Dinkelsbuhl, Nordlingen, and Munich??
Jul 12th, 2009, 05:32 PM
#21
I would say that Dinkelsbuehl and Noerdlingen are much less touristy than Rothenburg, although I enjoyed all three. If you stay in a hotel in the old center of Noerdlingen, you will see "normal" people going about their lives, grocery shopping, etc. in addition to tourists. Actually, when I was there 3 years ago, I only heard a couple tourists speaking English -- same in Dinkelsbuhl.
Jul 12th, 2009, 06:23 PM
#22
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I'm confused by your goals. If you want to see how the average German lives you shouldn't be looking in well-preserved mideival towns or fairytale castles. You would be looking at the suburbs of big cities or the modern areas of smaller towns. The places you're going will put you in contact mostly with Germans that are part of the tourist industry. And I doubt they will invite you home or want to have long conversations about how they live day to day.
It's hard to meet locals unless you settle down in one place for a couple of weeks - and then at lest you will meet several shopkeepers and a couple of neighbors. although if the talk will get beyond good morning I have no idea.
It's hard to meet locals unless you settle down in one place for a couple of weeks - and then at lest you will meet several shopkeepers and a couple of neighbors. although if the talk will get beyond good morning I have no idea.
Jul 12th, 2009, 06:54 PM
#23
Hi,
While we haven't been to Noerdlingen, we visited both Rothenberg and Dinkelsbuehl. Dinkelsbuehl was nice enough but we loved Rothenberg in spite of it being touristy.
I'd also suggetst if going to Neuschanstein, allow enough time to visit Hohenschwangau also.
As for...
"I really want to get a feel for Germany, how people live, their lifestyle/homes/food etc. "
Think about it... I live in NJ and if I stayed in NYC a night or two, would I really know what it's like to to live there everyday? Plus, that's without language barriers!
I'd first suggest you look into staying in family run B&B's, Gasthofs or Pensions. On every trip so far to Bavaria, Austria and the Dolomites, we've had the opportunity to talk with either the owners or other guests during breakfast. On a few occasions this lasted an hour or two. It helps if you can speak some German.
Paul
While we haven't been to Noerdlingen, we visited both Rothenberg and Dinkelsbuehl. Dinkelsbuehl was nice enough but we loved Rothenberg in spite of it being touristy.
I'd also suggetst if going to Neuschanstein, allow enough time to visit Hohenschwangau also.
As for...
"I really want to get a feel for Germany, how people live, their lifestyle/homes/food etc. "
Think about it... I live in NJ and if I stayed in NYC a night or two, would I really know what it's like to to live there everyday? Plus, that's without language barriers!
I'd first suggest you look into staying in family run B&B's, Gasthofs or Pensions. On every trip so far to Bavaria, Austria and the Dolomites, we've had the opportunity to talk with either the owners or other guests during breakfast. On a few occasions this lasted an hour or two. It helps if you can speak some German.
Paul
Jul 13th, 2009, 06:28 AM
#25
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Avoid Rothenburg if you are interested in how people live today. It is strictly a tourist enclave inside the walls--all businesses and sights of interest are aimed solely at the tourist trade, especially fine-tuned for bus tour groups. HOWEVER, it is very well maintained and is great for photographs.
While Dinkelsbuehl and Nordlingen also have a lot of well-maintained sights, the old towns are not merely tourist enclaves. They are an integral part of today.
I like Neuschwanstein--it has a lot more actual history of interest surrounding it than many castles 500 years older. Plus, after a number of visits to the typical older castles, they start to get a bit repetitious. If anything, Neuschwanstein is certainly different; a reflection of Ludwig's feverished images of Germanic mythology and a reflection of the Wagnerian ideal. Not to mention some really fine 19th Century craftsmanship. I just wish the tours were longer.
If you make a reservation in advance, you will have a set time for your tour. But add time to get up the mountain to the castle where the tours begin.
While Dinkelsbuehl and Nordlingen also have a lot of well-maintained sights, the old towns are not merely tourist enclaves. They are an integral part of today.
