Neuschwanstein

June 6, 2011

I am not sure why I looked forward to seeing this place, but I did and it didn’t disappoint.  Maybe it is because it embodies what we think of when we hear about the black forest and the Grimm Brother Fairy Tales. Walt Disney modeled Sleeping Beauty’s castle after it – it was the castle where Chitty Chitty Bang Bang flew into to rescue the children. There is no other castle like this.  Ironically, Ludwig II built a castle that inspired Disney who then built Disneyland and Disneyworld that helps drives the tourists to see the castle in Germany.

This is in fact not a real castle.  It was built to look like a medieval castle in a tribute to Wagner.  The name itself means new swan castle references the swan knight, one of Wagner’s characters. Each room depicts scenes in Wagner’s operas Although it looks medieval, It was built in the late 1800’s at a time when castles no longer provided a strategic advantage.

The castle has state of the art technology for its time including toilets, a phone, and central heating.

I was especially proud that I hiked up the hill and then to the top of the castle, back down the castle and around another hill to get the picture above.  In order to take that, I had to stand on a very narrow bridge and I am scared of heights.  Do I look a little exhausted and scared? Next to my picture is a picture of the bridge that I am standing on from the castle.  I was glad to see that I wasn’t the only one having an issue with the heights.  I was really proud of myself for making the hike instead of taking the bus and getting out on that bridge.

I will sleep very well tonight.

I was terrified on that bridge

I only got a couple of shots while inside the castle, we were told not to take photos once the tour got underway. There were a lot of people who ignored the guides.

I worked up a big appetite so I went out for some Bavarian food.  When this huge piece of port on a bone was served, I thought “Flintstones”