The most beautiful day, part 2 (Day 4)

Part 2
The Castle

(picking up at the castle door)

The courtyard of the castle is where the tours line up to await departure. The buildings of the castle rose all around us, stairs and rooftops covered in snow. To the left was an opening in the wall, and you could see up close the snow-covered trees dotting the mountainside. In the distance, a line and some curves of white snow gave form to a bridge over a deep gorge and mountain waterfall. Many pictures of Neuschwanstein are taken from this bridge, Mary's Bridge.

On the opposite side of Mary's Bridge, we actually saw some people either camping or mountain climbing or both. It was strange to see the black dots moving up the hillside, and we all had some good laughs at their imagined purpose.

Soon, 11:00 came and it was our turn to tour the castle. We filed through the entry line space and immediately began a climb up some stairs. We came out on the second floor of the castle and walked past the servants quarters. Through the gaps in the thick wooden boards, we could see rough-cut but highly lacquered tables and chairs. Against the walls on the other side were beds. The room was all brown, white and shades of tan.

We came into the hallway and our guide told us a few things. I was looking around at the numerous decorated archways, views through thick glass windows, and detail on the hallway walls. The castle was never finished, as King Ludwig was declared incompetent by his countrymen. But the legacy of his Cinderella-inspiring castle brings many dollars and euro to the region of Bavaria.

Next was the throne room, with mosaic floor, bronzed and jeweled chandelier, columns, and artwork all the way to the ceiling. The raised platform at one end of the room lacked a throne. Still, the room inspired awe.

King Ludwig's bedroom was at least as big as my upstairs, complete with a reading area window seat, a private chapel and even a bathroom. The walls in this bedroom were carved wood paneling decorated with wooden columns and icons. This room opened into a cavelike hallway, which was designed to resemble something that I can't remember.

Up some more stairs to the fourth floor, which was frighteningly chilly. We came into the concert hall. This was a rectangular room that must have been 20 or more feet tall, at least it seemed that way. But instead of the gilded trim, glass chandeliers and lots of light, white features, this room felt more comfortable. Patterns in rose pinks, blues, greens and golds traipsed up the walls, around windows and columns, and along the wood paneled ceiling. The paintings around the stage featured likenesses from Wagner's Lohengrin. Around the right and back sides of the room stretches a balcony, which appears to be as richly decorated.

Here ends our tour of the castle, which words really aren't enough to describe. I'll see if I can find some pictures to link you to, as it really is worth seeing yourself. It had a sense of royalty, but also the hearty welcoming feeling endemic to the Bavarian state of Germany.

This trip was well worth the wait, and the exit through the gift shop was highly tempting. But there was that walk to the bridge that a few of us wanted to take, so we exited the building and turned toward the path, which was blocked with a gate proclaiming "Danger, no entry."

Well, the guy in the courtyard told us we'd have to ignore these signs to get to the bridge. I guess the only thing to do was climb over the wall and around the gate.