{"id":70375,"date":"2019-02-13T17:21:16","date_gmt":"2019-02-14T00:21:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=70375"},"modified":"2019-02-16T20:38:47","modified_gmt":"2019-02-17T03:38:47","slug":"germany-and-austria-in-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html","title":{"rendered":"Germany and Austria in 2020!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Doepler<\/a>
\u201cThe village of Oberammergau in Upper Bavaria, with the stage for the passion play. Original etching by C. E. Doepler\u201d [1860] \u00a0(My translation;\u00a0Wikimedia Commons public domain image)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some of you are aware, I think, that I\u2019ll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \u201cpassion play\u201d (devoted to the last days of Christ) that has been performed in the beautiful little Bavarian village of Oberammergau essentially every decade \u2014 in years ending in zero \u2014 since its first staging in 1634 during a time when the plague was ravaging the area.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.cruiselady.com\/tours\/oberammergau-2020-passion-play\/<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m quite excited about this. \u00a0For one thing, I absolutely love the Alpine region of Bavaria, Austria, and Switzerland. \u00a0(I served my mission in German-speaking Switzerland.) \u00a0For another, I\u2019ve attended the play three times before \u2014 in 1970, for a special 350th anniversary performance in 1984, and again in 2010. \u00a0So, when I saw that 2020 was coming up, I told Diane Larsen, the owner of Cruise Lady, that I would be attending the play and that, if she wanted to, she could build a tour around that fact. \u00a0Or not.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Well, there\u2019s a tour.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll not only attend the play, but we\u2019ll visit Munich\u2019s Nymphenburg Palace, Berchtesgaden, the K\u00f6nigssee, and, at the end, Berlin.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Auf<\/a>
On the K\u00f6nigssee (Wikimedia CC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Reichstag<\/a>
The burning of the Reichstag or German Parliament, in Berlin, February 1933, an arson attack that was used by the newly installed German chancellor, Adolf Hitler, to justify his assumption of \u201cemergency powers.\u201d
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The restored German Reichstag in Berlin today (photo by J\u00fcrgen Matern, Wikimedia CC public domain<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Along the way, too, we\u2019ll go to\u00a0the Wieskirche, Neuschwanstein Castle, and the Austrian city of Salzburg, where (among other things) the real-life story commemorated in The Sound of Music<\/em> played out.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Breathtaking<\/a>
The somewhat surprising Rococo interior of the Wieskirche, which sits amid cow pastures out in the middle of the Bavarian countryside \u00a0\u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain image)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Salzburger<\/a>
A view of the city of Salzburg (Wikimedia CC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Neuschwanstein<\/a>
Neuschwanstein Castle \u00a0\u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

On a much more solemn note, we\u2019ll pay a visit to the Nazi concentration camp at Mauthausen. \u00a0This one is personal to me: \u00a0My father participated in the liberation of that camp and was asked to document the horrors that his unit saw. \u00a0I grew up with his account of that experience and with the photos that he was asked to take, and I\u2019ve returned to Mauthausen several times in honor of my Dad and in homage to the victims of Nazi brutality who suffered and died there.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The liberation of the Nazi concentration camp at Mauthausen, near Linz, Austria, on 6 May 1945, by elements of the Eleventh Armored Division of General George Patton\u2019s Third Army. My father was there that day as a staff sergeant, though I don\u2019t believe that he\u2019s in this photograph. He raised me with the moral obligation that he himself felt, that the crimes committed at Mauthausen and other such camps must never be forgotten. And I HAVEN\u2019T forgotten.
