Munich Ecstasy, Agony, Bratwurst & Grafitti

The following images are from the Glyptothek in Munich Germany. Though the elderly figure above cannot be easily categorized as either ecstasy or agony...there are few artistic symbols for physical, animalistic ecstasy (or the moment right after) as the Sleeping Satyr below. Whew! Did it just get hot in here or what??

Full Sculpture at Dachau Click to see

The above image I chose for agony is of a sculpture at Dachau, a preserved concentration camp in Germany. I wish I knew the artist's name (I will research it and try to find it out!) The faceless people are deeply riveting. I also find a strange resemblance between this image and the creature in the film Pan's Labyrinth (one of my all time favorite movies!)that had it's eyes in its hands and consumed children as opposed to a table feast. A metaphor perhaps of the horror we are all capable of experiencing, if not inflicting.

The creature from Pan's Labyrinth

Gregg and I love this 'self-portrait/s' that we took at Dachau, because it resonates so deeply with our outlook on life. What we do as people - whether removed, foreign or local affects us all and is a reflection of our very being, a reflection of the whole human race. Gregg and I are not Jewish and to there is no need to be inorder to feel the deep pull of pain that being in Dachau reminds us of.

Here are a couple of pics some traditional Bavarian clothing, which is so charming; dirndls, lederhosen, bundhosen, plattlerhosen! However, they are expensive! I heard you can get more affordable sets at second hand stores, but you would need to know where to go. On another side note, if you're thinking about going to try some on and taking a picture of yourself - no camera's allowed (since it seems too many tourists have abused that and don't buy!

And of course you can't go to Germany and not eat some Bratwurst!!! Well, actually you could, but you shouldn't! On a daily basis, Gregg and I tend not to eat meat. We save a lot in the grocery that way. We don't support steroid, antibiotic-infused, slaughterhouses. We do feel that the extreme of fast-food meat consumption in this country is beyond decency. However, we don't call ourselves vegetarians. Thankfully, because if we did we wouldn't have had the internal moral freedom to try these absolutley delicious things! There was a line that extended well beyond us for some.

Finally, on the walk to our hotel we passed a bridge and under that bridge there was a walkway filled with stunning grafitti!!! Check out these beautiful pieces and let me know what you think!!!

Funny, I wasn't the only one cold in Germany, looks like the inanimate objects shared my plight!