More excessive heat warnings, so we caught an early bus to Hohenschwangau (1), the jumping off point to visit the summer castles of the Bavarian kings. Construction of the Neuscwansteim Castle (atop an older castle) began in 1869, consciously trying to capture medieval chivalry and the romantic style of the composer Richard Wagner. In a letter to the composer. King Luwig II wrote to Wagner: "It is my intention to rebuild the old castle ruin of Hohenschwangau near the Pöllat Gorge in the authentic style of the old German knights' castles." Construction was conpleted in 1880.
The hike up to Neuschwanstein was quiet, most people opting for a shuttle bus up the hill. We enjoyed the exterior views, and proceeded further up to Marienbrucke (Mary's Bridge), the iconic (and crowded) Castle viewing point. The wood slats on the bridge bounced as the crowd positioned themselves for selfies, while a woman in an elaborate wedding dress spread out her trussle blocking the whole bridge for pictures.
Exiting the far side if the bridge, a nearly-empty trail appeared. A hiking app revealed another viewpoint a few switchbacks up. Much quieter here, with superb views to the Castle and Bavarian countryside beyond. A woman from Atlanta had a friend who flew his girlfriend here to propose. A man from Texas who was taking pictures of newlyweds turned out to be living in Munich working as a tour guide (2) (3).
(1) In addition to the town's name, the destination sign on the front of the bus featured the English word "Castles," but not the German "Schloss."
(2) There seemed to be a lot of American tourists here.
(3) Jay asked if we had visited the interior of the Castle. "No, I knew you had to book long in advance, but I forgot. It's not worth it," I suggested. "Oh, yes it is worth a visit." Taking the hint about my carelessness, he later said "You didn't miss much."
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