Travelling Back In Time (Part 4): A Fairy-Tale Castle

Our Romantic Road trip in Germany culminated in the alpine terrain of southwest Bavaria. We were awed by the ice-capped mountains of the Bavarian Alps, and were dumbfounded by stunning vistas of rolling mountain ranges, emerald-green forests and exquisite blossoming flowers on expansive meadows. 

The splendid Bavarian Alps

The architecture of most houses had evolved to that of the traditional wood-framed alpine houses, and we had never felt so distant from home, yet our hearts kept reminding us that this is truly home.

A beautiful castle perched at the bottom of the Alps

My most memorable moment here was seeing Hubby running at top speed with his 2 beloved girls, with the backdrop of the ice-capped Bavarian Alps and a whole herd of contentedly grazing cows to their right. Eventually, they ran so close to the cows, and stopped to admire these gentle animals, much to the Bees' elation.

Can you spot where they are?

A breathless Little Bee after running loads! 

As we ascended higher up into the hills of Hohenschwangau where the magnificent Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles reside, we felt a lush silence of awe and wonder, as if the colossal giants of the mountains and forests were holding their breaths for us to appreciate the inexplicable beauty of this region. 

And true enough, our first glimpse of Neuschwanstein Castle perched atop a steep hill in the middle of the incredible Bavarian Alps was magical. To see an actual fairy-tale castle rising up above the craggy mountain tops was unbelievably enchanting. We were struck dumb by the sheer beauty of it all. 

Neuschwanstein Castle is a beautiful castle built in the 19th century, by the famous King Ludwig II of Bavaria, and is so spellbinding that it had been hailed as the inspiration behind Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty castle.

We stayed overnight in Hotel Muller, a quaint yet stately inn situated strategically between the 2 castles and near an alpine lake. What an amazing location! 

Can you see the castle?

We were exceedingly lucky to be allocated to a huge suite with 2 bedrooms and a large living room, with awe-inspiring views of Neuschwanstein Castle from all the windows in our suite! 

The Bees' quaint bedroom, with a view of the castle from the windows

I must highlight how amazed I was with the deep silence. After midnight, when everyone was asleep, I was once again struck by the sheer silence surrounding us, in the mountain region. The silence was so dense that it was deafening, and to some extent, pretty daunting and frightening. We would never ever experienced such silence in any urban areas. 

The lighted windows on the top floor to the right of the building were those of our suite's!

The next morning, we rose bright and early to travel to Neuschwanstein Castle. Unfortunately, the skies were grey and it was raining persistently. Due to the treacherous weather, we took a horse carriage up to the hills near Neuschwanstein Castle so that we did not need to walk too much under the cold rain. The Bees loved being in a horse carriage, at such close range to the majestic horses, listening to the clippity-clop of their hooves, seeing the steam rising from their hot bodies in the cold, and smelling their musky horsey smells. I had mixed feelings though - it was heady to be so close to these brilliant animals, but I felt really bad for them to lug a whole bunch of us up the tedious slopes of the hills. 

We had a few funny moments in the horse carriage though. We were seated right behind the horses, just beside the carriage driver (or coachman, in old English terms). And we were given the privilege to be privy to a few of the horses’ loud, snorty farts! It was hilarious, especially since the horses cleverly manoeuvred their large, bushy tails to one side, before emitting the loud, ever-familiar fart sound, to the shock of the Bees! When the coachman saw their stunned faces, he laughed and said that they were extremely lucky to have perfume right in their faces! Another time, the horses stopped completely just to poop – just like elephants!

The carriage stopped us only midway on the hills near the castle, and we had to trek uphill towards the castle. After some slight tribulations, we were inside Neuschwanstein Castle finally. 

While the weather was cold and wet outside, the interior of the castle was warm and somewhat musty and dark. The castle is not completed by the time of Ludwig’s death, but we were able to visit Ludwig’s intricately designed bedroom, and a somewhat bizarre grotto built into the back of his bedroom. We also visited other parts of the castle like the kitchen and the magnificent throne room. The Bees were fascinated, as this was the first time that they were inside a real castle!

We had a simple lunch in a cosy café with a stupendous view of the surrounding mountains and alpine lakes. It was bewitching just to sit and eat amidst such gorgeous scenery, while breathing in the pure alpine air.

The expansive view of the gorgeous surroundings - our hotel complex is situated in between the alpine lake and Hohenschwangau castle (the yellow castle on a hill)

After lunch, we decided to trek around the mysterious dark woods surrounding the castle, up to an iron bridge (Marienbrucke) spanning a breathtaking gorge with spectacular views of the castle and the surrounding plains. 

Marienbrucke, perched precariously atop the deep gorge

It was heart-stopping to venture onto the bridge with the crowds of tourists, especially when we looked down to the steep drop of the valley many kilometres down below. Can this skinny, ancient bridge truly withstand the weight of so many curious modern-day tourists?

The sensational view of the castle and its surrounding meadows from the bridge

A heart-stopping drop right down the the valley below! 

Still, it was certainly a privilege and a huge blessing for us to be walking in these beautiful woods, to be part of this resplendent scenery amongst the splendid Alps.

Little Bee plodding along the path up the hill! 

Hohenschwangau Castle on the left, where Ludwig II spent his childhood days in

We took a short bus trip down the hills to our hotel, and enjoyed a short stroll around the alpine lake, admiring the blossoming spring flowers in the hills around the lake, before departing this enchanting locale for Munich. What a beguiling day indeed!