Neuschwanstein

Last Sunday night Malcolm's parents arrived and after a few casual days it was time for them to be full on tourists.  Early Wednesday morning we headed off to Fussen to see a couple of King Ludwig II's castles.  Ludwig was king of Bavaria in the 19th century and was very good at spending lots of money on his extravagant castles.  He was a great fan of Louis XIV and tried to replicate him and be even more over the top.  He was sending Bavaria broke and was declared mentally ill and the next day died under mysterious circumstances.  These castles which were sending Bavaria broke are now the biggest money spinners here.  We have been gradually working our way through any places connected to him and were glad to finally get to see his best known castle. 

As a child I had completed a jigsaw of Neuschwanstein over and over and didn't ever believe I would ever see such a remarkable place.  So it was with great delight when we drove towards Fussen to stay the night that I spotted it high up in the mountains.  Neuschwanstein is the castle that Disney's "Sleeping Beauty Castle" is based on and the castle featured in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang".

Wednesday afternoon we first went to Hohenschwangau castle was one of the family's castles where Ludwig went as a child.  We had a guided tour through the castle to the tune of an appropriately "Wagnerian" thunderstorm outside. 

In the evening, we wandered around the old part of Fussen which in itself is an interesting town with its cobblestone paths, sculptures and its own castle. 

Thursday morning we headed to Neuschwanstein Castle.  It was never completed as when Ludwig died,  work stopped.  It was built for Ludwig's own personal use and as a monument to Wagner, thus decorated with many scenes from his operas.  Inside was extremely ornate and interesting.  Ludwig had installed hi-tech mod-cons such as warm running water and flushing toilet, heating system and a battery operated bell system for servants that could be rung from any room by Ludwig and they would be able to tell where he was.

We will return to see more of Fussen and to do the walks in the mountains around these castles in the not too distant future as it is a place you could return to again and again and again and ....

Picnic lunch on the way home at Amersee

More photos here.