In terms of culture and national identity, Bavaria is certainly the most distinct state in Germany today. It has identified itself almost as an independent nation for most of the fifteen hundred years since it could first be said to have existed, and during that time it’s survived the dominion of the Romans, the Franks, and the Holy Roman Empire. Today, Bavarian culture remains quite separate from that of the rest of Germany, although much of what the rest of the world thinks of as quintessentially German is, in fact, quintessentially Bavarian.
In late September and early October, for example, the state capital Munich hosts the original world-famous Oktoberfest. Although if you fancy attending, you’d better be prepared to elbow your way through the crowds - it’s the world’s biggest beer festival and usually attracts about six million visitors across its seventeen-day duration. The Bavarians are really extremely keen on their beer, and it’s a passion which they’re very fond of sharing with visitors. Oktoberfest traditionally commences with the Mayor of Munich tapping the first keg to great applause from the crowd, and the festival involves enormous quantities of very dark, very strong specially-brewed beer, and equally large amounts of traditional spitted meats and delicacies like roasted ox-tails.
The one feature it’s impossible for any visitor to the state to miss is the mountains. The dramatic, romantic landscapes of the Bavarian Alps helped to foster the talents of the amazing roster of world-famous artists, musicians and playwrights that originate from the region – Bavaria was, at one time or another, home to many of Germany’s greatest creative geniuses, including Durer, Holbein, Klee, Wagner, Strauss, Orff and Brecht. And it won’t take you long among the spectacular forested valleys, shimmering lakes and snow-capped peaks to work out why so many might have found this landscape so inspirational.
If you want a particular treat, it’s more than worth journeying out into the wilds – at least as far as Hohenschwangau. This small village lies in the shadow of the gigantic Neuschwanstein Castle, certainly the most architecturally astounding of the old Bavarian palaces. The ‘Castle of the Swan Knight’, as it was named in tribute to Wagner’s Lohengrin, was constructed in the 19th century by the obsessive Ludwig II, who was then king of Bavaria. Ludwig’s coat of arms adorns the castle, accompanied by a good deal of Wagnerian imagery. This is one that you’re really going to have to see for yourself, since despite the large numbers of tourists who visit every year, no photography is permitted inside the castle itself. Even a brief exploration of this huge, opulent and remote architectural wonder will leave you unsurprised to learn that in 1886, before the castle was even finished, King Ludwig was declared insane by the Bavarian state authorities! Although not long afterwards, he drowned in mysterious circumstances, and suspicion survives to this day that perhaps one of Ludwig’s jealous rivals was up to no good…