浴火重生的綠寶石 - 德勒斯登 The reborn emerald - Dresden (印象文/Impression)

由國際大都市慕尼黑一路北上，轉進前東德的薩克森邦，四周的氛圍也起了些許的變化。

無奈的列車長處理著拼拼湊湊的車廂，就連日本遊客也被搞得暈頭轉向，
還得忍受無理青年，拿政治歷史來亂答腔

圖片來源：自行攝影

Heading north from Munich, we're right now in Sachsen, ex East Germany, and the view changed.
The conductor deals with japanese tourists and still needs to endure disrespectful lads.

看見東方臉孔的無奈，在我開口後所露出的誇張愉快神情，

其展現出來的強大對比，都彷彿是這班列車上的另一篇故事。

The helpless face once turns into happiness, when German comes out of my mouth.
Isn't that a huge contrary, which could be called another short story of our journey?

圖片來源：自行攝影

貴為前薩克森王國的首府，德勒斯登在戰火與政治分離後再次站穩了腳步。

即便在光鮮亮麗的面紗下，依然留著灰濛濛的小瘡疤，
仍無法掩蓋她那足以自豪的王者風範。

As the capital of ex Sachsen kingdom, Dresden arises, again after wars and political separations. 
Even though there're scars under this beautiful veil, its proudly majestic temperament isn't able to be over covered.

圖片來源：自行攝影

不僅僅是享盡榮華富貴的皇城、文化氣息濃厚的賽博歌劇院，

甚至是一間小小的乳品百年老店，都流露出了人文藝術的價值。

就如同城內那些失而復得的綠穹珍寶，德勒斯登再次以鳳凰之姿，成為易北河畔那浴火重生的綠寶石。

圖片來源：自行攝影

Not only the Residenzschloss and Semperoper, but even a small Molkerei could show off its artistic value. Just like those regained emeralds in the castle, Dresden arises like a phoenix and becomes the reborn emerald on the side of Elbe.

迪士尼的城堡藍圖 - 新天鵝堡 The Draft of Disney Castle - Schloss Neuschwanstein

相信大家對迪士尼動畫片頭必定出現的睡美人城堡一定很熟悉！
但是這座夢幻城堡的靈感從何而來呢？
答案就是德國南部的「新天鵝堡」！

I believe everybody is familiar with the castle in the opening of all Disney animation!
But, where did it come from?
The answer is located in southern Germany. The famous "Neuschwanstein"!

身為德國著名景點之一的新天鵝堡，其背後的歷史故事自然也不可少。
下令建造此座遠近馳名的夢幻城堡的是巴伐利亞王國的第四任國王 - 路德維希二世 （Ludwig II. 全名：Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm von Wittelsbach）。
1845年八月二十五日，路德維希二世出生於慕尼黑「寧芬堡」，1864年三月十日登基，並在執政期間規劃建造了數座城堡，其中以新天鵝堡、林德霍夫堡以及海倫基姆湖宮最為著名。1886年六月十三日過世於慕尼黑郊外「史坦貝格湖」。
（關於路德維希二世及其家族等生平，以及上述所提及的其餘城堡景點，都會在之後另著文章介紹，還請各位多多指教！）

As one of the most famous touristic spots, there're a lot of stories around Neuschwanstein.
It was the fourth king of Bavaria, Ludwig II. (full named Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm von Wittelsbach), who ordered to build this castle.
On 25th August, 1845, Ludwig II was born in Castle Nymphenburg, Munich, then ascended the throne on 10th March, 1864. He made plenty of projects for building castles, among all of them, "Neuschwanstein", "Linderhof" and "Herrenchiemsee" are the most famous ones.
On 13th June, 1886, he died next to Starnberger See, suburb from Munich.
(The history of Ludwig II along with Wittelsbach Family and the rest of above mentioned castles and spotlights, shall be introduced later in this blog!)

