Hallo Servus, and Welcome to Bavaria, where Another Brick on the wall holds another meaning to me. And actually , it suppose to be “another fresco in the walls“, since this is all about painted walls and decorated facades with colorful styles and images.

Typically Bavarian, since it´s actually the normal sight in these lovely towns .Take this, a picture of farmers tending their fields, people wearing the traditional Trachten celebrating and gathering together, with horse carriages, plowing the fields and harvesting grain.Another house boasting it´s walls with religious images and so on. The stories goes on and continue up to every nook, with the background of the Wetterstein mountains and the peaks of the Alpspitze.Everywhere I look, I have an idyllic Alpine settings.

One of the things that I always looked forward while exploring new places is visiting the old towns. It´s the center of identity of a new place and there I find really cool and sometimes “Unforgettable” stuff. Just like the pretty and picturesque towns of Garmisch-partenkirchen and Mittenwald here in Bavaria. I know that once I saw these photos, I knew exactly that It´s gotta be here in Bavaria!

It´s literally like walking into a fairy tale book where the walls tells so much stories. There is probably a walking tour for tourists to explore all the streets lined with colorful images.The frescoes and drawings are really fascinating and you can´t help but admire them .In German, we called them “Lüftlmalerei“, or fresco painting.Scenes from the Bible or the turbulent history of the Upper Isar Valley are represented in the wall paintings.The Lüftlemalerei is, however, not a relic from the past times, even today there are artists dedicated to embellishing the house facades, converting the places into lively picture books. In a way, it became their character. A little town with it´s own character.

We visited the old town of Mittenwald as a side trip while we are exploring Karwendel and Seefeld in Austria. Everyday we woke up to the glorious view of the mountains right in front of our apartment.It was pretty; especially during sunsets where we see the flaming tips of the mountains.But when we went into the old town, I was mesmerised trying to understand the paintings on the walls. Despite the fact that Mittenwald is a violin making town, which already making it quite a special destination, there is also a small stream ( gushing flowing water) that flows throughout the city. I wouldn´t call it a canal but it´s really there. Typical in Mittenwald!

At the time of our visit, there was the Vino Miglia, the parade of the classic old timers and luxury cars. Seeing the glorious frescoed walls and classic cars parading in the street really creates a very festive mood in this charming little town.The city is very walkable and all the sights are just within reach making it perfect for a great afternoon stroll.

The old town is lined with quaint shops, restaurants and cute souvenir shops that would really catch your attention and seducing you to go inside and explore.I still remember eating from one of the Beergartens and tasting the local delicacy and admiring the traditional Bavarian flair of the Gasthaus.

Anyway, totally unrelated, seeing these frescoes reminded me of this song by Pink Floyd. I loved this band but when I heard the song “Another Brick in the Wall” then it just fits. It´s not that the song is about frescoes, but somehow, it´s talking about walls. Like a part of something bigger or group.

Just like Mittenwald, another town is Garmisch Partenkirchen also has a share of frescoes to be proud of.This quaint town on the foot of the Alps boasts it´s natural beauty with it´s colorful and really striking old town. In this twn I have seen the gorgeous ” Gorge” of Klamm, the Partnachklamm. I adore the public arts, monuments, and the fountains here. I couldn´t take away my eyes on each facades since they are really beautiful. The normal pharmacies, restaurants, various shops and stores looked like a page from a colorful story books.

If you are familiar with the Biblical stories, like David and Goliath and the Passion of Christ, then you might recognize some familiar scenes and saints or patrons as well.It is the combination of false grand architecture (“fronts” or “façades” in French) and life-like depictions of the Catholic religious-themes and subjects that makes up the foundation of what we see in the Lüftlmalerei of Southern Germany, Austria, and Northern Italy today.

I have seen another example , in the Residence Neuburg an der Donau there´s this palace which has two unique elements: the courtyard façade decorated in the graffito technique and the palace chapel (that once was a Protestant church) painted by Hans Bocksberger in 1543. The northern wing of the palace hosts a grotto Baroque structure of great value.It´s amazing that these picturesque walls, although not as colorful as the one in Mittenwald or Garmisch, exudes many stories and depicting past events.

Today, this sort of outdoor mural painting has become a local form of folk-art all its own — an authentic illustration of a cultural history of the people, shaped by the peculiarities of location, history, religion, and tradition. I ´ve found an interesting read about this Bavarian Lüftlmalerei and even the meanings of the different inscriptions and styles of different paintings and house names. I guess I need to be more cautious and observant if I visit this place once again since there is really more than what meets the eyes. The story behind these frescoes are interesting and I just hope that this heritage won´t dissapear and that the locals would preserve them…most importantly, that tourists would understand and appreciate them deeply.

Is there an unforgettable town you´ve ever visited?

Until then, Servus und Tschüss!