May 16th, 2019
Today was our last visit as part of the program. We were on the schedule to eat a traditional Bavarian breakfast on our way to visit Neuschwanstein Castle. I had heard plenty of times about the castle and seen it in many places, including on a Disney World ride, but today I would actually be experiencing it first-hand.
We woke up later because we did not have to have breakfast at the hotel. We departed for our Bavarian breakfast at about 7:45. After riding for about an hour we arrived. The breakfast consisted of weißwurst, pretzels, and fizzy apple juice. It was complicated to get the skin off of the sausage, but it was very good. We would need that protein for our long day at Neuschwanstein.
We departed from breakfast after some time and drove a bit further before making a pit stop at the Weiskirche, a rather simple looking church that contains a beautiful secret. It’s not much from the outside, but on the inside, the church has beautiful Rococo art depicting religious scenes and intricate displays of biblical scenes. Everything was very colorful and reminded me of a palace of sorts.
After exploring the church, the group wanted to get some donuts that Arielle and Dr. Feick had told us about, but unfortunately the place that sold them was closed. We departed shortly thereafter on a short bus ride to the most awesome sight on the trip: Neuschwanstein.
We arrived in the early afternoon after having some sandwiches on the bus for lunch. The excitement built as we saw the castle for the first time in the distance. We got off the bus, and awaiting us was a spectacular sight. The Alpsee Lake was a beautiful sight. The water was so clear, and we figured that this was because we didn’t believe any boats were allowed in that portion of the lake. It afforded many beautiful picture opportunities.
We then proceeded to begin the climb up the hill to the castle. The distance that we ended up walking up and down the hill totaled about four miles, according to one of our group member’s phone. Along the way, we stopped for some more fantastic views, including one of the car of the day, a Mercedes C63 AMG S.
The castle was on full display at the top (almost). Unfortunately, the castle is undergoing a large restoration process, and one side was completely covered in scaffolding. This was somewhat disappointing, but it was still a great scene. We began our guided tour shortly thereafter. The tour was very short. The inside felt very small, and it did not have the same level of grandeur as the palace of Versailles, but it was still elegant nonetheless. The bedroom was the most impressive due to its highly intricate wood carvings that were part of King Ludwig II’s bed. Unfortunately, we were unable to take pictures on the guided tour.
What I found to be much more impressive came after this. The group hiked up beyond the castle to the bridge across the ravine. This viewpoint was so awesome, and the view of the castle was incredible. I’ll let the picture do the talking.
After admiring the view we began the long trek down the hill. We finally made it to the bus and departed for a short stop in Füssen. I had an ice cream cone and picked up a small Neuschwanstein souvenir there. We then departed for the ride home, where Lucas and I worked on planning the Stuttgart trip. The plans are falling into place!
Tonight I had another Döner for dinner. You really can’t beat the quality for the price. Our train departs at 6:48 tomorrow morning, so Lucas and I will probably have to take it easy tonight so that we have a lot of energy for a day full of cars tomorrow!