Holy cow, I can’t believe that the Lower Bavarian town of Gangkofen is just over 108 square kilometers, made up of 171 (!) villages and hamlets. Tell me if I did the math wrong, but wouldn’t that mean on average that each village is less than 1 square kilometer?
While you check to see if I got my arithmetic correct, I’ll tell you all about Gangkofen. Deal?
OK then, let’s start at the Klosterbräu Seemannshausen. At one time it was a monastery, more specifically from 1255 to 1802. Now it’s a brewery with a beer garden.
I will not keep going with the beer, I will keep going with the religious aspect of Gangkofen. And with this many shires, it isn’t surprising that you’ll find about just as many village churches.
These are but a few of the many that are worth mentioning. The St. George Chapel came along in the 16th century, the Sanctuary St. Salvator was a 15th century pilgrimage church, the Loreto Church was a mid-17th century design, the Church of Saints Simon & Thaddäus started as a simple Romanesque chapel but got a 19th century overhaul, and the 34 meter high tower of St. Vitus is over 500 years old.
However, it is the St. Martin Church (a late-Gothic design), built in 1450 in the village of Dirnaich, that is the show-stopper. Simply beautiful.
For just as many churches as you’ll find here, that’s about how many festivals they got. The Spring Festival is an April staple, followed by the Peter & Paul Market in June, the Arts & Craft Market in July, and the Hoffest and Medieval Days in August.
September is the month for the Harvest Market and Drescherfest, and October has the Kirta-Markt. November is for shopping at the Elisabethmarkt, and December for the obligatory Christmas Market.
Of course, the big winner in the festival department is the Grangkofener Marktplatzfest in June.
You know, with great festivals like these, and this many churches to see — who cares if I did the math right. Oh wait… I’m German… of course I do care if I did it right. ;-)