I like Neuschwanstein--it has a lot more actual history of interest surrounding it than many castles 500 years older. Plus, after a number of visits to the typical older castles, they start to get a bit repetitious. If anything, Neuschwanstein is certainly different; a reflection of Ludwig's feverished images of Germanic mythology and a reflection of the Wagnerian ideal. Not to mention some really fine 19th Century craftsmanship. I just wish the tours were longer.
If you make a reservation in advance, you will have a set time for your tour. But add time to get up the mountain to the castle where the tours begin.
Jul 13th, 2009, 07:29 AM
#26
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I do need to give one penalty point for bad spellig here. 
http://www.noerdlingen.de/ISY/index.php?get=276
http://www.noerdlingen.de/ISY/index.php?get=276
Jul 13th, 2009, 08:15 AM
#27
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I understand that its not possible to completely understand how people live etc in such a short time period but I think being in the environment and just seeing everything will give somewhat of a picture..its definitely a short trip but it is what it is and I have to work within the confines of it.
Just out of curiousity, somebody wrote above, about the suburbs - my husband and I were having this discussion the other night - do most germans live in the city or is there a clear divide between center city, suburbs and rural like there is in the states? From what I understand, most people live in the large cities and that suburbs aren't built up like they are here - is that accurate? I wonder if we will be driving through any areas that are considered suburban between dusseldorf and nordlingen?
Just out of curiousity, somebody wrote above, about the suburbs - my husband and I were having this discussion the other night - do most germans live in the city or is there a clear divide between center city, suburbs and rural like there is in the states? From what I understand, most people live in the large cities and that suburbs aren't built up like they are here - is that accurate? I wonder if we will be driving through any areas that are considered suburban between dusseldorf and nordlingen?
Jul 13th, 2009, 08:36 AM
#28
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The city has some immigrant areas, the most espensive parts downtown and the problem areas usually a little further out. But all this constitutes the "city". There are lots of middle class suburbs where people have their own garden and yard. Even further out it gets rural. No, most people do not live in the city.
You will notice it, when you drive through suburbia.. Dull, expensive but quiet..
You will notice it, when you drive through suburbia.
. Dull, expensive but quiet..
Jul 13th, 2009, 10:47 AM
#32
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When we went to Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau (logos, I am trying really hard with my spelling so to don't get a penalty 
) we reserved our tix ahead of time and it was a great decision. When we arrived, we went straight to the Will Call window to pick up our tickets - bypassing a line of about 75 people waiting at 9 am on a weekday in July.
When you pre-purchase your tix, you pick the time of your tour, show up an hour ahead to get your tix and walk to the castle. H is first, then N is scheduled at a reasonable time afterwards to allow you to walk or ride between castles.
If you show up without tix, you get in line and then buy tix for the next available tour in your language of choice. So not only do you have the line, but depending on how many people have come ahead of you, there may be a significant wait until the time of your tour. If you are travelling during the high season, I think you risk finding the tours sold out if you arrive later in the day, so if that is the case, earlier is better - then if you have to wait for your tour, you can wander around the local area
) we reserved our tix ahead of time and it was a great decision. When we arrived, we went straight to the Will Call window to pick up our tickets - bypassing a line of about 75 people waiting at 9 am on a weekday in July. When you pre-purchase your tix, you pick the time of your tour, show up an hour ahead to get your tix and walk to the castle. H is first, then N is scheduled at a reasonable time afterwards to allow you to walk or ride between castles.
If you show up without tix, you get in line and then buy tix for the next available tour in your language of choice. So not only do you have the line, but depending on how many people have come ahead of you, there may be a significant wait until the time of your tour. If you are travelling during the high season, I think you risk finding the tours sold out if you arrive later in the day, so if that is the case, earlier is better - then if you have to wait for your tour, you can wander around the local area
Jul 14th, 2009, 01:46 AM
#33
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>do most germans live in the city or is there a clear divide between center city, suburbs and rural like there is in the states?