圖片來源：自行攝影

新天鵝堡座落於德南小鎮 - 富森附近，距離德南主要城市慕尼黑約兩小時的車程。
路德維希二世自年少時，就嚮往中古世紀英勇騎士事蹟，再加上十八十九世紀時歐洲的君主政權流行修復中古城堡建築或是大興土木興建仿古城池，這些都間接了影響路德維希日後興建新天鵝堡的計劃。然而真正直接塑造了興建新天鵝堡契機的原因，應該可以算是1867年的瓦特堡（Wartburg）之旅，以及受到華格納歌劇的影響。


Neuschwanstein locates next to Füssen, a small southern german town in Bavaria, which takes around two hours to reach from Munich.
Ludwig II. always adored the stories of knights in middle age, plus most of european royals were fancy to rebuild the ancient fortresses or raise new castles in middle age style. All of these indirectly influenced the plan of Ludwig II. to build Neuschwanstein in the future. However, the main reasons, why Neuschwanstein was made up, were the trip to Wartburg and the effect from Wagner's opera.

1867年，路德維希二世與其胞弟奧圖一世拜訪了位於德國圖林根邦，艾森納赫的瓦特堡，其修復後的宴會廳建築以及外觀都讓路德維希二世倍感深刻。另外，由於路德維希二世深愛理查．華格納（Wilhelm Richard Wagner）的作品，因此立志創造出同華格納歌劇中那日耳曼傳說幻想世界，尤其是「唐懷瑟」以及「羅恩格林」兩部作品影響最深。在1858年五月路德維希二世與華格納的私人書信中，路德維希二世就曾寫道：「我打算將修瓦高城的遺跡重建成一座真正的中古德意志騎士城堡。」

1867, Ludwig II. and his younger brother, Otto I., visited Wartburg in Eisenach, Thürigen. The rebuilt feast lobby and the exterior amazed him. On the other hand, Ludwig II adored the works of Richard Wagner, so he was determined to create a german legendary world as it is in Wagner's opera, especially "Tannhäuser und der Sängerkrieg auf Wartburg" and "Lohengrin". In one private letter of May 1858 between Ludwig II. and Wagner, Ludwig wrote: "I would like to rebuild the ruin of Hohenschwangau into a real ancient german castle in middle age style."

1868年，因為路德維希一世，即路德維希二世的祖父，逝世的關係，路德維希二世得以更加全面地運用國家財庫，來達成心目中對中世紀騎士城堡的幻想。曾擔任新天鵝堡設計師的有克里斯蒂安．揚克以及愛德華．馮．瑞德，然而因為路德維希二世對城堡的執念，實際上所有的草圖都必須先經過國王過目才得以執行，也就是說，對新天鵝堡來說，路德維希二世其實是更有影響與決策力的「首席設計師」。

1868, after the death of Ludwig I., the grandfather of Ludwig II., he was able to control more parts of financial resources of his country to build his dream castles. Christian Jank and Eduard von Riedel were the designer for Neuschwanstein. However, because of the passion of Ludwig II for this castle, every draft needed to be approved from the king before execution. In the other word, for Neuschwanstein, Ludwig II was actually a more powerful and decisive "First Designer".

對路德維希二世來說，新天鵝堡必須是一座「可以居住的」歌劇場景，其被視為是路德維希二世與理查．華格納的友情證明。如其中的起居室，幾乎就是華格納的「羅恩格林」中的第二幕場景。另外還有王座室以及歌唱大廳，這兩座新天鵝堡中最大的廳堂充分地展現了中古世紀的騎士與吟唱詩人文化，其中在歌唱大廳的第一場演出即為1933年華格納逝世五十週年紀念。

To Ludwig II, Neuschwanstein must be a livable scene of opera, so it was also seen as a certification of the true friendship between the kind of Richard Wagner. The cabinet was even made as the second scene of "Lohengrin". Besides, there're Throne Hall and Hall of the Singers, the biggest rooms in Neuschwanstein, which express perfectly the atmosphere of the middle age and courtly love. The first presentation in this room was the concert of celebrating Wagner's 50th birthday after his death in 1933.

