I have a theory about these wooden houses we see scattered (in an orderly fashion) across fields. I believe they are early silos. Billie’s cousin pointed out that the round plastic shapes we see stacked in fields are not actually waterproof covering for round hay bales. They are packed with fresh-cut grass which begins to ferment (the cows love it) – in other words they turn grass in to silage. In the time before plastic, these huts would serve the same purpose. Just a thought.

Arriving in Oberammergau we went first to the Passion Play theatre.
In the 1600s the town was hit by the plague. Over the course of a year almost 1/3 of the inhabitants died. A last ditch effort by the town leaders was to make a deal with God. ‘Spare the town and we will put on a passion play (Jesus life, death, resurrection) every 10 years.’ The town was spared and they have been putting the play on (most) every decade since. There was no play in 1940 because of WW II and the 2020 running was delayed until 2022.
Entering the building we were met by our guide – an extremely energetic and committed young man who delivered the requisite material, and also several long discourses on the necessity of change in order to keep a tradition alive.

He took us to the theatre – an open-air structure that seats 4,000 built in 1890, then backstage to look at costumes and the 2022 cross.
There will be a new cross in 2030 because after 100 performances (5 times a week from mid May thru September) it needs to be replaced after every season.
It’s noteworthy that there is only one paid employee of the acting company – the director. Everyone else including actors, stage hands, set designers, wardrobe people; all are volunteers who commit the better part of a year to the project. When someone applies to be part of the company it is assumed that they have made appropriate arrangements with their employer to be available to participate in a 6 hour production every workday thru the run (as well as rehearsal time before-hand). The 2022 edition of the play lasted 6 hours (three hours, a three hour dinner break, another three hours) Our guide told of his grandfather who would be at work at 5:00 AM, then arrive at the theatre in time to costume for the first half. During the dinner break he would return to work and come back to the theatre for the final act, getting to bed about midnight. And get up to do it again the next day. The people of Oberammergau continue to make a serious commitment to the production.
One other interesting fact. In order to be considered to participate in the production you must either be born in Oberammergau or have lived there the previous 10 years.

After the tour Antonia led us on a walking tour of downtown.
These tours generally serve to point out things we need to know about in a town (banks, good restaurants, apothecaries, bars, and such).
They also provide a glimpse into the local color.

Then it was time for lunch.

Following lunch we boarded the bus for a short tour of some of the most charmingly painted homes in town.
In particular we focused on several houses decorated with nursery rhyme themes.

Leaving Oberammergau we headed to the Linderhof palace.
Built by Ludwig II (Mad King Ludwig) in the latter part of the 19th century it is one of four extravagant estates commissioned by the king. Although it is the smallest of the four it is the only one he saw completed and he used it as his chief residence from 1876 until his death In 1886.

It’s a charming, though ostentatious palace. Sadly there is no photography allowed in the building (and our guide kept a very watchful eye) but suffice it to say the the ivory chandelier constructed by three workmen over the course of two years (in other words, priceless) didn’t seem at all out of place.

Though we couldn’t take photos inside we were encouraged to wander the grounds shooting to our hearts’ content.

Then it was back on the bus and back to Seefeld.

We had some time before dinner to nap, blog, read, and such.

Dinner this evening was provided at a local restaurant.

We shared a table with a couple from New York City who came to the US from Ukraine.
We talked a bit about education (her field) and differences; Soviet to post Soviet, Ukraine to US.
We also talked at length about social safety nets in general and welfare (his field) in particular.
It was an excellent and informative time. I learned a lot about ‘life in the trenches’ issues faced by people trying to administer programs that are politically unpopular.

Then it was back to the room for evening stuff and bed.

Tomorrow we cross into Germany again, this time to Mittenwald.
It’s a cute little town on the Bavarian side of the border that we previously visited in 2012.
It’s famous for a strong heritage of violin making and we find it incredibly charming.
Can’t wait to get back there.

Till then…
R