Our Christmas outside the box was more of a family thing than a travel thing. We had, after all, been there several times before! But, I did take quite a few photos.

I love Bavaria. It’s like Austria, only cheaper, and with friendlier people.

The food is great: lots of game dishes, hearty veggies (we counted four different kinds of potatoes and three different kinds of cabbage at one meal), delicious strudels, and of course, some of the best beer in the world. Even my notoriously picky son went for the Big Plate O’ Meat Special every night, no problem. In fact, we once ordered a salad that turned out to be nearly all meat. I am not making this up.

My husband and daughter love the skiing. I am more of a hiking person, but there are plenty of cleared trails for me, too, even in the winter. And, unlike in Austria, they are well-marked! We didn’t get lost once–if you follow this blog, you know that’s not normal for this family  🙂

Not only do they have Krampus, like the Austrians do, but they also have the Wolpertinger, a beast made up of various parts of other critters. Originally found deep in the forest, the Wolpertinger now glares down from many a gift shop shelf, startling adults and scaring children. Awesome.

The church with the handmade memorials to WWII dead was interesting. It reminded me of some Confederate memorials in my part of the world. Like the Confederates, these Nazis were definitely on the wrong side of history. But, many of them were simply swept up by the tide. And, of course, every one of them was some mother’s son. Quite often, as in our Civil War, families lost several brothers or cousins in the same unit. It was pretty heartbreaking to see.

In fact, Bavaria is kind of like the South in several ways. The culture is considered a bit backward and hokey by people in other parts of Germany, but the Bavarians don’t care what anyone else thinks. They love their lederhosen, silly hats, and yodeling. And they figure you must love it too, or you wouldn’t be hanging around their picturesque little towns scarfing beer and sausages.

Bis nächste Weihnachten, Bayern!

Many of the murals have a Catholic theme.

Shopping, especially for Christmas items, is a big thing in this town. There is a lot of gorgeous stuff, but it is quite expensive.

I ran across the town cemetery while out walking. Most of the graves were decorated for Christmas. I thought that was so sweet.

Darn, we missed this show. Maybe next time.

A small church was covered with memorials to WWII dead. Many of them were lost, presumed dead, on the Eastern front, or died in Russian POW camps.

So many of the soldiers were not much older than my son, and many shared a plaque with a brother, father, or cousin.

A chilly, but lovely, hike around the Eibsee.

COLD mountain streams.

The lake was partially frozen. I just liked the pattern.

A Wolpertinger. Yikes.

A neighboring town called Oberammergau is known for wood carving, especially creches.

You can buy any kind of characters to fill your creche, in costumes from just about any era. It will only cost you a few hundred Euros.

This carved wooden cherub is downright flirty.

A gorgeous Christmas Day hike in the foothills around town.

O joy, there was a “hutte” along the way!

Coffee in a pretty cup at the hutte.

A buttermilk and preiselbeeren pancake. OMG, it was good.

I never saw any actual people like this in Bavaria. Believe me, I was looking.