1869年，新天鵝堡正式開始興建。由於草圖上的修改以及資金來源，原先預計於1872年修建完成的新天鵝堡，從來沒有完工。即便共計三百六十間房間裡只有十四間真正完工，1884年起，國王實際上已經可以入住這座他心目中的夢幻城堡。可是，路德維希二世在生前住在新天鵝堡的天數，只有短短的172天。因為城堡的興建，路德維希二世實際上幾乎花光了自身的積蓄以及大部份的國庫。原先規劃的三百二十萬馬克的預算，直到國王過世前，已經被翻倍。1883年國王就已經欠下了將近七百萬馬克的債務，也因此才會上演1886年被逼迫退位的戲碼。最諷刺的是，1886年六月九日，路德維希二世自行宣佈退位的舞台，就是這座新天鵝堡。

圖片來源：自行攝影

Neuschwanstein was started to build in 1869. Because of the change of the drafts and the financial funding, the castle, which was estimated to be finished in 1872, has never completely been finished. Even only 14 of all 360 rooms were finished, from 1884, Ludwig II was already able to live in this castle. However, there were only 172 days, which the King did spend in Neuschwanstein. Because of the building projects, Ludwig II. actually spent all his saving and the most of his exchequer. The former budget of 3.2 million Marks was already doubled before the king's death. In 1883, the king was already living with debts of 7 million marks; therefore, he was forced to abdicate on 9th June, 1886, and ironically, in Neuschwanstein.

自國王死後六個禮拜開始開放民眾參觀以來，造訪新天鵝堡的旅客人數一直不斷向上攀升。根據統計，光是2013年就有一百五十二萬多的人來到這座未完工的夢幻城堡！目前新天鵝堡的管理部門隸屬於巴伐利亞城堡管理委員會（Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung）。為了吸引觀光人潮，其也將巴伐利亞邦定位成「城堡之邦」。（Schlösserland Bayern）

After six weeks from the king's death, the castle was opened to public, from that moment, the number of visitors is always climbing. According to the statistic, there were already more than 1.5 million of visitors came to this unfinished dream castle! Nowadays the Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung is responsible for Neuschwanstein. In order to get more touristic attention, Bavaria is also called as Schlösserland Bayern, the land of castles.

若你對迪士尼動畫裡灰姑娘與睡美人悠走的城堡情有獨鍾，不妨參觀一下它真正的現世藍圖吧！最方便的出發點自然是德國大城慕尼黑了。從慕尼黑主火車站搭乘地區性火車至富森，再轉搭公車到城堡山腳下的售票亭。由於參觀城堡有時間上的限制，打算入堡參觀的旅客可得注意上山的時間！上山的方法除了步行以外，還可以搭乘公車與馬車。無論你是以何種方式上山，途中都必定會經過特別受觀光客喜愛的拍照點 - 瑪莉恩橋（Marienbrücke），從那裡可以自遠處，將整座城堡與大自然風光一同收入眼底！

圖片來源：自行攝影

If you're always attracted by the castle of Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty in Disneyland, why not pay its blue print in the real world a visit? The most convenient start point is definitely Munich. From the main station of Munich you can take regional train to Füssen, and then change with bus to the ticket shop. Because you need to visit the castle in a specific time period, it will be wise to note the time you need to get up to the castle! You can either walk up to the castle, or take the bus or the carriage. No matter how you get up there, you won't miss the famous Marienbrücke, where you can get the whole castle and the beautiful view in your eyes, and your photos!

以下提供新天鵝堡的官方網頁，計畫前往的朋友們，可以先行查詢城堡開放時間。
另外本網誌最下方以及作者簡介上方也提供快速直接的德鐵查詢購票連結喔！

Here's the link of Neuschwanstein. If you plan to visit, you can check the opening hours first. Also, in the bottom line of this blog and above the introduction of Author, you can also book your Deutsche Bahn train tickets with simple clicks!

新天鵝堡參觀首頁

德南學術重鎮 LMU The academic pearl of south Germany LMU

英國有劍橋牛津，美國有哈佛和其他常春藤名校
那麼德國有哪些著名高等學府呢？
今天我們就來介紹德南的著名學府 - 慕尼黑大學。

In Uk, we have Cambridge and Oxford.
In USA, we have Harvard and other Ivy League colleges.
What do we have in Germany?
Today I'm going to introduce one of the most famous university in southern Germany - LMU.

