Olympic Preparations

While we're not certain if the Winter olympics will come our way we're still doing things the German way - being ultra prepared and having a finesse for detailed engineering. This is an image of the plans near the construction area at the Olympic Park. I'm not entirely certain what they have going on there, but the subterranean shell looks mighty interesting. I'm curious where it will have foot traffic, similar to the Opera House in Oslo. The latest stat is that 60% of the area wants the Olympics. We'll see if the other 40% can be swayed with Katarina Witt's campaign.

Swimming

This is the scene of Mark Spitz's impressive 7 world records and medals during the 1972 Olympics.

This is also where the TV show 'Wetten, dass...?' was filmed when they visited Munich a few weeks ago.

It's a great places to break out that speedo to get some exercise even as the weather cools off outside.

Fading Colors

Everyone seems to be trying to make the most of the last few weeks of nice weather before the city turns cold and gray. The colors at the Olympic Park at this time of year are breathtaking and it's a great place to take in the crisp Autumn weather.

Marathon

Nearly 18,000 people participated in the Munich marathon, half marathon, and 10 K run today, which ended at the Olympic Stadium. The weather was perfect for a scenic run through the city and the camaraderie and support were out in full force to cheer on family, friends, and those that undertook the arduous runs.

Congratulations to everyone that participated!

Puppet Theater

It's nice to see children enjoying a puppet show outdoors as opposed to being inside watching television.

The area is surrounded with well known theaters exclusively for this ancient form of entertainment, including the Salzburg Marionette Theater and the Augsburg Puppenkiste. The very best part is hearing how involved the children get while screaming at the puppets.

Sommerfest

Munich loves it's annual celebrations. Sommerfest has been happening since 1982. What was supposed to be a one-time event to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the olympics is now an annual celebration held at Coubertinplatz.

Nearly 250,000 visitors attend the events, which range from the typical festival rides and foods to events for people with dogs and evenings filled with fireworks. There is also the 'Boatmans' tournament', where people try to tip each others boats.

It's a fun event in a beautiful setting.

Through the Eye of the Needle

A jet trail is visible behind the Olympiadorf, which was an amazingly rare sight in Europe on Friday.  Most air traffic came to a screeching halt throughout Northern Europe, Eastern Europe and Russia; as Icelandic volcanic ash blanketed the continent.  15 of 16 German airports were closed on Friday, and Munich was the only exception – thanks to its Southern location.  On Saturday, even Munich joined the mix – with nearly all flights cancelled.  No telling how long the delay will last, but in the meantime millions of travelers have been stranded or are taking alternate means of transportation.  This photo was taken between the arches of the Olympic complex, a design chosen because it was so unlike the Nazi era bold block construction.  There has been construction going on for the past year or so (you can see the crane), but I’ve not been able to find information on what they are building.  Anyone know?

Bone Dry Dorf

For the first time in my short Munich residence, the city of Munich has drained the lake that streams around the Olympic Center. I'm not sure what the story is, as I have found very little news on it, but it appears they are doing some constructions or cleaning of the man-made lake. The lake, of course, is one of the most visible features of the Olympic park, filled with paddle boats including the highly visible car and swanboat. It's uncertain how long the work will last, but hopefully Munich's second largest park will have its lake backs soon.

Olympic Deja Vu

This past month Munich took its first major step to hosting the 2018 Winter Olympics. Partnered with Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Berchtesgaden, Munich submitted their bid and launched the process for becoming the first city to ever host both the Summer & Winter Olympic games. The bid includes a two-cluster approach, with a set of ice sports in Munich, snow sports in Garmisch, and bobsled sports near Berchtesgaden. Some of the facilities already exist for these events, including the track at Schonau am Konigssee for bobsledding, luge and skeleton - where the 2011 championships will be hosted. Likewise, Garmisch will be hosting the World Alpine Championship in 2011. Munich facilities like the Aliance Arena can also be used possibly for opening/closing ceremonies. Either way, the road to the Olympics is a long one - with the deadline for the mini bid book submission in March 2010, and the final round of candidates selected in July, 2010. The final decision will be made in July of 2011. But with strong backing from BMW and Finanzgroup, we're sure to see a good bid.

