Zugspitze, The Top of Germany

As our trip came winding to an end, we felt it was fitting to climb to the summit of the Zugspitze and bid farewell to Germany and Austria. The Zugspitze straddles the border of Germany and Austria at a height of 9,718 feet. Germany proudly claims it as the highest point in Germany. This is necessary from a German standpoint since the alps spill just a little bit into Bavaria.
Above you can see Lake Eibsee in Germany looking north. Just to the right (east) of the lake is the little town of Grainau and moving further east are the larger cities Garmisch-Partenkirchen. They are two cities that basically grew into one entity.
The Bavarian Zugspitze Railway runs inside the northern flank of the mountain and ends on the Zugspitzplatt. The Zugsitzplatt sits just below the summit. You then have to climb on a cable car to reach the summit.
Remember Pat the monkey? He loves to travel.
Beautiful scenery prior to disappearing inside the mountain as we make the steep ascent.
You couldn't have asked for a better day. Fantastic 360 degree views and it wasn't cold. We quickly found we were over-dressed.

Before lunch at Deutschland's hochster biergarten (Germany's highest beer garden) I took some time to climb the Zugspitze.



AND slide down the Zugspitze on the seat of my pants. Who needs a sled! ... Or attentive parents!
You can reach the summit of the Zugspitze from both Germany and Austria. The arrival/departure area of the German and Austrian cable cars are separated by about 10 feet. So we did the touristy thing and walked over to Austria got our picture taken and then walked back to Germany and got our picture taken. Admit it! You would have done the same thing.

Just chillin' and taking in the view. What a great trip!

Mad King Ludwig's Castles & Palaces

There are well over 10,000 castles and palaces in Germany, but King Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886) built his as if they were right out of a fairy tale. His castles & palaces are rather "new" from a historical context, having been built in the 1800's. We first visited Herrenchiemsee Palace which sits on Herreninsel Island in the middle of Bavaria's largest lake Chiemsee. To get to the palace you have to take a ferry.

We then had to take a 20 minute hike through a forest.

When the trail came to an end we emerged from the forest and saw the breathtaking Herrenchiemsee Palace. It was King Ludwig's attempt to create his own Palace of Versailles. I found a couple things fascinating about Herrenchiemsee. First, was the fact that this massive palace was kind of hard to get to. Second, and this ties into the first observation is the fact that it was not very touristy. If this palace were located anywhere else in Europe or the world for that matter it would be overrun with tourists. I'm definitely not complaining, because at times it felt like we had the palace to ourselves.

It had many cool fountains.

Neuschwanstein Castle is King Ludwig's most famous castle. You see it on postcards, magazines and TV all the time. Do you remember the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang? This is by far the most touristy of the castles requiring pre-purchased tickets and a timed entry.

King Ludwig was removed by state officials from Neuschwanstein in 1886 upon being diagnosed as Mad (the 1886 term for mental illness) hence the name Mad King Ludwig. Many historians believe he was not Mad, but simply eccentric. He mysteriously drowned a day later in what was called a suicide, but many believe he was murdered.

Castle Hohenschwangau built by his father is the castle in which King Ludwig grew up. This is the view from Neuschwanstein Castle looking down on his boyhood castle and Schwansee (Swan Lake). It is said as a boy King Ludwig looked up from his Hohenschwangau bedroom window dreaming of the the castle he would someday build. He would also play in the forest and foothills of what is now Neuschwanstein Castle. When Ludwig built Neuschwanstein he was inspired by his famous composer friend Wagner. Many of the castle's rooms are scenes straight out of Wagner's romantic operas.

The last of our King Ludwig castles and palaces was Linderhof Palace. This is the smallest palace in size, but no less grand, but get his, he used this palace just for hunting trips! Pretty nice cabin in the woods ... huh?

Like Herrenchiemsee Palace located on the island, this palace also had a magnificent garden. Although our garden back in Wisconsin has cherry tomatoes and carrots.


The swan whisperer? King Ludwig loved swans. He incorporated swan themes and decorative elements in many rooms in his castles and palaces.