圖片來源：自行攝影

慕尼黑大學的正式官方名稱為 - 路德維希-馬克西米連大學（Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München）
其於西元1472年，由當時的巴伐利亞-蘭茲胡特公爵路德維希九世（Herzog Ludwig IX.）成立，並在因哥斯塔特（Ingolstadt）落地生根（沒錯！慕尼黑大學一開始並不在慕尼黑喔！）
1800年，因為法國人的勢力擴張，當時的公爵馬克西米連四世（也就是之後的第一任巴伐利亞國王馬克西米連一世 - Maximilian I. Joseph）將大學遷往蘭茲胡特（Landshut），並於西元1802年正式改名為路德維希-馬克西米連大學，以紀念創辦者路德維希九世和之後的巴伐利亞國王馬克西米連一世。慕尼黑大學設址於蘭茲胡特的時間並不長，西元1826年，路德維希一世將大學遷至王國首府慕尼黑，直到今日。

圖片來源：自行攝影

LMU's official full name is Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
It was founded in 1472 by the duke of Bayern-Landshut - Ludwig IX. in Ingolstadt. (It's right! Munich University wasn't founded in Munich at the beginning!)
In 1800, because of the pressure from the Frenchs, duke Maximilian IV. (also known as the first king of Bavarian Maximilian I. Joseph) decided to transfer the university to Landshut, and in 1802 the name of the university was officially settled as Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität to honor the founder Ludwig IX. and the duke himself Maximilian IV.. LMU didn't stay long in Landshut. In 1862 it was transferred to Munich, where it still stands today.

慕尼黑大學另一段值得提及的歷史還包含了反納粹的學生團體 - 白色玫瑰。
其主要領導成員有：
漢斯．索爾（Hans Scholl）
蘇菲．索爾（Sophie Scholl）
克里斯多福．波普斯特（Christoph Probst）
亞歷山大．許莫瑞（Alexander Schmorell）
庫特．胡伯（Prof. Kurt Huber）
威利．格拉夫（Willi Graf）

There's also another historic page of LMU worthy to mention about: the anti-Nazi student group - White Rose.
Its main leaders include:
Hans Scholl
Sophie Scholl
Christoph Probst
Alexander Schmorell
Prof. Kurt Huber
Willi Graf

他們在1942年六月至1943年二月間，於大學陸續發送了六份未具名的反納粹傳單，希望喚起更多群眾加入反抗希特勒政權的行列。可惜的是，1943年二月十八日，當索爾兄妹意圖在大學大廳四處散佈傳單時，被當時的管理員雅各．施密特（Jakob Schmid）發現並通報秘密警察（又俗稱蓋世太保），帶往慕尼黑秘密警察總部監禁。
審問期間，蘇菲．索爾雖然企圖將所有的罪責攬在自己身上，秘密警察卻在漢斯．索爾身上搜出波普斯特所擬的傳單草稿。1943年二月二十二日，三人被以叛國罪等名義送上了斷頭台。上述提及的另三名成員，也分別在1943年七月與1943年十月被判處死刑。
為了紀念這群勇敢站出來對抗獨裁政權的年輕人，慕尼黑大學主棟前的兩座廣場被命名為「索爾兄妹廣場」以及「胡伯教授廣場」，廣場上嵌入了由大理石做的「傳單」紀念碑，就像是當年白色玫瑰所灑下的希望一般。大廳的牆上，也另置了刻有所有成員的紀念碑以及蘇菲．索爾的胸像，每天都有人換上新鮮的白玫瑰，提醒著我們不讓歷史再次重演。
想要多加了解白色玫瑰歷史的民眾，也可以參觀大廳旁的白色玫瑰紀念室，內容相當豐富且免費入場。

圖片來源：自行攝影

They successfully spread  six anonymous anti-Nazi flyers from June 1942 to February 1943, hoping to gather more people to join the line against NS-regime. Unfortunately, on February 18th, 1943, when Hans and Sophie Scholl were trying to spread flyers in the main hall of LMU, they were caught by the building manager, Jakob Schmid, reported to the GESTAPO, and then taken into custody.
During the interrogation, Sophie Scholl was trying to take all responsibilities on herself; however, GESTAPO found the script of Christoph Probst in Hans Scholl's pocket. On 22nd February, 1943, three of them were sentenced to death. The other three members mentioned above were also later executed in June and October.
In order to honor these heroes for their courage to against NSDAP, the two main squares in front of the main building of LMU are named "Geschwister-Scholl-Platz" and "Professor-Huber-Platz", on the ground there're flyers made from marble as monument, just like the hope once spread by White Rose. On the wall of the main hall, there are also monument with all the names and one statue of Sophie Scholl. Everyday, there're fresh roses, to remind us not let this historical tragedy happen again. Who wants to know more about the history of White Rose, can also visit the museum of White Rose next to the main hall for free.

