East Asia in Munich's Westpark - Nepal

Yet another part of the "East Asian Ensemble" in Munich's Westpark is a Nepalese pagoda.

This was built in 1983 in Nepal by 300 handworkers over 7 months.  It was the first time in about 200 years since a complete pagoda had been made using traditional methods!

The pagoda was shipped to Munich in sections from Nepal and re-assembled in the park.  The carving details around the building are fascinating... but it is locked so you can't enter and look around inside.

There was, however, a poster on a window of an upcoming Thai festival that goes on the list of to-dos!

The Thai, Chinese, and Nepalese sections of the "East Asian Ensemble" are quite impressive for a public park.
The Westpark deserves a lot more attention from locals and tourists alike.

East Asia in Munich's Westpark - China

Another part of the "East Asian" area in Munich's Westpark is the Chinese "Garden of Fragrance and Splendor".
The Chinese garden's designers were Cantonese and it's theme is the four seasons of the year.  It was a direct cooperation with the People's Republic of China (both design and construction).

You enter the garden through the "Gate of Spring":

The pavillion on the left represents the enjoyments of Summer.  You can (barely) see people having tea there!

Here is a different view of the Summer pavillion, that also is supposed to represent a houseboat.  In the foreground is a Taihu rock.  It represents wisdom, and these come only from the Tai lake west of Suzhou. 

On the opposite side of the water, with a tiny waterfall, is the Winter pavillion.  It's very peaceful and relaxing.

A small patch of bamboo and stone also is associated with Winter:

Autumn is represented with a wall and small alcove.  The wall was made in Canton and transported here:

 

This park garden was shady, quiet, colorful... a perfect destination on a warm September Sunday in Munich.

"East Asia" in Munich's Westpark - Thailand

The Westpark in Munich has an area with an "East Asian Ensemble" with "national gardens" that are actually much more interesting and beautiful than the more famous Chinese Tower in the English Garden.

In the middle of a small pond is a Thai sala (open pavillion) that stands nine meters high -- water was added after the pavillion was built because it was constantly too crowded, so they made it inaccessible.

If you look closely in the above photo, you'll see one rock in the water being bathed in sunlight...
it has a lot of smaller, lighter stones on it as well, plus one guy who was keeping warm:

The Buddha statue in the pavillion's center was "blessed" by the abbot from the temple at Waalwikj (Netherlands).
Wikipedia Germany claims it was the first "free standing Buddhist shrine" in Europe...

It's really quite impressive, even though you can't venture close.

They have Thai cultural activities on occasion -- I'm looking them up and we'll try to attend.  Should be fun.

Munich's Westpark

Everyone visits the famous English Garden in Munich.  It's smaller relative, the Westpark, might be a little further from the city center and less well known, but it has a lot to offer as well.

To get there from downtown, take the U6 subway heading south out of the city and exit at the "Westpark" stop.
It's only about 15 minutes.  Here is its location relative to some other Schnitzelbanh photoblog destinations - the English Garden, Nymphenburg Palace, and the Tierpark (zoo): 

As you might tell from above, the Westpark has two sections - confusingly called the Eastern and Western parts.  For this post (more to come) I visited the points in the Western part outlined below:  seebühne (lakeside ampitheater), rosengarten (rose garden), spielplatz (playground), and biergarten (needs no translation!): 

In many ways, the Westpark is typical of German public spaces.  Large expanse of open space surrounded by tall trees.  In the open people are playing soccer, volleyball, frisbee, or just sunning themselves.

There is a small lake, home to ducks an geese -- no swimming allowed, but creates a nice atmosphere.

One unique aspect of the Westpark is its specifically identified grill zone - even has its own sign (below)!  It seemed like everyone brought a small charcoal grill and grabbed a picnic table or spot on the ground.  At one point, the air along the entire edge of the lake was white with smoke, and you could smell the food all over the park.

Periodically people try to get the zone removed, but the idea is always defeated.

At one end of the lake is a small stone ampitheater with occasional performances.  On this day, a group of people informally were doing traditional dances (I don't know exactly which ethnicity).  A few meters out into the water, in front of the theater, is a waterfall created by the artist Alf Lechner:

You soon realize that water and art are a common theme throughout the park.  Below is the Guten Tag Brunnen ("Good Day Fountain") from artist Makoto Fujiwara.  It consists of three large stones where water is pushed through to the top and spills down the sides (surprisingly for Germany, not drinkable).

Not far from the ampitheater is a restaurant with a rose garden outside:

At the edge of the rose garden are small bubbly water fountains that basically become a playground for kids.  The weather was hot that Sunday, and these were very popular for kicking, splashing, or just sticking a foot in...
(notice the rows of roses in background):

This strange thing was between the rose garden and the water... I forgot to read the plaque (sorry!):

A little further along our walk this day was a small playground with tire swings.  I tried to catch the adventurous children (those swinging highest) in the second shot -- look at the delight on the boy's face!

There was another installment of art, called the Terraasse (the terrace) by Jean Clareboudt.  Kids of all ages have taken it over now - young ones climbing all around, older ones with graffiti.

Finally, of course, the biergarten.  Small, but nice... with a large cigarette machine for those in need of a drag.

I only walked through the Western part of the park, and will have some more posts with photos including the "East Asian" section (coming soon) -- the park's Eastern part will be another photo trip entirely.