(Photo from Wikimedia Commons public domain)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m delighted that we\u2019ll also be spending time in the small city of Wittenberg, which was the absolute center of the German Lutheran Reformation. \u00a0(In fact, its official name today isn\u2019t merely Wittenberg<\/em>, but Lutherstadt Wittenberg<\/em> \u2014 \u201cLuther City Wittenberg.\u201d) \u00a0I only visited it for the first time a few years ago, and my immediate thought was that I would love<\/em> to bring a tour group to it. \u00a0There is an incredible concentration of important historical sites within about three blocks \u2014 easy, level walking \u2014 at the heart of the city. \u00a0And a fantastic story to tell.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Marktplatz<\/a>
The Market Square in Wittenberg, Germany, where Martin Luther launched the Protestant Reformation in 1517. \u00a0\u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain image)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Die<\/a>
The Wartburg \u00a0\u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finally, I spent some time this afternoon arguing (successfully, I think) for a one-day extension at the end of the trip, adding on not only a little bit of additional time in Wittenberg but a visit to the Wartburg. \u00a0That dramatic medieval fortress was the setting for the legendary\u00a0S\u00e4ngerkrieg<\/i>, the Minstrels\u2019 Contest,\u00a0in which such\u00a0Minnes\u00e4nger<\/i>\u00a0or troubadours as Walther von der Vogelweide,\u00a0Wolfram von Eschenbach, Albrecht von Halberstadt, and many others supposedly took part in 1206\/1207. \u00a0The composer Richard Wagner later built upon this story\u00a0in his 1845 opera\u00a0Tannh\u00e4user \u2014<\/em> the original full title of which is actually\u00a0Tannh\u00e4user und der S\u00e4ngerkrieg auf Wartburg<\/i>, or \u201cTannh\u00e4user and the\u00a0Minnesingers\u2019 Contest\u00a0at\u00a0Wartburg.\u201d)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Music<\/a>
Ferdinand Leeke, \u201cTannh\u00e4user und der S\u00e4ngerkrieg auf der Wartburg\u201d (ca. 1920)
Wikimedia Commons public domain image<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAh,\u201d you may be thinking, \u201cbut that\u2019s not enough to justify an entire extra day. \u00a0I don\u2019t even like<\/em> opera. \u00a0Let alone Wagner<\/em>, even though his music, Mark Twain once quipped, \u2018is better than it sounds.'\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Perhaps. \u00a0Perhaps not.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the Wartburg is also important because it\u2019s the place where, in the wake of a spectacular fake kidnapping to save him from the death sentence passed upon him by Charles V, ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, Martin Luther hid out while translating the New Testament into German. \u00a0To a substantial degree, he not only furthered the Reformation and eventually the conditions for the Restoration but created the modern German literary language along the way. \u00a0It\u2019s a wonderful place to tell a very gripping and enormously important story.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I hope that you can sense that I\u2019m rather enthused about this tour.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Some of you are aware, I think, that I\u2019ll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \u201cpassion play\u201d (devoted to the last days of Christ) that has been performed in the beautiful little Bavarian village of Oberammergau essentially every decade \u2014 in years ending in zero \u2014 since its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3409,3439,3406,3433,3415,3418,3403,3430,2138,2142,3436,3421,3412,3382,3424,3427],"class_list":["post-70375","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-austria","tag-cruise-lady","tag-germany","tag-konigssee","tag-luther","tag-martin-luther","tag-mauthausen","tag-neuschwanstein","tag-oberammergau","tag-passion-play","tag-passionsspiele","tag-tannhauser","tag-wagner","tag-walther-von-der-vogelweide","tag-wartburg","tag-wittenberg"],"yoast_head":"\nGermany and Austria in 2020!<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous "passion play" (devoted to the last days\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Germany and Austria in 2020!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous "passion play" (devoted to the last days\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sic et Non\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-02-14T00:21:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-02-17T03:38:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2016\/03\/800px-Reichstagsbrand.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dan Peterson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dan Peterson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html\",\"name\":\"Germany and Austria in 2020!\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-02-14T00:21:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-02-17T03:38:47+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045\"},\"description\":\"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \\\"passion play\\\" (devoted to the last days\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Germany and Austria in 2020!\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/\",\"name\":\"Sic et Non\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045\",\"name\":\"Dan Peterson\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dan Peterson\"},\"description\":\"\\\"Life was very unsatisfying until I discovered Dan's blog, which gave me a reason to live.\\\" (gemli, 7 November 2019)\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/author\/danpeterson\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Germany and Austria in 2020!","description":"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \"passion play\" (devoted to the last days","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Germany and Austria in 2020!","og_description":"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \"passion play\" (devoted to the last days","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html","og_site_name":"Sic et Non","article_published_time":"2019-02-14T00:21:16+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-02-17T03:38:47+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2016\/03\/800px-Reichstagsbrand.jpg"}],"author":"Dan Peterson","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Dan Peterson","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html","name":"Germany and Austria in 2020!","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website"},"datePublished":"2019-02-14T00:21:16+00:00","dateModified":"2019-02-17T03:38:47+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045"},"description":"      Some of you are aware, I think, that I'll be leading a tour in 2020 centered on the famous \"passion play\" (devoted to the last days","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/02\/germany-and-austria-in-2020.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Germany and Austria in 2020!"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/","name":"Sic et Non","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045","name":"Dan Peterson","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Dan Peterson"},"description":"\"Life was very unsatisfying until I discovered Dan's blog, which gave me a reason to live.\" (gemli, 7 November 2019)","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/author\/danpeterson"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70375","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1019"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70375"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70375\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}