This weekend I traveled to Munich. I went with Katie, Baylee, and Uyanga. We stayed in an apartment through Airbnb and it was adorable! We got in pretty late Friday night (after going through Baden-Baden *hint: I LOVE Baden-Baden) and headed straight for the apartment. We had to take the subway I wasn't really prepared for that, but it was really simple. Saturday, we woke up and I went to look for Birkenstocks (still working on that). But we went to a bakery and got breakfast and of course it was delicious! (Most of the time in the bakeries, I just point to what I want and have no idea what it is. This system hasn't failed me yet!) Then we headed to the train station because we were off.. to NEUSCHWANSTEIN!
Schloss Neuschwanstein:
*Here come the history lesson! Schloss (which means castle in German, you probably already figured that out, but just in case!) Neuschwanstein was built by King Ludwig II. It was started in 1869, but never finished. King Ludwig II didn't even live there for a full year before he died. The second floor was never furnished and other rooms and terraces never made it out of the planning process. In much more recent times, the castle was the inspiration for Walt Disney's Cinderella Castle. *End of brief history lesson.
We took a tour of Neuschwanstein because that is the only way to see the inside. OH MY GOODNESS, it was breath-taking. If you can Google pictures, it will only give you the slightest inclination to how beautiful it really is. It's so sad it was never finished because it would be beyond perfection.
By the end of the tour, we were absolutely frozen (did I mention this castle is in the Alps and there was a lot, A LOT, of snow?). But, we wanted to see the view from the bridge, so I said goodbye to ever feeling my toes again, and we were off! Slight problem though... the way to the bridge was blocked off by at least 4 gates. So we did the typical thing and climbed over and around them because we were going to see the castle from the bridge and I mean everyone else was doing it so why shouldn't we? (There were also a few signs that said "DANGER" but ehhh I'm still here so it was fine!)
Once we finally got past all of the gates, the view was amazing. Just the hike up to it was so serene and beautiful but goodness gracious, it was beyond gorgeous! The Alps made the perfect picture frame for the castle (I know that was super cheesy, but it's true!).
After all of that, we were exhausted. We headed back to Munich and were going to go to the town center (we never made it there then). But, along the way we stumbled upon a restaurant, Bohne & Malz. I ordered a glass of Riesling (and felt very classy doing it) and a very German dish, Pfannd'l, which is roasted pork with a mushroom sauce, fried onions and spaetzle (definitely a meal that goes better with beer, but they were both good nonetheless). Even though I was stuffed, I ordered dessert, which isn't unusual if you know me! I got the apple strudel (also, delicious!). Since we were finally warmed up and were all exhausted we just went back to our apartment. (I'm pretty glad we did, because as soon as I laid down, I was out!)
Nymphenburg Palace:
*Second history lesson: Nymphenburg Palace was started in 1664. It was where King Ludwig II was born. It was modeled after the Palace of Versailles in France (which I'm even more excited to see after this palace!) and used more during the summers by the royal families of Bavaria. *End of really brief history lesson.
The palace was gorgeous! My favorite room was the Grand Hall, but the rest of it was just as spectacular. Some of the rooms still had the original furniture and really showed the style of the royal families that lived there. It was very elaborate and had beautiful decor (from my favorite points in history, such as the Napoleonic era.)
All in all, I think we did a pretty good job for the amount of time we had! Munich was really fun and I can't wait for Italy all next week! (Starting Friday, I will be in Florence and then Rome, Pisa, Verona, and Venice. I'm going to be buuuusy!) I'll try to blog during the week there but I don't know how much I'll be able to do, so there might be a really long blog post next!
Talk to you soon,
Kirsten