Pfingsferien- südtirol

In Bavaria they celebrate Pfingsferien, the desention of the holy spirit from the heavens to guide us humans, with 2 weeks of vacation. We decided to use these 2 weeks to discover northern Italy, since it is so close. As it turned out, most of Bavaria did the same in search of warm weather.

After we loaded our car with the proper stickers and emergency vests according to Italian regulations, we stopped in Brixen, on the edge of the Dolomites. There we visited with our good friends Nana and Michael Gomolka and their lovely sons Moritz and Marco. It was fun to watch all the boys play soccer while we adults indulged in beverages.

Next we stopped in another südtirol city: Bozen. There we saw Ötzi, the oldest intact person found, a finding as important as that of Lucy. In 1991, a couple reported seeing a dead body while hiking in the Dolomites. This finding turned out to be Ötzi, who was killed around 3000 BC. The museum leads its spectators through the process that all the scientists used to piece together his story. Since Ötzi was found with a perfectly shaped copper ax, the copper age had to be redated back to 3000 BC. His whole outfit was also found as well as his tattoos, which are thought to be from acupuncture. It was incredible to see how people of that era did so much with so little and how much we learned from Ötzi. All the kids loved the museum!

Tobi: I thought It was interesting that they found a dead person from 5000 years ago.
Hansi: I thought it was sad that we dont know why he was killed.
Gia: I think it was amazing that hey could identify who he was and his story by all the things found around him, DNA blood tests, xray, CT scans and logic.
Annika: I think it was amazing how Ötzi was naturally preserved in he cold humid environment of a glacier. The museum mi ics that environment to keep him preserved today.