Willkommen! Welcome to the Germany pavilion at World Showcase, a recreation of a typical German town platz, architecturally inspired by everything from Bavaria to the Rhine River valley. There's the castle in the background, based on Eltz Castle near the Mosel River in Koblenz, and the Gild Hall (on the right, with the second-story statues of the Hapsburg emperors), drawn from the Kaufhaus merchant's hall in Freiburg.
This sort of mash-up of designs, each drawn from real locations but not literally translated, is one of the keys to the charm of the World Showcase pavilions. They each set out to create a sort of picture-postcard, travelogue view of their subject, with more of an eye toward bringing to life the spirit and essence of a place, its people and its culture.
Wonderful details abound in the Germany pavilion. The statue of Saint George slaying a dragon, a common feature in German towns, is modeled after one in Rothenburg. According to German legend St. George, patron saint of soldiers, killed the dragon to save the life of the king's daughter. A statue of St. George is seen as a symbol of protection.
The clock tower at the center of the town is another highlight. Inspired by the famous Glockenspiel in Munich and countless others across Germany, the tower comes to life throughout the day to mark the passage of time. When it does, these figures of a boy and girl come out to sound the bell and herald a tune on the tower's carillon, one composed just for Epcot.
The shops of the Germany pavilion are just as charming and full of detail as the exteriors. One of my favorites, probably because it includes a bit of Hidden (or Versteckt) Disney, is the Glas und Porzellan shop. Its intricately carved shelves carry a wide assortment of hand-crafted steins, nutcrackers, and Goebel and Hummel figurines.
The best detail in the shop, though, is this framed 1955 photograph of Franz Goebel and Walt Disney, as they kicked off what would become a decades-long business partnership.
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