Today was a day that Chrissa had long been looking forward to – visiting Neuschwanstein Castle. We just missed the 9am train, so we had to wait an hour in Munich for the 10am train to Fussen. It took just over an hour to get there. Many tourists take this train, so when we got there, there were several buses waiting to take us to Hohenschwangau for the walk up to the castle. Not knowing how long that would take, we followed everyone else – the walk was a solid hour uphill! But when we got there, wow, what a view and what a castle!
We wandered around for ages, taking photos and looking for the best vantage points. The best sport was another long walk around the valley to a bridge that had a spectacular view from above.
From the castle, the surrounding countryside is spectacularly beautiful.
The way down was far easier than the way up, and we got into Hohenschwangau in good time to catch the bus back to Fussen. There we found a nice cafe, Cafe Bistro Relax, and had a pizza and a beer to recover from the long walks. The day was very hot until that point, but the weather was turning, and it was staring to sprinkle. We walked a little through Fussen, which was very pretty, before getting on the next train back to Munich.
When we got back to Munich, the sun was out again, so we went exploring in Munich. This time we walked on the northern side of the station heading towards the Residenz. This side of Munich seems much older and more stately, with beautiful buildings and far less tourists. We really enjoyed this side, and especially the Hofgarten behind the Residenz.
From there, we walked the short distance to Marienplatz, and into the crowds. Jana wanted to try the pork knuckle, and we enjoyed the meal there, so we went back to Donisl for dinner. When we finished, we walked back to our hotel to pack for Koln.