Sign Language

I have to say that Munich has some of the worst signage I've seen in any city. Even for the biggest shows that come to town, you see these little florescent signs, which look more like something on a college campus that an ad for U2, Coldplay, or the Rolling Stones. Seriously, every European city from Belgrade to Brussels to Budapest - all have great billboards and postings for upcoming bands. So why not in Munich? It must have something to do with its desire for order - there are places for posting billboards and there are places for not posting billboards.

An American in Munich

This weekend, Munich is hosting the four nations hockey championships, including Germany, Switzerland, Slovakia, and the US. We attended the first night of action of the Deutsches Cup, with the US beating Germany 3-2 in a shootout at Olympiahalle. The locals were not so pleased, but we couldn't stop waving the American flag and singing the National Anthem (they sing it after the game for the winning team.) The level of play was quite good as the American team pulled many of their best players from European hockey teams to compete in the tournament. Games continue through the weekend.

A Late Look at Lilalu

I’m a little late on this post, as it’s been a week since I visited the Lilalu festival at the Olympic park I’m not quite sure I understand this particular kinder festival. I think it has the most captivating poster (which I tried to repeat in the photo), yet the festival itself seems to be a bit desolate. It reminds me of the travelling carnivals in the US, always a bit random, a bit make-shift and a bit creepy. At this event, you found rides sprawling out in every direction across the gravel field, then a big stage where entertainers sang and danced with the kids, the customary hippy shops, and a play area so dark very few kids played there. The saving grace was the firemen showing the kids how to use the hoses – which was quite cute - and the parachute play (pictured here).

Olympic Glory

Above Munich – Day 10: Built for the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, the Olympic Stadium has been the venue for some of the biggest games in German football history. Although the Olympic tower gives a view from high above the stadium, this vantage point was taken from the panoramic hillside directly across from the stadium. (I had used the shot from the Olympic Tower during an earlier post, and it gives me an excuse to talk about how nice this viewing point is). Be sure to stop at the beer garden on your way up the mountain, and on a clear day enjoy stunning views of downtown with the Alps in the background. As a matter of fact, the stadium itself was constructed to imitate the Alps with its sweeping canopies of acrylic glass and vaulting steel cables. In addition to the famous football matches (this was home to FC Bayern until 2006), the stadium has hosted some of the biggest names in music, including the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Madonna, and Michael Jackson.

BMW's World

Above Munich – Day 4: I have posted this photo before, but I thought it was a good fit for the Above Munich theme. The photo (taken from the Olympia Dorf) shows the BMW Showcase facility (left) – BMW World, the flat BMW Museum with the logo on the roof, the BMW headquarters tower, and the sprawling assembly plant. Note that this is just one portion of their Munich facilities. The tower was built between 1968 and 1972 and was completed just before the start of the Olympics, but ironically had to take the logo off the façade to avoid any product placements – as the facility is directly across from the Olympic facility. This was also true of the fleet of sedans that shuttled athletes around during the games. The tower is meant to represent a cylinder head, while the museum is meant to look like a racing wheel. However, it is the BMW World that seems to get all the attention ever since it opened in 2007.

Munich's Summer Fest

And today, cross the city for another Summer fest, a much larger one – Tollwood. Taking place at the foot of the Olympic hill this Summer fest runs through July 12th, and brings in top bands like Simple Minds; Foreigner; Amy MacDonald; Earth, Wind & Fire; and the Buena Vista Social Club. You will also find a mix of theatre, Salsa dancing, handcrafts, and kids play area. Of course, I’ve also described the festival as a bit of a hippy-fest with its all bio menu, but that’s a bit common in Munich as well. To its credit, for a town that often feels like it shuts down at 8 pm, the event is open til 1 a.m. Just one more example of how the city of Munich still utilizes its tremendous Olympic Park every single day.

Fashion Statement

But what is he trying to say? Lounging far up above the Tollwood festival at the Olympic Park, a young man kicks it and listens to the free tunes flowing across the extensive parkland. The man’s fashion choices caught many an eye in Munich, which isn’t prone to bright colors, individual style, and getting noticed. So what is Munich’s style? I’d describe most as quite casual and a bit dark. Jeans are the norm, and if you want to dress up you wear a button-down and a sport coat. Some people love the casual lifestyle in Munich. I don’t mind it, but also feel that when you go to a theatre performance, opera or ballet, you find some way to get out of your butt out of the jeans and into something a bit more formal. It’s a bit of brainwashing from living 3 years in Paris and 19 years in San Francisco. There’s a time and place for everything, I suppose, and in Munich – the time and place call for conformity rather than outspoken – which is why this is a-typical for Munich.

