my 48 hours in Germany; or, how I saw Neuschwanstein

The Dream:

I have always loved fairy tales.  And like most little girls, I liked pretending I was a princess.  In fact, I still do - I've recycled my Cinderella costume for three Hallowe'ens now.  And today, I got to live out one of my childhood dreams - to visit Sleeping Beauty's real-live castle!  In Germany!

The Story:

I have just finished a 48 hour trip to Hohenschwangau, Germany (near Fussen).  This included a 6 hour car ride, each way, with my parents.  What was the purpose of our trip?  Well, I've wanted to see the Neuschwanstein castle for as long as I remember.  And since my parents live (relatively) close to it, we went!  6 hours in a car is not the best way I can think of to spend my time, but let me tell you, it was well worth it!

A Little History:
Neuschwanstein is a big, glorious, beautiful castle.  It was built by the 19th Century Bavarian king, Ludwig II.  Ludwig - also know as "the dream king", "the fairy tale king",  "the mad king", and "the swan king" - was quite the eccentric.  His eccentricities became more pronounced the older he got., and in fact, he was declared insane in his early 40s, and died under suspicious/mysterious circumstances.

{image of Ludwig II taken from here}

Ludwig II was obsessed (and, some say, in love) with Richard Wagner and his operatic fairy tales.  Ludwig built Neuschwanstein as an homage to Wagner, and dedicated the entire castle to him.  Not only does each room have paintings depicting scenes from Wagner's operas, but the wood carvings and gold/silver finishings are so ornate that it took 17 years to build the castle!  Even then, only the exterior and 16 rooms were finished (production stopped with Ludwig died)!

The Disney Connection:
The castle is so beautiful, and it so perfectly depicts what a castle should look like - both inside and out - that it was Walt Disney's main inspiration for the "Disney Castle", and for Sleeping Beauty's castle.  Don't believe it?  Take a look for yourself.

{image taken from here}

{image taken from here}

Unfortunately, you're not allowed to take pictures inside the castle (I can understand why).  So, to show you a bit of what it's like, I've taken images from online.

{my favourite - Ludwig's bedroom.   image taken from here}

{the concert hall.  image taken from here}

{thrown room - the thrown was never built - image taken from here}

Here are some pictures I took myself, of the castle and the surrounding forrest (totally a place you expect fairy tale characters to appear).

Also, as a side note, Hans Christian Andersen visited Hohenschwangau, the castle Ludwig grew up in, and it is rumoured that the beds there inspired the beds in "The Princess and the Pea"!

Anyway, I hope you're all recovering from the holiday!  This was by far my best present ever.