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The Eagle's Nest (Kehlsteinhaus)
I remember one day when, as a kid, my sister asked my dad what we thought was a simple question. It took years for us to figure out that there was no such thing as a simple question for my dad, the history teacher. Since we found all of these books about World War II in his bookshelf, many of them with swastika illustrations, it got us to thinking just what Dad found so fascinating about the Nazis. So my sister asked why he read so much about World War II and the Nazis. Because I'm a historian, Dad replied gruffly. He studied the Red Army, the SS, and Patton's Third Army equally.
Fast forward some 35 years, we are on our way back from Croatia, and it just so happens we are to pass through Berchtesgaden on our way back, where, as it so happens, the Eagle's Nest is located, better known to the locals around here as the Kehlsteinhaus.
Once we reach Berchtesgaden, we forget about any sightseeing around here. The mountains here are the show. This is how you imagine the landscapes to look like in a Hollywood movie or the ones you have to embellish your model train. Add to it the houses with their flower boxes and colorful shutters, and it's easy to see how the Germans, let alone foreigners, might love this place.
Here, beauty doesn't necessarily have to be political. That said, the Kehlsteinhaus is one of the major tourist spots in Bavaria. The Berghof, Hitler's residence outside of Berlin, which was razed shortly after the war is no longer a tourist site, for the same reason the bunkers of the Third Reich in Berlin are no longer accessible. Th Eagle's Nest, or the Kehlsteinhaus, still survives, although Hitler hardly used more than a couple dozen times.
Access there is difficult, you won't get there with your own vehicle. Here you must either hike or leave your car at a public parking lot, from where you must take a bus all the way up. Once you reach the Kehlsteinhaus, you see why there is enough parking for the buses, but little else. There is the huge gate leading to the house, big enough to let a car (as in the Führer's car) pass, which is exactly what would happen whenever Hitler decided to leave the Berghof and enjoy a higher altitude (at least a mile high). The car would stop right at the elevator, which is big enough to hold a few dozen people. If people find the Eagle's Nest creepy, so did Hitler! Reports suggest that he was afraid of the elevator, since it could easily be sabotaged by dynamite carrying foreign agents.
At the Kehlsteinhaus, there are dozens of old black and white photos, the huge fireplace gifted to Hitler by Mussolini, and a huge restaurant, where we would have lunch. Outside, there is some gorgeous hiking, which takes you further up the mountain, a great place for photo ops. Near the summit, we also find an accordion playing folk singer, complete with the lederhosen, the felt hat, and the yodeling. It doesn't have to be all history, you see, there is plenty of local color to go around.
Even if you're not into the history bit, simply visit the Kehlsteinhaus for the hiking, the gorgeous views, and a delicious lunch.
Personally, I was in awe of the place, being that the likes of me would have landed in a Kehlstein oven before setting foot in the Kehlsteinhaus.
There was a nasty addendum that happened, at the end of our visit. Back in the elevator, the operator gruffly told tourists what they could and could not do, adding the kicker, 'things simply aren't the way they used to be'. Um, operator, would you like to elaborate on that a little? The way they used to be? Like when? 1942? Here I will quote my dad again whenever somebody would use that phrase, 'Things aren't the way they used to be'.
Thank God they're not.
Fast forward some 35 years, we are on our way back from Croatia, and it just so happens we are to pass through Berchtesgaden on our way back, where, as it so happens, the Eagle's Nest is located, better known to the locals around here as the Kehlsteinhaus.
Once we reach Berchtesgaden, we forget about any sightseeing around here. The mountains here are the show. This is how you imagine the landscapes to look like in a Hollywood movie or the ones you have to embellish your model train. Add to it the houses with their flower boxes and colorful shutters, and it's easy to see how the Germans, let alone foreigners, might love this place.
Here, beauty doesn't necessarily have to be political. That said, the Kehlsteinhaus is one of the major tourist spots in Bavaria. The Berghof, Hitler's residence outside of Berlin, which was razed shortly after the war is no longer a tourist site, for the same reason the bunkers of the Third Reich in Berlin are no longer accessible. Th Eagle's Nest, or the Kehlsteinhaus, still survives, although Hitler hardly used more than a couple dozen times.
Access there is difficult, you won't get there with your own vehicle. Here you must either hike or leave your car at a public parking lot, from where you must take a bus all the way up. Once you reach the Kehlsteinhaus, you see why there is enough parking for the buses, but little else. There is the huge gate leading to the house, big enough to let a car (as in the Führer's car) pass, which is exactly what would happen whenever Hitler decided to leave the Berghof and enjoy a higher altitude (at least a mile high). The car would stop right at the elevator, which is big enough to hold a few dozen people. If people find the Eagle's Nest creepy, so did Hitler! Reports suggest that he was afraid of the elevator, since it could easily be sabotaged by dynamite carrying foreign agents.
At the Kehlsteinhaus, there are dozens of old black and white photos, the huge fireplace gifted to Hitler by Mussolini, and a huge restaurant, where we would have lunch. Outside, there is some gorgeous hiking, which takes you further up the mountain, a great place for photo ops. Near the summit, we also find an accordion playing folk singer, complete with the lederhosen, the felt hat, and the yodeling. It doesn't have to be all history, you see, there is plenty of local color to go around.
Even if you're not into the history bit, simply visit the Kehlsteinhaus for the hiking, the gorgeous views, and a delicious lunch.
Personally, I was in awe of the place, being that the likes of me would have landed in a Kehlstein oven before setting foot in the Kehlsteinhaus.
There was a nasty addendum that happened, at the end of our visit. Back in the elevator, the operator gruffly told tourists what they could and could not do, adding the kicker, 'things simply aren't the way they used to be'. Um, operator, would you like to elaborate on that a little? The way they used to be? Like when? 1942? Here I will quote my dad again whenever somebody would use that phrase, 'Things aren't the way they used to be'.
Thank God they're not.
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