The motor coach was beautiful, only six months old and smelled like a new car. The technology in these things is amazing. The driver's station looks like the cockpit of an airplane. GPS information is displayed to the driver but also to the passengers on the overhead LCD screens, just like on overseas flights. There are warning systems which alert the driver if he is too close to the preceding vehicle or approaching it too quickly. And if he gets too close to the center line of the road or drifts too close to the solid line to the right an alarm sounds and a red visual signal lights up. The seats in the coach are very comfortable with good leg room. There is a flush toilet on board and a coffee service with an espresso machine and a refrigerator with cold drinks!
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| Mercedes Benz Bus |
It was about a two hour ride. Some of that was due to the Oktoberfest traffic in Munich but then we broke out into the beautiful Bavarian countryside. Arriving at the base of the castle we had about an hour and a half until our scheduled tour time. But that was OK because I had to pick up our tickets a minimum of an hour in advance or we would have lost our reservation. So we had a few minutes for a nature break and to possibly get a bite to each before going on the tour. There were three ways to get from "base camp" up to the entrance of the castle. You could walk the steep inclined road, take a horse drawn carriage up or a special bus that would take you up to the "marriage bridge" above the castle entry and walk down. Some of our group tried each of these methods. Taking the bus to the bridge was nice because it allowed you to get a really nice picture of the castle. The bridge was constructed of steel with heavy wooden planks making up the floor. We walked out and some joker started to jump up and down trying to see how much the floor would flex! So we took our pictures and quickly made our way to the entry.
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| View from the bridge |
Every one , no matter which method of ascent they chose had made it on time! Our English speaking tour guide started out by telling us a bit about the history of the castle, "Mad" King Ludwig and his mysterious death. There is much speculation about how he and his psychiatrist ended up dead in a lake. The most popular theory is that because Ludwig was bankrupting the county building these elaborate, expensive castles all about, he was murdered to put an end to it.
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| Hohenschwangau Castle where Ludwig's parents lived |
We toured the approximately one third of the castle's rooms that were completed before Ludwig's death. The opulence and extravagance of the rooms and their furnishings is something unimaginable to anyone not having the wealth of an entire nation at their disposal. The shear grandeur and number of man years of artisan's work is mind boggling. Most of the rooms reflected Ludwig's infatuation with the operas of his "friend" Richard Wagner. The most intriguing room was one in which an artificial cave had been created. Unfortunately we were not allowed to photograph inside the castle so my pictures are entirely of the outside.
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| Evelyn finally meets some Bernese Mountain Dogs - in Oberammergau! |
After the tour we made our way back down to the base, where Rudy had thoughtfully re-positioned the motor coach at the hotel so we did not have to walk out to the bus parking lot. We then proceeded to Oberammergau. This town is famous for its Passion Play, a reenactment of the Crucifixion that is put on by the townspeople every 10 years. Nearly everyone in town has a part in the play. This tradition dates back to the time of the plague when the townsfolks put on the play for the first time and promised God to reenact it forever if He would spare their town from the plague. He did and they do. The villagers are also know for their talents as wood carvers and the town abounds with shops displaying their wares, which Rudy referred to as "all the stuff you will never need"! His tip for us was to enjoy the ice cream stands. After an hour or so of wandering about this cute little town we headed back to Munich and our hotel.
After freshening up we again took the S-Bahn into the center of town and dinner at the Hofbrauhaus.
It was traditional German beer garden fare, pea soup, Alpine Ox goulash served with a soft pretzel instead of bread and Bavarian cream with a fruit topping. Of course there was also beer! It's amazing how many of those heavy liter glass mugs full of beer this waitress can carry at one time.
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| I don't know where some of the guys put 2 liters of this stuff |
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| Some fellow Americans we met. The young lady on the right is a former USAF C-130 pilot, we found out later. |
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