| Page Views: 190 Last Visit to Münster: April, 2009 | Cycling and opera in Münster by Nemorino - last update: Aug 2, 2009 |
Germany's number one bicycle city Münster in Westfalen is the only German city where there is more bicycle traffic (37.6%) than car traffic (35.5%).
The city administration is particularly proud of the fact that Münster has "nearly a two-thirds majority" for the "environmental coalition" of cyclists, pedestrians and public transport users.
True, in the nearby Netherlands there are several cities with similar or better results, such as Groningen, Amsterdam, Enschede, Zwolle and Veenendaal, but a recent Netherlands government report grudgingly admitted that two German cities, Münster and Freiburg im Breisgau, also have "a reasonable level of bicycle use" even though they aren't in the Netherlands. (The same goes for Copenhagen and Odense in Denmark and Ghent in Belgium.) |
In any case, Münster has several times been voted "Germany's most bicycle-friendly city", for instance in surveys conducted by the General German Bicycle Club (ADFC).
Out of 280,000 inhabitants, over 100,000 use their bicycles on a daily basis, not merely for recreation but also to get to work, go to school or do their shopping.
It helps that the city is flat and has a large student population, but the main reason for all this cycling is that the city has been actively supporting bicycle transportation for nearly half a century. Earlier than most cities, Münster broke with the prevailing ideology of "making cities fit for cars" and instead promoted bicycles, buses and walking as equally valid forms of mobility.
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| Stage set for Janacek's opera |
The opera I saw at the Münster City Theater was The Cunning Little Vixen by the Czech composer Leos Janacek (1854-1928). This is a whimsical opera about an older man who falls in love with a young female -- in this case a fox, which makes her even more inaccessible than if she had been human.
Janacek was nearly 70 when he composed The Cunning Little Vixen. At the time he was in love with a much younger woman, with whom he exchanged letters.
The last scene of the opera, in which the old forester dies peacefully amid the sounds of his beloved forest, was played and sung at the composer's funeral in 1928. |
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Nemorino's Münster Travel Tips
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 Comments for Nemorino about Münster | | | | |
TheLongTone Tue Oct 6, 2009 23:34 UTC
Machines to wash your bike! What bliss! | Jerelis Mon Aug 10, 2009 11:16 UTC
Very interesting point of view to write your tips like this. Well done, very enjoyable reading and informative! | pedroswift Thu Aug 6, 2009 13:26 UTC
Hi Don, Hope you're well. tnks for checking my Oz pages. Visited your tips about a month ago & you've sold me on Munster by boat with bikes. by t way,Saw Fidelio (dr.Marthinus Basson) for the 1st time last week. Last played in Bris in 1983. regards, peter | Mikebb Tue Jul 21, 2009 09:21 UTC
Hi Don, Another page highlighting the many beautiful German cities, how wonderful if we could live in a city with less cars. I wonder how many differnt bikes you have ridden? |
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