According to the former mayor, surfing fans in Munich can pursue their passion without interruption on the Eisbach waves Christian Ude (SPD) thanks to a lunch deal. The athletes were only there at one point in the now famous wave, said the former mayor of the “Abendzeitung München”. “And it hasn’t even been discussed once in city government.”
But that surfing was not legally permitted at the time. And changing it is not easy, because the English Garden belongs to the Free State of Bavaria and not the city of Munich. However, Ude made an agreement with the Bavarian Minister of Finance at that time, Kurt Faltlhauser (CSU).
Dessert agreement – “go for it”
“He couldn’t pass laws and I wasn’t allowed because we didn’t even own the bank,” Ude recalled. “So we agreed on a property exchange, I got the banks to the left and right of Eisbach and was able to pass my law that surfing was allowed. And he got a parking space in front of the National Museum.”
Back then, people “only did things like that at lunch,” the “Abendzeitung” quoted Ude as saying. They agreed on dessert. “Just that.” (in standard German: “This is how we do it”).
The surfers on the Eisbach wave are now considered an attraction Munich and is also often photographed by many guests from abroad. However, these waves have recently disappeared after routine river cleaning, which includes cleaning the riverbed from rubbish and sediment. It’s not clear why the wave didn’t reform as usual afterward. Now it must be revived with gravel. These stones are intended to recreate the condition of the river bed as it was before it was cleaned.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:251118-930-306609/1
