Zugspitze Mountain in Germany

The Zugspitze is highest mountain in Germany at 2,962 metres above sea level. It is located on Austrian border beside the town of Grainau in district of Garmisch Partenkirchen in federal-state of Bavaria. On Austrian side lies the town of Ehrwald in district of Reutte, Tyrol. There is a cog railway leading from tourist resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen to Zugspitzplatt from where a cable car runs to peak. There are also two cable cars that go to peak from the base of mountain one ascends from German side of mountain at lake Eibsee and other ascends from Austria near Ehrwald. The peak is regularly crowded with tourists. The details of Zugspitze are explained in world tour guides below.

For those wishing to reach the summit under their own power, various hiking and ski trails can also be followed to the top. Hiking to the top from the base takes between one and two days, or a few hours for the very fit. Food and lodging is available on some trails. In winter the Zugspitze is a popular skiing and snowboarding destination, with several slopes on both sides. The Zugspitzplatt is Germany's highest ski resort, and thus normally has sufficient snow throughout the winter.

The border between Germany and Austria goes right through the mountain. There used to be a border checkpoint at the summit. But since Germany and Austria are now both part of the Schengen zone, the border crossing is no longer staffed. The Zugspitze belongs to the Wetterstein range in the Northern Limestone Alps. It gets its name from the many avalanche passages on its steep north slopes. At the Zugspitzes summit is the Munchner Haus a mountain hut, a facility built by the German Alpine Club. For more than a hundred years, the summit has also had a weather station, which nowadays also gathers data for the Global Atmosphere Watch.

Shortly after World War II the US military took over the Schneefernerhaus for the exclusive use of US military and civilian employees. Room rates, including meals, were US $ 1 per day. Ski lessons were available, taught by Austrians and Germans, at a cost of US $ 0.25 per hour. The first recorded ascent to the summit was accomplished by a team of land surveyors on the 27th of August, 1820. The team was led by Lieutenant Josef Naus who was accompanied by two men named Maier and G.Deutschl. However, local people had conquered the peak over 50 years earlier, according to a 1770 map discovered by the Alpenverein.

On 7 January 1882 the first successful winter assault on Zugspitze was accomplished by F. Kilger, H. and J. Zametzer and H. Schwaiger. Climbing up Zugspitze can involve several routes. The large difference in elevation between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and summit is 2 200 m making the climb a challenge even for trained mountaineers. On German side from Garmisch-Partenkirchen climbers go either through Hollental or Reintal. The way through Reintal is easiest but also longest and takes 8 to 10 hours. This path goes through the Partnachklamm a scenic gorge then through Reintal up to Zugspitzplatt, a barren plateau from there up to the summit. Climbers can stay for night at two alpine huts Reintalangerhutte or Knorrhutte.

The more popular but harder route is through Hollental. It starts at Hammersbach near Garmisch goes through Hollentalklamm a similar gorge up to Hollentalangerhutte where one can take a meal or stay for night. It then crosses Hollentalferner remnants of a small glacier. After that it traverses a wall with help of iron ladders and steps. Via ferrata equipment is recommended for that part. Over Irmerscharte it reaches the summit. This path will take 7 to 8 hours.

From Austrian village of Ehrwald there are also two variants. One goes straight through the Western Flank, which is the shortest route overall, but rather hard. It includes via ferrata and there is a hut called Wiener Neustadter Hutte by Austrian Alpine Club. An easier path leads via Ehrwalder Alm across a small pass called Gatterl joining Reintal path at Knorrhutte. The Zugspitzes exact height was a matter of debate for quite a while. Given figures ranged from 2 960 m to 2 970 m but it is now generally accepted that peak is 2962 m above sea level as a result of a survey carried out by the Bavarian land survey office. The lounge at new cafe is named 2962 for this reason.

Commerzbank Tower

Commerzbank Tower is a skyscraper located in the city centre of Frankfurt, Germany. After it was completed in 1997 it ranked as the tallest building in Europe until 2005 when it was surpassed by the Triumph Palace in Moscow. The tower is only two metres taller than the MesseTurm which is also located in Frankfurt. The MesseTurm was the tallest building in Europe before the construction of the Commerzbank Tower. The details of Commerzbank Tower is explained in world tour guides below.