Split Personality

As with many things in Munich, you find contrasts wherever you go. I stumbled across this sculpture in the Olympic Park. You already know I’m a big fan of this extensive park built in 1972 for the “Happy Games” which didn’t turn out so happy, but what’s amazing is just how much is left undiscovered. No matter how many times you’ve been there, you will still find new paths, new areas to fall asleep on the grass, or great spots to rollerblade or bike through. But back to this sculpture – it was built in honor of the Olympic athletes that amazed the spectators of the games. The top athletes were Mark Spitz with 7 gold medals in swimming; Olga Korbut, the tiny Soviet gold medal gymnast; and the Soviet basketball team which upset the US team breaking their streak of Gold since 1936. And now to the contrast. Which of those athletes looked like this sculpture? This sounds weird, but I’ve discovered a slew of heavy set sculptures around town. Is Munich feeling a bit big these days? Germany has been established as the heaviest country in the European Union, but do they need to show it in stone, bronze, and marble?

Munich Flea Markets

OK, so I’ve been quite laxed over the last few days about posting, but it wasn’t by choice. The lovely resort we spent the last few days at in Croatia shocked us with NO internet access. Yes…it’s true that some places in the world still don’t have persistent wi-fi, but perhaps you have to leave the European Union to find them. So I’ll try to catch up over the next few days. As this is a Friday post, I think it’s worthwhile to mention a weekend establishment in Munich. That’s the weekly fleamarket at the Olympicpark parking lot. Of course, flea market is not one word, but it seems somehow appropriate to pull the words together, as is so often the case in the German language. And what better to find in Bavarian flohmarkts but Gnomes. It just seems somehow appropriate. You can find other Flohmarkts around town. Here’s a list of most of them.

A Moment of Your Own

Sometimes finding a spot for yourself can be pretty challenging in the city. I’ve shown you the crazy crowds at the English Gardens on a sunny day, as well as the endless skin at the outdoor pools. But early morning at the Olympic Park can be a place of refuge, solitude - even if there are thousands of people already using the park. For most of Munich’s history, this place previously known as Oberwiesenfeld (or upper meadow-field), was largely unused. It was used as an airfield before 1939, but the Munich-Riem airport left the Oberwiesenfeld deserted and unused. The Nazis planned to use this area as the central slaughterhouse and marketplace, but WWII hindered those plans. After the war, the area became known as the Trummerberg, which refers to a hill erected from the ruins caused by the bombings in the war. After the war, refuges from the Hungarian Revolution camped at the US Army facilities. Because it was largely vacant, the area became a perfect place for the development of the Olympic Stadium. And today, for most, the Olympic Park becomes a space where one can compete, work out, discover, watch, or simply discover a moment on your own.

Flower Power Comes to Munich

Although there seems to be some believability to Munich locals dancing around naked (they do anyway in parks around town – as I noted a week back) on a deserted farm pasture in celebration to the 40 year anniversary to Woodstock, somehow I don’t see it happening. When I heard about the 40th anniversary, I was a bit surprised to hear that the week-long concert series was happening in the Olympic center Ice arena. Having skated at the arena and watched games by the Munich Ice Hockey team, I don’t see it being quite the same celebration. With that said, they have a long line up of bands to celebrate the 40 year anniversary of the “3 days of Peace, Love & Music.” I’m afraid this is one time that Munich is being shown up by Berlin, as the country’s capital is planning a concert at Berlin’s Templehof airport (recently de-commissioned) in August with 200-300,000 attendees. Michael Lang (now 65), the founding producer of the original Woodstock is contracting to Media Consulta to promote the event in Germany. Several bands that played the original Woodstock festival are expected in Berlin, including Santana, The Who, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, and the Grateful Dead. Yeah…The Olympic Ice Arena wont quite cut it. Oh well, if that doesn’t work for you there are two additional music festivals this weekend at the Olympic Park – the Spring on Festival – focused on Germany’s diverse rock, punk and hiphop artists - and the Theatron Festival – focused on highlighting local talents in the International rock scene.