Munich continued

Oh boy, I have had a great last couple of days!

Yesterday I travelled two hours to Fussen, a small village in the barbarian alps. I then walked about an hour, through beautiful fields and meadows, to the famous neuschwanstein castle. You have probably seen it - it is the basis for the Disneyland castle and was also featured in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang." The castle itself was awesome. I don't think I have ever seen a real castle before and this was a great introduction to be sure. I tok a guided tour of the inside, and learned a lot about it's builder in the process.

Neuschwanstein was commissioned by king Ludwig II of barvaria, and is actually less than two centuries old. Ludwig was considered by many to be insane; regardless, I thought the castle he built was amazing. It was largely just as you would imagine as castle to be, complete with spiral staircases and narrow windows. He decorated each of the castle's rooms after scenes from Richard wagner's operas, and alternated the interior design between classical Rome and a fantastical swan theme. One of my favorite rooms was the king's bedroom, which was filled with incredibly ornate woodcarvings. Apparently it took 14 carpenters four years just to complete that one room.

It might sound hard to believe, but the view of from the outside was far superior, however. I walked a short distance to a bridge called the marienbrucke, which straddled a waterfall and a steep gorge. From there I saw one of the most spectacular scenes I have ever seen. Neuschwanstein was perched on a rocky outcropping, and beyond it were four aqua blue lakes and slightly rolling farmland. Immediately behind me, one thousand feet at most, were the alps. They jutted up from the flat pasture and towered over me. I tried to brand it in my memory, but I don't think it is the same as seeing it in person.

Munich

Hey y'all,

So since I last updated my blog I have travelled to Munich and have gotten to get a pretty good feel for Germany, I think.

Munich is simultaneously different and similar to Berlin. Obviously, they are in very different geographical areas, but Munich also seems to have retained an atmosphere from the past. Beer gardens, barvarian courtyards and everyday men walking around in lederhosen definitely make a striking contrast to Berlin. At the same time, there are many things that remain the same. People in Germany absolutely refuse to cross a road unless the crosswalk sign is green - regardless of whether there is any oncoming traffic. Also, they like order and regularity. A good example of this is when I was on a metro in Berlin. Two spaniards boarded the tram and started playing loud trombone and trumpet music. Almost all of the other passengers rolled their eyes and covered their ears at this intrusion into their quiet metro ride. Paris, Madrid, and barcelona were not like this.

Bmw's and Mercedes comprise at least half of the cars here; even the taxis and garbage trucks are almost exclusively mercedes. Also, Germans, unlike the other European countries I have visited, have grocery stores. I'm talking about real supermarkets, not just a local grocer with a rather abysmal selection of food. No, Germans have decent places to buy food, and I definitely like that.

Today I went with my friend Brian on a free walking tour of the city. Brian is from hong kong and I have really enjoyed hanging out with him. We travelled to the haufbrauhaus (munich's most famous beer hall), the old fraukenkirche church, the city's own version of the arc deed triomph, munich's maypole, the Munich opera house, the residenz palace (not very interesting), and saw the marienplatz town hall building with its glockenspiel. That was very different from any town hall I have seen. It reminded me a little of the big bad wolf section of busch gardens, only this was the real thing.

This has truly been an unforgettable trip, and I have enjoyed Both the awesome sights as well as the time alone to think and relax. I have rediscovered how much I like reading, for one, and hopefully I can continue that when I get back to the states.

Until next time...