慕尼黑大學經過戰後重建、六七零年代的學運，持續地蓬勃發展，目前的校園除了主棟區外，尚包含南邊的大哈登地區（Großhadern）的高科技園區。其外，研究醫院以及其他系所也分佈在慕尼黑市區各處。
目前慕尼黑大學總共有二十個學院、約七百五十名教授以及共計約五萬名學生。
慕尼黑大學隸屬於德國菁英大學的成員之一，在每年的世界大學學術排行與泰唔士高等教育世界大學排名上皆有上榜。今年的成績分別是第五十二名與第二十九名，國內排名則分別為第三與第一！

After the rebuild and student movement of 60', LMU keep growing, now the campus includes the area of the main building, Großhadern in southern Munich. Also, there's plenty of researching hospitals and other faculties, which are located in many sections of the city.
Right now there're 20 faculties, around 750 Professors and about 50000 students in LMU.
LMU's also a member of elite universities in Germany and is always on the boards of Academic Ranking of World Universities and Times Higher Education World University Rankings. This year, it lands separately on 52nd and 29th, the national ranking landed on 3rd and 1st!

圖片來源：自行攝影

當你逛遍了慕尼黑市區那些擠滿了觀光客的景點，何不試圖貼近一下當地學生的生活，了解一下鮮為人知的大學歷史？

After having visited all touristic spots in the city center, why not try to get closer to the life of local students and get to know more about the history of the university?

有興趣的人也可以逛逛大學的網站，另外，大學紀念品店也在大學主棟區不遠處。有收集習慣的人可別錯過了！

慕尼黑大學首頁：http://www.uni-muenchen.de/index.html

慕尼黑大學商店：http://bit.ly/1kXuotX

For those interested, you can also visit the homepage of LMU. Besides, they also have a souvenir shop near to the main building area. If you like to collect university specialized souvenirs, don't miss that!

卡爾廣場 - 古鹽道的必經之路 Karlsplatz - where the Salt Street passed

今天本網誌要介紹的是一個在慕尼黑似乎可以稱得上，但又有點稱不上是景點的景點。
（我知道這串描述相當繞舌，但是我相信住在慕尼黑的台灣朋友們八成也有同意的感受......。）

Today this blog is going to introduce one 50% touristic spot in Munich. (I know it's kind of hard to understand, but I think most of taiwanese friends who live in Munich could agree with me....)

卡爾廣場，德文Karlsplatz，是慕尼黑市區其中一個交通樞紐，不但有U4/U5兩條地鐵線經過，尚有路面電車以及郊區電車，相當便利。
在中古世紀，卡爾廣場是「鹽路」（Salzstraße）的必經之地。西元十二世紀時，當時的巴伐利亞公爵獅子亨利將鹽路自Föhring延伸至慕尼黑市區，自此奠定了慕尼黑財源的基礎。西元十三世紀時，慕尼黑興建了第二道護城牆，而卡爾廣場的前身就是當時諾伊豪森城門（Neuhauser Tor）（1791年改名為卡爾城門，Karlstor）的腹地。

圖片來源：自行攝影

Karlsplatz, it's one of the traffic center of Munich. Here run not only U4 and U5, but also S-Bahn and Tram.
In the middle age, Karlsplatz is place you can't miss along the Salt Route. In the 12th century, the duke of Bavaria, Henry the Lion, extended the route from Föhring to Munich, which established the financial basis of the city. In the 13th century, the second wall of Munich was erected, and Karlsplatz was the ground next to the Neuhauser Tor, which was renamed in 1791 as Karlstor.

接著於十五世紀，廣場周圍建起了圓形碉堡（Rondell），其地基也就是目前卡爾廣場下購物商場的前身。十七世紀時，由於慕尼黑四周城牆逐漸失去了其防備的意義，卡爾廣場的圓形碉堡也被改建為菱堡。

In the 15th century, the rondel was erected, its basis is known as the basis of the shopping mall under the square right now. In the 17th century, the city wall was losing its defensive purpose, so the rondel was also changed into bastion.

