Posted on 04/30/2009 6:57:49 PM PDT by Shermy
Video:
http://www.miniatur-wunderland.com/exhibit/video/4-minutes-wunderland/
---------------------------- Germany’s latest hot tour attraction is a 12-kilometre long model railway set that winds its way through a world of miniature scuba divers, fire trucks and other dramatic scenes.
There is something kind of magical about a museum that lets you feel as if you are towering over the Swiss Alps.
This is the effect of Germany’s latest hot tourist attraction, Minatur Wunderland. Billed as the world's largest model train set, the museum is miniature world that snakes along eight miles (12 kilometres) of track, amid fields, cities, even the snowcapped Swiss Alps.
Twin brothers Frederik and Gerrit Braun, 41, have turned their boyhood passion for model railroads into this lucrative private museum that has kept adding track since its 2001 opening. Last year, the museum drew 1 million visitors.
"It's a dream," said Gerrit Braun, who only reluctantly joined his insistent brother in the project, fearing it could be a money loser. "We still can't believe how successful it's been. Every year gets better than the year before."
Set on three floors in an old warehouse along the Elbe River, Miniatur Wunderland features realistic replicas of parts of Scandinavia, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the US. Figurines about a half-inch (just over one-centimetre) high represent people in all walks of life.
Iconic German model railway maker Maerklin Holding GmbH, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month after it was unable secure new credit amid the global credit crunch, produced about 20 percent of the trains.
Last month, Miniatur Wunderland ordered 150,000 euros ($200,000) worth of new products from the company as an expression of faith in it.
"We believe in the brand," said Sebastian Drechsler, half brother to the Braun twins and one of the 180 museum employees. "We think it's impossible that the brand will die."
In one section, police surround a crime scene in central Germany where a bloody axe lies on a riverbank while the victim floats in a river. In another, a shark chases a scuba diver beneath the water in the Florida Keys. Elsewhere, a sumptuous palace in Bavaria burns, spewing real smoke, and prompting miniature fire trucks with flashing lights and sirens to rush to the rescue.
On Thursday, a swarm of people crowded around that scene. Children could be heard crying out "cool!" and pushing their parents to take photos.
But the fascination crossed all generational lines.
Miniatur-Wunderland"The fire truck has just left!" exclaimed 75-year-old Ingeborg Gehrmann as a bright red truck left its miniature fire department. She and her husband travelled two hours by bus from their home in Hannover to see the train set – and were not disappointed.
"There's still a bit of child in me," Gerhmann said, her eyes sparkling.
As the visitors walk through the rooms, workers at a control centre monitor about 45 computer screens that show the movement of trains. About 30 accidents occur every day, often involving trains derailing or colliding, said Drechsler. When that happens, someone is dispatched to fix the problem.
For Drechsler, the key to the museum's success is "its mixture of technology and fairy tale atmosphere."
One thing is certain: the brothers want an even bigger miniature world to control and plan, over the next years, to create scenes from Italy or France, and later parts of Africa or India.
Said Gerrit Braun: "We want to keep on building forever."
Check out the video, very impressive.
http://www.miniatur-wunderland.com/exhibit/video/4-minutes-wunderland/
This place is awesome.....seen it before...there are a bunch of videos at the site...
They use a modifed “faller” car system that uses micro computers to drive vehicles all over the layouts....
This place is bigger than a big box store...
If anyone is into model trains...check this out...
Been there to see it - it is an amazing site. Very, very detailed.
Oy! Looks like my Mom’s back yard, LOL! She and her husband are ‘model train enthusiasts’ to say the VERY least. She spends a good part of her day live-trapping squirrels who DARE to touch anything in her train displays. She re-locates them five miles away, after spraying their tails blue to track them. *Rolleyes*
I’m NEVER going to unload that house when they pass on...I often wonder how nutty I’ll become in My Golden Years; genetically, I obviously don’t stand a chance, LOL! :)
P.S. I love you, Mom!
I have to ask if any of the squirrels found their way back.
Shermy, thanks for the ping. That is indeed a stunning, one-of-a-kind site.
no wonder you are this way ! 8-D
Why am I getting a little box in the corner of a larger box with a red square, a green dot and a black triangle instead of a graphic?
I got it when I clicked on your link and I get it with some of the FR solicitations at the beginning of the threads....
Amazing!!!
There are other hobbyists who dream of acquiring a place with most of the work already done !!!
When the time comes,targeted ads in the right hobby publications and online might well result in a premium price.
For later viewing.
Not yet. :)
Well, my obsessions are yarn and fabric, so the NUT didn’t fall too far from the tree. :)
Yeah. We have considered that. It is ‘cute’ in it’s own way. While living in Disney Land doesn’t appeal to me, it must to some. ;)
"Thank God for the model trains, you know? If they didn't have the model trains they wouldn't have gotten the idea for the big trains."
Thanks for the link. I’m sharing it with relatives.
Wow, awesome. Thanks for the ping. One question. In the sunflower field where the narrator mentions the “very alive humans,” what would you say they are doing there in the field?
How big is the carbon footprint on this thing?
Thanks Shermy.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.