Austria's Alps

So far this trip we had been mainly sightseeing in towns and cities. The most efficient and convenient way to do this is was by train. It was now time to explore the Austrian Alps. We would have preferred to do this on foot or bicycle, but time was against us, so we opted for a manual transmission Mercedes Benz.
Dad had trouble concentrating on driving. I couldn't blame him as we drove through pristine green valleys flanked by the towering alps.
We were headed west from Salzburg (located mid-Austria) into Tyrol a state which covers the western half of Austria. There was not enough time to see Vienna, so by heading west we had more time to meander and soak in the scenery.
We stopped for lunch in the little town of Hall. Hall was not too far from Innsbruck. Hall prospered in the middle ages due to it's close proximity to a major salt mine. Again, you can see the importance of salt during this time.
Nothing beats sitting outside at a cafe or restaurant on a pedestrian only street or square. I would never get bored waiting for my food to come, because there was always something to keep me entertained. I could even get up and just run around. There were no cars!
Somehow we managed to find another ice cream shop.
If you look carefully you can see me pointing out the mountains to mommy. You can also see our golf cart sized Mercedes. We could always find our car because the license number had a prefix of "WI". A Wisconsin license plate...right?
There was no shortage of scenic turnouts.

Salzburg, Austria

Our next stop was Salzburg in Austria. Salzburg was a nice change of pace coming from a much larger city in Munich. Salzburg's "Old Town" (Altstadt) was beautiful and easy to walk. Salzburg is the hometown of Mozart and where the "The Sound of Music" was filmed.

Hohensalzburg Fortress (1077AD) looks down on Salzburg from atop the Festungsberg mountain. It is one of the largest medieval fortresses in Europe. We rode a cog rail car to the top.


Enjoying a treat in Hohensalzburg's main courtyard.
The fortress offered spectacular views of the Alps. Looking south towards Berchtesgaden.


Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in this house (Geburtshaus) in 1756. Mozart began composing pieces in this very house at my age... 5!


Salzburg's Dom Cathedral. As a child Mozart occasionally played the church organ on Sunday's.
The Salzach River runs through Salzburg and Salzburg controlled the transport of salt up and down the river. Salzburg literally means "Salz"/salt and "Burg"/castle. Salt was white gold in the middle ages. It was very valuable as a preservative.
We found time for another bike ride on a very nice day. The bike path followed the river south out of town.

Munich, Germany

Munich is the capitol of Bavaria and home of Oktoberfest (which is actually mostly in September). Munich was heavily bombed in WWII, but it was decided to rebuild the city exactly the the way it was. City leaders relied heavily on archival photographs to rebuild. The main rule then, as it is today, is that no building could be built higher than the city's church spires.
The heart of Munich is Marienplatz (Mary's Square). The main attraction is the Glockenspiel on the New City Hall (Neues Rathaus). The top half of the Glockenspiel tells the story of the marriage of the local Duke who founded the Hofbrauhaus. There is a joust with life-sized knights on horseback. The Bavarian knight always wins. The bottom half is the coopers' dance. A cooper makes wooden barrels. When the plague hit Munich, the coopers are said to have danced through the streets. Their dance came to symbolize perseverance through difficult times. The Glockenspiel plays twice a day (12:00 and 5:00)
We stayed just outside the city center in a slower paced neighborhood a couple blocks from the Munchner Freiheit U-Bahn (subway) stop. The U-Bahn was a very convenient and quick way to get around Munich. I had fun riding on the U-Bahn, especially when it meant keeping my balance on starts and stops.
A short walk from the Marienplatz is the world famous Hofbrauhaus. If you are beer lover this is the place to be. Since it's beginning in 1589 is has been visited by many historical figures from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to John F. Kennedy. It also has the dubious distinction as a meeting place of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi party. You can still barely make out painted-over swastikas on the ceiling.
I thought my mug of Orange Fanta was big, but check out my parent's full liter beer steins! You can't buy a beer smaller than a liter. Germans are definitely in the big leagues when it comes to drinking beer. We ate sausage, sauerkraut & large pretzels with our beer (and Fanta) and topped it off with apple strudel for dessert! You can't get more any more German than that!


The party never stops at the Hofbrauhaus. The main hall is filled with singing to German drinking songs played by the Oompa band.
Felderrnhalle is a Bavarian war memorial on the Odeonsplatz used by the Nazis. It is flanked by the Residenz which is the home palace (or schloss) of the Wittelsbach ruling family.

Englischer Garten (English Garden) is the largest urban park in Europe. It has miles of bike paths and a few well placed outdoor beer gardens. Munich is considered one of the most live-able cities in the world and this park is a big reason why. btw... I hope dad returns Mary Poppins' bicycle.


After a grueling bike ride it was time for a beer garden pit stop. What followed our break has no pictorial evidence. We had to return our bikes to the bicycle rental place. Seems simple enough, but when you make a wrong turn or two and go off of memory rather than a map, Munich can be a little daunting. Streets that once appeared to be quaint and historic now seemed traffic filled & suicidal. Dad saved the day when he made the bold decision to disobey Einbahnstraße ("One Way") street signs and paid little attention to the little old ladies on the sidewalk.