西元1791年三月十八日，當時的巴伐利亞選帝侯卡爾．泰奧多爾（Kurfürst Karl Theodor）下令去除菱堡，重新規劃入門路線。此年諾依豪森城門也正式改名為卡爾城門。身為三座慕尼黑留存下來的古城門之一的卡爾城門（另兩座為伊薩城門與森德靈城門），在二次世界大戰後損毀嚴重，之後僅以簡單扼要的方式重建，為了符合十九世紀末建築師加百列．馮．賽德（Gabriel von Seidl）所改建設計的廣場圓樓，原先的側塔造型已不復存在。

On 18th March, 1791, Kurfürst Karl Theodor decided to erase the bastion and reorganize the route into the city. This year, Neuhauser Tor was also renamed as Karlstor. As one of the three ancient city gates (including Isartor and Sendlinger Tor), Karlstor was severely damaged after WWII. Later, it was only easily rebuilt and coordinated to the rondel, which was designed by Gabriel von Seidl in the end of 19th century, so the original design of side towers no longer exists.

圖片來源：自行攝影

目前佇立在廣場上的卡爾城門，其上的雕塑其實都有自己的故事：
城門北拱上有獻給賀伯特．顏森（Herbert Jensen）的紀念碑，原因是當初是他提議修建目前佈滿購物商家的人行區域。三座孩童雕像是當初1866年柯瑞德．克諾（Konrad Knoll）為魚市噴泉所設計的，但在1954年噴泉翻新後就閒置於此了。








在城門四角尚有四座小像，象徵慕尼黑的原創性：約瑟夫．舒茲貝克（Josef Sulzbeck），為慕尼黑民歌手、喬治．普拉格（Georg Pranger），宮廷中最後一位丑角、約瑟夫．胡伯（Joseph Huber），一位情書信使，以及法蘭茲．哈維爾．克倫克（Franz Xaver Krenkl），一著名馬商。每座小像下，還有用巴伐利亞方言寫的名言。

Every statue on the Karlstor right now has its own story:
On the northern arch of the gate there's a monument for Herbert Jensen, who suggested the building of pedestal zone in the city center. The three children statues were designed by Konrad Knoll for the fish fountain, but they became useless after the renew of the fountain in 1954.
There are also four small statues in the corners of the gate, which present the originality of Munich: Josef Sulzbeck, a folk singer of Munich; Georg Pranger, the very last buffon in the palace; Joseph Huber, a famous love letter deliver; and Franz Xaver Krenkl, a famous horse dealer. Under each statue there're quoted phrases in bavarian dialect.

圖片來源：自行攝影

另外值得一提的是，慕尼黑人常用另一個名稱來指稱卡爾廣場 - Stachus （史塔護斯）。這並非只是口頭相傳，連地鐵上報站名時，都會額外加上此名，就是為什麼呢？
原因是：十八世紀時，原先住在現今Kaufhof百貨公司現址上的佛德（Fördel）家族，固定在其所屬的花園內經營啤酒事業。自1728起，馬提亞斯．史塔護斯．佛德（Mathias Eustachius Fördel）在此經營其自己的餐廳，也因為這樣，這塊區域內的啤酒花園與餐廳也就被慕尼黑人加上了Stachus的稱謂。

Another interesting fact is that people in Munich usually call Karlsplatz "Stachus". It's not just a spoken slang, but it's actually mentioned when the underground goes by. Why is that?
The reason is: In the 18th century, Family Fördel was actually running their own beer garden on the square. Since 1728, Mathias Eustachius Fördel was running his own restaurants here; therefore, because of his name, the business here is also combined with "Stachus".

這座廣場不僅連結了市中心的主要購物大道，夏天更有清涼的噴水池，冬天也有躲避寒風的麥當勞......。喂！喂！可別以為我在開玩笑！根據統計，2006年，這家位於卡爾廣場上的麥當勞可是所有據點裡營業值最高的喔！下次購物之餘，不如也來瞧瞧這座被現代氣息包圍的古城門吧？

This square doesn't only connect the main shopping avenue, but also provide fresh fountain in summer and McDonald's in winter to get away from the cold winter.... I am not joking! According to the statistic in 2006, this McDonald's got the highest turnover among all the branches!
Next time after shopping, why not pay a visit to this ancient city gate surrounded by modern atmosphere?

