Neuschwanstein

I cut Friday pretty short to come home, shower, and catch the night train at Utrecht (about 30 min from Den Haag). The train arrived in Munich around 7ish, and I went straight to the Wombat hostel to drop my luggage off and caught the 7:51 train to Fussen. By the time I got there tho, there were already loads of people and the bus to Hohenschwangau was packed. I booked it to the ticket off where there was a 20 min queue. I got to the cashier by 11, but my tour did not start until 1:15. I grabbed currywerst and fries for lunch, and then started the walk up to the castle. It’s a pretty steep walk – more like a hike. Took about 20 min or so, and another 10 min up to the look out point at Marienbrucke (Mary’s bridge). This bridge hung pretty high over a gorge, and it was full of tourists. I wondered if it would ever collapse under the weight it often bears. After getting my photos, I still had time so I hiked down the gorge about 10 min and back. Nice walk, and I could’ve gone further, but I wasn’t sure how long it would take to go back up the steep set of stairs.

The tour through the castle was brief (35 min) but good. Pretty impressive décor. After the tour, I was pretty beat, but I took a stroll around Hohenschwangau, and then caught a bus back to Fussen. I walked around a bit more in Fussen, enjoying the traditional Bavarian clothes shop from the window, the band playing in the streets, and the beer fest like atmosphere in one of the squares. I then grabbed some dinner and caught the 5pm train back to Munich.

I showered after checking in to the hostel, and spent some time chatting with the girls in my dorm. I then started reading Angels and Demons by Dan Brown and fell asleep pretty early. The sleep I got on the train last night was not really that good.