No, there is no clear divide. There is a whole range from densely-packed city center (usually expensive to live in) or social project areas further outside (cheap and not nice), to quiet lower-middle-class residential areas with small apartment blocks and gardens around them, to single houses or row houses, to villages well outside the city which are also
used as "sleeping community" often.
The distances ares amller than in US - no rural place is outside of easy commuting distance (train or car) to the enxt bigger town/city.
>From what I understand, most people live in the large cities and that suburbs aren't built up like they are here - is that accurate?
They don´t go forever as endless as they do in USA, but teh economics of suburbs don´t differ much. Many small villages at the outskirt of a city grow in area until they simply merge with the city (or with the next village). But the stricter zoning laws prevent overbuilding of the entire available area the way it seems to happen in USA.
No, there is no clear divide. There is a whole range from densely-packed city center (usually expensive to live in) or social project areas further outside (cheap and not nice), to quiet lower-middle-class residential areas with small apartment blocks and gardens around them, to single houses or row houses, to villages well outside the city which are also
used as "sleeping community" often.
The distances ares amller than in US - no rural place is outside of easy commuting distance (train or car) to the enxt bigger town/city.
>From what I understand, most people live in the large cities and that suburbs aren't built up like they are here - is that accurate?
They don´t go forever as endless as they do in USA, but teh economics of suburbs don´t differ much. Many small villages at the outskirt of a city grow in area until they simply merge with the city (or with the next village). But the stricter zoning laws prevent overbuilding of the entire available area the way it seems to happen in USA.
Jul 14th, 2009, 02:46 AM
#34
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You might want to consider visiting only one of the towns on the Romantic Road then heading to the nearby Altmühl valley where you could stay in the small episcopal city of Eichstätt. It is in the center of Germany's largest nature park, and many people go there for biking and hiking. The city itself has beautiful Baroque buildings, very different from the architecture you would see on the Romantic Road. In addition to the cathedral, there is a small university and a 14th century castle with an interesting museum. Very few American tourists visit this area although it is a popular destination for German tourists.
Jul 14th, 2009, 02:55 AM
#35
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This may help you decide about Munich:
http://tinyurl.com/mvml7q
http://tinyurl.com/mvml7q
Jul 14th, 2009, 03:30 AM
#36
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You rarely find suburbs here where one developer bought one or more sections to build to new suburb on it from scratch with hundreds of the same houses. Also gated communities are rare, if they exist at all. The ratio between urban vs rural is 85 vs 15 pct in German. Urban does not necessarily mean that you live on the market square in the center of town, though, but within the limits of a locality that qualifies as "city".
Many cities have had at least 3-4 stages of urban sprawl: medieval old town with rather slow growth, major extensions around 1900, accelerated migration from rural to urban areas in the 1920-1930s with huge monolithic blocks of apartment buildings, more extensions or re-building after 1945.
Most post-WWII suburbs of the 1950s or 1960s do not look excessively charming with their shoebox-architecture of 4-5 storey apartment buildings lining up the streets.
Living in suburbia in a single family house with a picket fence, 1 1/2 kids, a German shepard puppy, mowing lawn and having BBQs on weekends, recycling garbage the rest of the week is 7th heaven for some, and the vortex of hell for others. Tastes differ.
I would not want to be caught there hanging dead over a fence - as one German saying goes.
Many cities have had at least 3-4 stages of urban sprawl: medieval old town with rather slow growth, major extensions around 1900, accelerated migration from rural to urban areas in the 1920-1930s with huge monolithic blocks of apartment buildings, more extensions or re-building after 1945.
Most post-WWII suburbs of the 1950s or 1960s do not look excessively charming with their shoebox-architecture of 4-5 storey apartment buildings lining up the streets.
Living in suburbia in a single family house with a picket fence, 1 1/2 kids, a German shepard puppy, mowing lawn and having BBQs on weekends, recycling garbage the rest of the week is 7th heaven for some, and the vortex of hell for others. Tastes differ.
I would not want to be caught there hanging dead over a fence - as one German saying goes.
