Neuschwanstein Castle and the Bavarian Alps

To celebrate July 4 and Maya's birthday, we visited the great tourist magnet: the fairy-tale castle Neuschwanstein (Noy-shvahn-stine) and the less famous but fascinating Hohenschwangau (I think, Hoe-hen-shvahn-gow) in southern Bavaria near the border with Austria. Both castles and their interiors are a spectacular feast for the eyes. Many published photos of Neuschwanstein, taken from vertiginous Marienbrücke bridge (like our photo here), don't fully show the castle's intimate relationship with the Bavarian mountains around it. Views from inside the castle are truly breath-taking. The tranquil in-the-clouds setting and the fantastic paintings and tapestries that grace most of the castles' walls help one understand how "mad" King Ludwig II might have retreated into a fantasy world in his final years. (As we listened to the tour guide describe Ludwig's indulged but regimented childhood, his obsession with composer Richard Wagner, his preference for fantasy over reality and his preoccupation with building wonderland castles, I couldn't help think of Michael Jackson.... The panel of psychologists who declared Ludwig insane, however, had never met the king.)

Here is an 1890s photochrom print of Neuschwanstein castle:

For our Neuschwanstein/ Hohenschwangau trip, we rented a car for the first time here (we found out that it can be much cheaper, if more time-consuming, to take the trains), and it was not the most relaxing undertaking. On the autobahn, things went fairly smoothly; but it can be disconcerting to have to pass someone, only to find another driver barreling in behind you at over 100 mph. Even motorcycles ignore the suggested speed limits and exceed 100 mph.

(Two of us acrophobes avoided scaling the bridge, but those who did said the crowd was shoulder to shoulder.)

Our bed and breakfast had low ceilings (it was a loft) but a lovely view.