Neuschwanstein Castle


Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein Castles in Schwangau.

We ate breakfast at our little gasthof on Monday morning and drove toward the castles. 

The houses, restaurants, and hotels in this Bavarian town are so lovely, it is hard to know where to look first.



Jagerhaus

 

Schwangau, seen from the Hohenschwangau walls





Parking lot viewed from Hohenschwangau. The red X marks the place from which we started our walk up to visit the castle.



Hohenschwangau tower




Hohenschwangau viewed from the town streets below




An I Love You for Robby, as promised!



Michelle at Hohenschwangau



The walk back into town





Another view of the town from the castle



 We walked down a snowy lane from Hohenschwangau into the town, where we caught a horsedrawn wagon-ride up to Neuschwanstein Castle,

the home of "Mad King Ludwig"

Photography was prohibited within the castle, but there are many, many images available in books and on the Internet.

This castle is purported to be the one on which Walt Disney based the

Cinderella's Castles

for which his Magic Kingdoms are so famous. 



Becky and Michelle, with Neuschwanstein Castle in the background

From Neuschwanstein, it was a four-hour drive 'home' to Michelle's apartment in Landstuhl.  Tuesday will be laundry and packing-up day,

and Wednesday I will fly back to Michigan.

What a wonderful time I have had!

What a wonderful friend I am lucky to have!

More images of the castles and Schwangau can be seen here.

1936 Munich Winter Olympic Games Stadium

and

Partnachklamm

(Partnach Gorge)



Getting ready to walk

  After our visit to Dachau on Sunday morning, Michelle drove us to the 1936 Winter Olympic Games Stadium, not far from Munich.  We bundled up, grabbed her walking sticks, and headed off to do some gorge-walking.


1936 Munich Winter Olympic Games Stadium Gatehouse




Ski Jump and Downhill/Slalom Course

 It is astounding to stand at the bottom of the ski jump hill and see how very high the skiers must climb to compete in this event. 


Olympic Stadium Restaurant

After exploring the stadium for a bit, we stopped in the restaurant on the grounds for a gluwein (a hot mixture of red wine and spices) to fortify us for our adventure, and then set off into Partnach Gorge.  Michelle had walked it in the summer, and was eager to see how it was changed by winter.

Entering the Gorge



 There is no way to describe the beauty that is Partnach Gorge. It was developed for tourism beginning in 1912 and is a popular walking and photography spot year-round.
Pictures cannot begin to show the beauty of this region of Bavaria, but here are a few we took during our walk.  You can click on any of the pictures to see them larger and in greater detail.

There is a little cafe part way up the gorge, where we stopped for another Gluwein on the way up and for wonderful soups on the way back down.  There are all sorts of taxidermied animals decorating the restaurant, including this badger, wearing a lovely hand-knit sweater.

Dogs are welcomed anywhere in Germany, and the owners' German Shepherd visited our table for a nice scratch behind the ears.



At the end of our exploration, ready to turn around and retrace our steps back to the car

To see more pictures of our walk, go here.







From the gorge, we drove to Schwangau to spend the night.  We noticed as we entered the town that everyone seemed to be in costume! We had happened upon "Fasching" a German tradition similar to our American Mardi Gras.

Next: our visit to Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein Castles, and our return to Landstuhl.  





Dachau and Munich

It is hard to find words to describe my impressions of Dachau.  I learned that it was not 'intended' to be an extermination camp. However, of 200,000 or more people imprisoned there, more than 40,000 died. 

Our German-born but English-speaking guide was eloquent and thorough.  He conveyed deep remorse over the fates of those imprisoned and murdered by the Nazis during World War II.

He told us that EVERY German student is required to visit Dachau, so that they will

NEVER FORGET.



Marker to show where ashes were buried




A crematorium



"Arbeit Macht Frei"
These words greeted prisoners as they entered the camp.
The translation is roughly, "Work Will Make You Free"



Sculpture commemorating those who committed suicide by throwing their bodies upon the electric fence that encircled the camp




The fence

And from this great sadness, we made our way to Munich.



Klezmer band in Marionplatz



Michelle and a guardian lion at the Residence



Beautiful old German buildings




Three distinct periods and architectural styles in close proximity



The grand Glockenspiel in Marionplatz

A very old church



A lovely domed building in the gardens




...and a beer at the Hofbrau House to finish the day!

Guten nacht, meine Friende...tomorrow I will take you for a walk in an ice palace and to the lovely Bavarian village of Schwangau.

Wheel of Socks

 Socknitting Heaven, the Bavarian Alps, and A Beautiful Drive

We loaded Michelle's car early on Friday morning and headed south toward Hechingen and Bavaria.  Our first stop was in Hechingen.  We visited the Opal Sock Yarn factory and store, where we were treated to a tour of the steaming and balling room by our host, Felix. This picture shows the yarn just before it's rolled into balls and labeled.  The large cakes of yarn here are from the "Best of Opal" Lollipop collection.

    

Michelle at the Opal Factory Store



I bought a little yarn...



Of course we visited the Opal Factory Outlet Store...even Michelle bought sock yarn as well as some finished socks.

On the way out of the steaming and balling room, I pointed to a large garbage bag into which the workers were placing odds and ends of yarn from the various processes there, and said, "THAT is the bag I want!", and Felix went off into the depths of the factory and came back carrying a bag for me!  He said they give them away to schools, usually, but I could have one since I asked. : )  It's just a lot of very short bits and pieces, but I think there may be enough length to make some MonsterSocks.

Oh...I bought a few skeins of yarn, too...

Here are some views of the town of Hechingen :


Narrow street and walkway to lower level



Half-timbered building

Just outside of Hechingen, we saw a castle crowning a mountain in the distance.  We made a small detour, and discovered that Hechingen is the ancestral home of the Hohenzollern family of Europe, and this was their castle.

Tower near the Hohenzollern Castle





The Hohenzollern Castle on its hilltop



As we continued, I was treated to my first view of the Bavarian Alps.  I have seen mountains, the American Rockies, Great Smoky Mountains, the Ozarks, but the Alps are different from all of them. They were simply breathtaking.



We reached the town of Garmisch and the Edelweiss Hotel and Resort in early evening, and settled into our room for the night.  This was the view from our balcony on Saturday morning:

        

Saturday: Dachau and Munich

The Bavarian Alps