May, 2005 - Nr. 5
The Germany of Pope Benedict XVI
New 5-Day Sightseeing Route in Bavaria
Toronto - Lush meadows, rolling hills and exuberant Baroque and Rococo architecture mark the newly elected Pope’s home country in the south of Germany. Set off against the dramatic backdrop of the Alps to the south, the Upper Bavarian foothills offer a wealth of picture-perfect scenery and architecture, now with an extra incentive for a visit, tracing the life of Pope Benedict XVI before his call to Rome.
Bavaria’s tour operators were quick to put together a five-day bus tour, visiting places of the Pope’s childhood and formative years as well as his towns of office as priest, bishop and university professor. Participants in the tour will visit his birthplace, the village of Marktl, see the town of Traunstein, where he went to school, and his family’s home, in the city of Regensburg.
Freising, a bishopric since 739 A.D. and today the municipality for Munich’s airport, is where the Pope was ordained as a priest. Munich is where he studied, served as chaplain and became archbishop and later cardinal, and Regensburg is where he taught university.
The same places and regions have sights of their own worth seeing, which are part of the itinerary. Near Marktl, for instance, is the town of Altoetting, a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site for more than 400 years, welcoming one million visitors every year who come to see the Black Madonna displayed in the Chapel of Grace on Chapel Square. In genuine Baroque style, this expansive centre square from the early 17th century, complete with lawns and walkways, was designed not for trade and commerce, but purely to receive and accommodate the pilgrims.
Near Traunstein you’ll find Lake Chiemsee, where Bavaria’s mad King Ludwig II built one of his fairy-tale castles, this one modeled after Versailles and situated on an island in the lake near the town of Prien, an overnight stop on the itinerary. In Munich, the trip includes a guided sightseeing tour that takes in two of the churches where the Pope served, but also includes the Bavarian capital’s landmark Church of Our Lady.
The final day of the tour is spent in Regensburg, on the Danube, originally a Celtic colony and later a Roman garrison town, now famous for its carefully restored medieval core and its Gothic cathedral. Attend the 10 a.m. Sunday mass and hear the voices of its famous boys’ choir, called the Regensburger Domspatzen (Cathedral Sparrows), soar in the galleries. Lunch is in the Bischofhof Hotel, one choice being the Pope’s favourite, Kartoffelmaultaschen mit Broeselschmarrn, potato ravioli topped with fresh breadcrumbs sautéed in lots of butter.
For more information on this five-day tour and for more information on the various itinerary stops and sights, please refer to www.bayern.by. For general information on Germany, please contact the German National Tourist Office’s toll free number, 1-877-315-6237, send an e-mail to gntonyc@d-z-t.com, or visit GNTO’s Web site www.cometogermany.com.