慕尼黑跨年夜-小巷內的戰場 Silvester in Munich - A battle field in narrow streets

全世界的人們在十二月三十一日跨年夜皆會大肆地慶祝，

在德國自然也不例外！

雖然不像西班牙有奇特的吞葡萄習俗，

在慕尼黑也沒有如柏林布蘭登堡門或臺北一零一的壯麗煙火秀，

我們依舊不會忘記在迎接新年的這一晚，與親朋好友一起犒賞自己！

圖片來源：自行攝影

People all around of the world celebrate on 31. Dec. to welcome a whole new year, and of course, there's no exception in Germany!

Although there's no special tradition like eating grapes in Spain and there's no huge firework-show in Munich like Brandenburger Tor in Berlin and Taipei 101, we still remember to give ourselves a special treat for this special day!

圖片來源：自行攝影

今年我們被邀請到朋友家作客，每位賓客都拿出十八般武藝，小小的餐桌頓時變成流水席，時時刻刻都擺滿著美味可口的佳餚！

從開胃酒到湯品、再從主菜到甜點與起司盤，還有將近無限量的美酒與宿醉炸彈......（誤）跨年倒數時，更不能忘記用開香檳的砰砰聲與舉杯祝賀的叮叮聲奏出新年的第一曲！

圖片來源：自行攝影

This year we were invited to celebrate Silvester by friends, everyone brought delicious dishes and made the tiny table a feast hall! From appetizer to soup, then from main course to dessert and cheese plates, plus almost unlimited wine and hangover bombs.... 

By the countdown, making the first note of 2016 with opening Champaign and toasting with glasses was also unforgettable!

特別的是，德國並不像臺灣能夠輕鬆地買到煙火。依據法律規定，德國商家只能在新年前三日開始販售，而民眾只能在跨年夜施放；然而，就我個人的看法，反而讓德國人壓抑太久的玩火慾望頓時爆發......

圖片來源：自行攝影

在臺灣（至少大部份的民眾）我們多會選擇空曠的河堤或是廣場施放鞭炮或煙火（大拜拜除外，雖然我也很反對這種繞街習俗），然而德國人是直接在家門口放，而且不管那條巷子有多窄小、有多少人同時聚集在街上跨年，仙女棒、甩炮、蝴蝶炮、雙龍吐珠還有火箭大龍炮通通都來！有些小孩子會把炮往行進中的車子丟、有些蝴蝶炮可以飛進二樓住戶，甚至有些鞭炮還可以沖進地鐵站！昨天當我們站在五樓窗邊觀看四處各自施放的煙火時，可以清楚地看到對面住戶在屋頂上點燃大火箭炮，心中其實很擔心風向一變就往我們這飛過來了！事後拿著仙女棒到街上玩耍時，就有人在街口連放好幾個大龍炮，火花四濺到周圍餐廳酒吧的布簾，當下只能搖頭納悶：難道不怕燒起來嗎？！

圖片來源：自行攝影

Another special point worthy mentioning is that German aren't allowed to buy fireworks easily. Fireworks can only be sold three days before the new year and can be only played during Silvester; however, in my personal opinion, this policy only let the deeply pressed desire of playing fire from german People explode in these few hours...

In Taiwan, at least most of people, we do choose the open areas next to rivers or plazas to play firework (Except of celebrations of temples, which I personally disagree.) ; however, German ignite them in front of their own houses, no matter how narrow the streets are, no matter how many people are gathering on the streets! Some children throw firework to the driving cars, some fireworks could fly into 2nd floor, and some even get into the underground station! Last night, when we were watching fireworks at the 5th floor, I could clearly see the neighbors across the street lightning a huge rocket below us, which made me worried if the wind had changed, it might have come to us! After that, we went down to the street, there were already many people, who ignited everything they had and let the sparks spread everywhere on the street, including the curtains of restaurants! What I could do at the moment was asking myself: Aren't they afraid of burning them?!

除了途中因為恐攻警報而癱瘓的市區交通帶來的小插曲外，我們平安地告別2015，正式投向2016的懷抱了！從餐桌戰場上搶奪美食，進展到小巷內的煙硝迷霧，人生如戰場，這句話似乎也好笑地應驗了......

Except of the terror-attack alarm, which made the transportation suspended for hours, we peacefully said farewell to 2015 and open our arms for 2016! From fighting for the food on the table to the battlefield on the narrow street. ''Life is a battle field" did come true in an interesting way...