Neuschwanstein Castle

While everyone was recoving from our epic trip to Paris (post coming soon!), Mara, Rohan and I borrowed Josh's car (THANKS!!!) and headed out on a 5hr, one-way, roadtrip to Schwangau, Germany. Schwangau is the location of Neuschwanstein Castle, which was the model for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. We got some great tips from Josh about driving on the German Autobahn. It really is very nice to drive. Some drive very fast, but we usually sat at around 130 KM/Hr (~82 MPH). It was a nice trip through other larger towns such as Mannheim, Heilbronn, Stuttgart. We didn't get to explore those cities, but it was nice to see them, as well as more of the German countryside. On a side note...we stopped at what we thought was a rest area, but there were no bathrooms at this one, just a wayside. What was there was a couple getting "frisky" in the car...ahhh, the allure of the Autobahn...:)
To get to Schwangau, we had a breif stint through Austria, but were quickly back in Germany. The Alps really started to jump up around the area too...part of what gives Neuschwanstein Castle it's appeal. We ate at Hotel Müller Cafe before we got in line for the horse carriage to take us up the 1mi, very steep, road. After waiting in line for almost 30min it was clear we'd be late for our tour start time so we hauled ass up the hill with Rohan in tow. We made it with about 20min to spare...and didn't have a single horse carriage pass us! We took some time to explore the courtyard and entrance before our tour. The castle was smaller than I expected, but it also was only about 20% finished before the king died under mysterious circumstances. It was also VERY foggy which kept us from seeing the surrounding hills, waterfalls, and bridges (which we heard are beautiful!), but the fog did add some mystique to the castle...very creepy. Pictures weren't allowed inside, but I did my best to keep it nonchalant...what are they going to do? Deport me? :)
After the tour we stopped at the Hofbräuhaus (original is in Munich) for some Belgian Snowballs and a nice cold beer. The mug somehow made it home with us...strange. We had a blast on our road trip, and a HUGE thanks again to J&D for the use of the car!