German Castles

 

This has got to be one of the most beautiful places in the world. That is if you like mountains, lakes, and castles. We are talking about at least one true fairy tale castle.

No not that one, this one (below).

Cheryl and I visited this area of Germany in November 2007. This is Bavaria in all of it's glory. The castles are situated near a beautiful little town called Füssen which is only a 2 hour journey by train from Munich. Then a short bus ride to the village of Schwangau. Below is Schloss Hohenschwangau, Castle of the High Swan County.

(Of course you should click on all the links to read more, you can never have too much information. Also you can still click on all the pics to get a full size image.)

This was the childhood home of Mad King Lugwig II and his brother King Otto I. The castle was built by his father King Maximilian II starting in 1833 and finished in 1837.

These are pictures of Castle Neuschwanstein from the small village of Schwangau. Schloss Hohenschwangau which is in Schwangau is just a very short distance away. Neuschwanstein was begun in 1869, it was almost completed when King Ludwig II was declared insane in 1886. The King was found drowned later that same year and was succeeded by younger brother Otto (who was said to be mentally ill and was never the true king). The circumstances surrounding the Mad Kings death were highly suspicious.

The inside of the castle was never finished. The parts that were completed were somewhat fantastical being an homage to Richard Wagner and designed by a theatrical set designer. Time for more pictures.

 

Below is a picture of the Marie Bridge that Ludwig had built. Cheryl and I actually found our way over to that bridge. It was a little bit of a hike and the snow and ice made it a bit slippery, but wow, what a place.

After looking at the sign Cheryl wasn't all that keen about going out to the middle of the bridge. Notice the distinct lack of other people near by, hmmm made me wonder if this was such a good idea. The gates that we had to crawl around to get here had probably stopped the majority of the people. The area was just closed for winter but is open during the summer.

By the way, Castle Neuschwanstein is said to be the most photographed building in Germany. With 1.3 million visitors a year it is considered one of the biggest tourist attractions in Germany. 6000 people a day during the summer. All I can say is if you go, you might think about going in the winter. It's way less crowded and the snow just makes it that much more special. And don't miss the view from that Bridge, my pictures don't do it justice.

I'll leave you with just a few more pictures. On my way back to the states tomorrow. Can't wait to be back home for a while.

The Bavarian Alps define the border with Austria. If you look closely you can see Austria way in the distance. Don't ask me exactly where in the picture Austria starts and Germany ends.

 

 

It was a nice walk along the road (about 20 minutes) from Schloss Hohenschwangau to Neuschwanstein Castle or you could hire a carriage for a small fee.

I can't believe Cheryl would actually throw that snowball at me.