need to space this out a bit.
Below, Dee is on the balcony
of our room at the Edelweiss
lodge.
Sometimes I photograph a subject from
several perspectives, digital is an advantage
for this because of film and procssing costs.
Dee and I didn’t get to see all we wanted to see from either
