pikkle:
Disappointed in the lack of German sites (I know I know), but it seems like with a bunch of these sites, the votes were spread around. A lot of medieval towns that I personally adore - Quedlinburg, Bamberg, Regensburg, Goslar - etc. Everyone has a favorite I'm sure. Some new sites that I'm sure everyone hasn't been able to see the OUV of yet (Speicherstadt, Bayreuth, Willemshöhe
In fact Germany did rather better in the "Popular Vote" with 4 via the addition of Koln Cathedral and Potsdam, than it did in the "Community list" !!
Neither of those would have been my choice for additions if I had been told "go on - give Germany another site!" (I voted for the same 2 as the Community list - Aachen and MuseumInsel). I have visited every German WHS -that doesn't give me any "special" knowledge or judgement of course but it does mean that my opinion isn't hindered by knowing nothing about some of them.
The "Popular 200" list contains
a. Versailles, Schonbrunn and Potsdam plus of course all those Royal Palaces within the St Petersburg inscription. Fine as Potsdam is did the "Top" 200 really need that many European Royal Palaces? (in fact both Schonbrunn AND Potsdam got added in the "Popular" vote v the "Community" one)
b. Aachen, Chartres and Koln Cathedrals - plus several other Christian Cathedrals situated within wider sites. Again - fine as Koln Cathedral is, was it really needed, given the other sites which had to be excluded to fit it in. (In fact both Chartres AND Koln got added in the "Popular" vote v that of the "Community"
So - relatively (and probably unsurprisingly) Palaces and Cathedrals were more "popular" with the general vote than with the Community which undoubtedly tried hard to minimise (optimise?) the representation of these 2 categories.
Regarding others "missed out". A lot of them are very similar to others which perhaps have a better overall claim
a. The fountains etc of Willemshohe are very impressive - but do they add enough to those included within St Petersburg?
b. The various Mediaeval European towns such as Quedlingburg, Goslar, Regensburg and Bamburg (the latter or the Wartburg would probably have been my "next" German pick) have their general ambiance and styles covered within other larger/wider sites. I find all the "water management" aspects of Goslar a bit "forced" and its actual mining remains - including quite modern ones, are not really "important" enough.
c. How to choose between the Upper Middle Rhine and all those other Viticulture/River/Mediaeval town sites - particularly Wachau. For me it was almost a "toss up". I have travelled both by road and boat and perhaps Melk just won it for me over all those castles - but, on another day I might think differently. Certainly 1 of them is "needed"!!
d. The Margravial Opera house is a fine "niche" example of the genre but there are a lot of other opera houses within the other sites so, very difficult to pull it out as well
e. The Chilehaus is impressive but again a bit "niche" in "world architecture" terms. I also found the Warehouse aspect of Speicherstadt a bit underwhelming and well covered by e.g Liverpool (which I didn't vote for either!!)
f. The Wartburg is indeed a "hard call" - its location is magnificent and perhaps I undervalue its 19th C "reconstructed" aspects! But there are a lot of "genuine" Castles/Fortifications on the List! "Ah - but you voted for the Gwynedd Castles!" I hear someone saying to me (it may be my own sense of "fairness"). Was it "nationalism" that drove me so to do? Or did I kid myself that they, as group, represented something particularly authentic and novel in fortification design.........??