Well, it’s another banner week in Upper Bavaria — this time to the town of Emmering in the Fürstenfeldbruck District, just 25km to the west of Munich. For all purposes, that makes it a suburb of the Oktoberfest having city, doesn’t it?
Nonetheless, Emmering can stand on its own — it doesn’t need its hand held by Munich. For the most part, Emmering is just a quiet town, but it wasn’t always that way. Back in 1422 the Battle of Alling took place here; a skirmish between two Dukes “duking” it out — Ludwig VII from Bavaria/Ingolstadt and the Duke of Bayern-München.
I don’t know who won (if you find out, let me know), but what I do know that modern day Emmering has its fair share of farmhouses (like the 19th century one at Bruckstraße 10), both 19th and 20th century villas, and a fantastically simple Gothic chapel of St. George.
The chapel, built in 1400, was said to have had an underground passage to the Kloster Fürstenfeld. Which, by the way, is a must-see when you’re in this neck of the woods. The monastery was built back in the Middle Ages in 1263 and was used right up to 1803. The Klosterkirche (Monastery Church) of St. Maria is striking with its German Baroque design — which means every inch of the church is painted/decorated with glittering gold, pretty pinks, gorgeous greens, and beautiful blues.
Sorry, I must’ve had one too many of the local König Ludwig Weissbiers. ;-)
Now that I think about it, the Emmeringer See is just the place to enjoy one of those too. Wait for the end of the day when the setting sun casts a golden glow across the lake. All the better to scope out the 13 Bronze Age graves during the daytime, don’t ya think?
Oh yeah, and to see the Burgstall Roggenstein, a former hilltop medieval castle. The old girl might be gone now, but you can still see the outline of its old moat.
FYI, if you’re wondering, Roggenstein is one of Emmering’s villages.
The rest of your time in Emmering can be spent visiting its ice cream shop, its many taverns and cafes, and enjoying one of the Beer Garden Concerts or Nordic Walking Tours.
See, didn’t I tell you Emmering could handle itself with Munich — it might even make you forget about its Oktoberfest for a minute there. ;-)