With a height of 259 metres or 850 ft, 56 stories, it provides 121,000 m² or 1.3 million sq.ft. of office space for the Commerzbank headquarters, including winter gardens and natural lighting and air circulation. The signal light on top of the tower gives the tower a total height of 300.1 metres or 985 ft.

In its immediate neighbourhood are other high rise buildings including the Eurotower which is the home of European Central Bank, the Maintower, the Silver Tower, the Japan Center and the Gallileo skyscraper. The area is commonly known as Bankenviertel. It is also called as banking district or financial district.

It was designed by Foster & Partners, with Arup and Krebs & Kiefer structural engineering, J. Roger Preston with P&A Petterson Ahrens mechanical engineering, Schad & Holzel electrical engineering. Construction of the building began in 1994 and took three years to complete. The building is illuminated at night by a yellow light scheme which was designed by Thomas Ende who was allowed to display this sequence as a result of a competition.

When the building was planned in the early 1990s Frankfurt's Green Party, who governed the city together with the Social Democratic Party, encouraged the Commerzbank to design a 'green' skyscraper. The result was the world's first so-called ecological skyscraper: besides the use of 'sky-gardens' environmental- friendly technologies were employed to reduce energy required for heating and cooling.

The Commerzbank Tower is shaped as a 60 metres or 197 ft wide rounded equilateral triangle with a central, triangular atrium. At nine different levels, the atrium opens up to one of the three sides, forming large sky gardens. These open areas allow more natural light in the building, reducing the need for artificial lighting. At the same time it ensures offices in the buildings two other sides have a view of either the city or the garden.

In order to eliminate the need of supporting columns in the sky gardens, the building was constructed in steel instead of the conventional and cheaper concrete. It was the first skyscraper in Germany where steel was used as the main construction material. Commerzbank Tower appears in the Euro Contemporary tileset in SimCity 4 Deluxe or with Rush Hour. In 2007, Wrebbit released a 3D puzzle from the Towers Made To Scale Collection, which includes the Commerzbank Tower and the Messeturm in one box-set.

Europaturm

The Europaturm is a 337.5 meter or 1,107.3 ft high telecommunications tower in Frankfurt am Main in Germany. It is also called as Tower of Europe. The details of Europaturm are explained in World tour guides below.

The tower was designed by architect Erwin Heinle and the construction of tower was begun in 1974. At its completion five years later, it became the tallest free standing structure in the Federal Republic of Germany at 331 meters or 1,086 ft. Even without the height of the antenna at its top, the building still is over 295 meters or 968 ft high, which still makes it Germany second tallest structure, after the Fernsehturm Berlin 368 meters or 1,207 feet. Its base, at 59 meters or 194 ft thick, is the widest of any similar structure in the world.

The top of the tower can turn and provides a panoramic view of the Rhine Main area. For a number of years, the upper part of the structure housed a restaurant and discotheque, but since 1999, the Europaturm has been closed to the public. In September, 2004, the antenna at the top of the tower was replaced, increasing the total height to 337.5 meters or 1,107.3 ft. The six-ton antenna was lifted to the top in two parts by helicopter. The height of the tower is roughly equal to that of the Eiffel tower in Paris, which stands approximately 300 meters tall, less its 24-meter television antenna.

With the new antenna, the tower became capable of broadcasting high-definition digital television signals using the DVB-T standard which is the European counterpart to the ATSC digital standard used in the United States. It is capable of broadcasting four channels per transmitter, for a total of twenty-four channels, at 100 kilowatts per channel. It is capable of receiving satellite broadcasts and redistributing them via cable or terrestrial broadcasts.

The tower is owned and operated by T-Systems, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom. At night, it is illuminated with magenta lighting, the company's corporate colors. The tower is colloquially known as the Ginnemer Spaschel dialect of Frankfurt for The Ginnheimer Asparagus, or Ginnheimer Spargel in standard German, even though it is located in the Bockenheim of the City Ginnheim also a district, is a few meters away. The Fernsehturm or Television Tower was the first broadcast tower in Frankfurt.