Neuschwanstein

On Saturday we drove to the Neuschwanstein Castle which is about 3 hours away from where we live. We pre-ordered tickets for a tour in English because our German teacher Martin said that since summer break has just started for German students, there could possibly be long lines. Per the usual Toppel fashion, we were running a little bit late and were concerned we would not be able to pick up the tickets on time. In bold red letters on the receipt that I printed it indicated that we had to pick up the tickets no later than 2:55 for our 3:55 tour. Thankfully pre-ordering the tickets worked out really well because John dropped me off at the ticket counters and there was no one else in line, so I was able to get to the tickets at 2:53. It just wouldn't be an adventure if we didn't cut it that close...

I had read online that they offer horse drawn carriages for the ride up to the castle and I really wanted to do that. Since the castle was the inspiration for the Disney castle, I thought the carriage ride would make it just that much more magical. Unfortunately when I asked, the ticket woman said that the lines for the carriage are too long and we would not make it on time for the tour. Our other choices were a 40 minute walk or a bus ride, so we chose to walk. It really did not seem like the horses were moving all that much faster than we were, so I guess the turnaround of the horses walking the long path up then all the way back took quite some time. The walk was pretty much uphill, but we were happy to get in some exercise.

Every aspect of the nature and scenery of this trip was amazingly beautiful. Absolutely incredible!

When we got to the top of the path, we had to wait a short time for our tour, so we took some pictures and enjoyed the view. We were not allowed to take photos of the interior of the castle, so we wanted to get as many as we could outside.

The castle was built from 1869-1886, and on the tour we learned that the castle was never actually completed because King Ludwig II was deemed crazy and removed from the castle in 1886 and the following day he and his Psychiatrist were found dead in a lake. The events causing their deaths remain unknown as well as whether or not King Ludwig II really indeed crazy, but our tour guide shared with us that many people think he was deemed crazy just to make him go away. He had a love for designing and building castles and had a fourth one planned in addition to Hohenschwangau, Neuschwanstein, and one other.

I would love to know what Ludwig would be diagnosed with if he were alive today.

Neuschwanstein has never been badly affected by war or anything like that so most of what is inside is original. The tapestries, murals, floor mosaics, and chandeliers were all beautiful. Our tour guide pointed out that one particular mural of the forest which contained deer had also inspired Walt Disney for his film Bambi. We learned that the entire second floor had never been completed and that the King's throne had never been completed either. King Ludwig II had a love for swans so they were used all throughout the castle in the decorations. There was even a large swan that was filled with water to function as an air humidifier. As I said, we were not allowed to take any photos inside the castle, but they said we could take photos out the windows of the views...

The views were breathtaking!

There were several kids on the tour and one in particular was pretty cute. Her name was Zaza and she and her sister Zoey were both asking the tour guide lots of questions. Zaza was probably 4 years old and at one point she asked the tour guide if the castle was old. The tour guide replied that yes, it was very old. Zaza said to her, Is it old because it's dirty? Maybe someone could come and clean it. Would it still be old then? Cute. 

After the tour ended, we took a 15 minute walk to Mary's Bridge which is where we got the best view of the castle. 

The bridge we were standing on was FULL of people and pretty wobbly. It was definitely worth the view, but our stay was not long!

We decided to catch the bus for the trip back down to the car, but we ended up waiting quite a long time for it. Once again we fell victim to the lack of awareness that some many people in Germany have about the concept of waiting their turn in line. Despite the fact that probably at least 40 people were lined up waiting for the bus, this older German couple cut straight to the front as did two young guys. They just completely disregard those that have been waiting longer and push their way to the front.

Martin had recommended that we stay the night down by the castle instead of doing the castle tour and the tour of the Dachau concentration camp all in one day. We took his advice and he helped me find a hotel in Austria just over the border. It was about 30 minutes from the castle so we drove there to spend the night. I will share about Austria in a different post because I have lots of pictures and I want to break it up.