Time Away From Home - Neuschwanstein by Fran

Watercolor and ink

My husband's job afforded us the opportunity to travel quite a bit, much more than we would have been able to on our own.  Though it was a working trip for him, we did get a good deal of free time explore and enjoy.

One of our trips was to Munich in the state of Bavaria in Germany.  So much history and beauty to experience.  One of the side trips we were able to take was to the mountain castle of  Ludwig II of Bavaria, Newschwanstein.  This is the beautiful white castle that inspired Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty castle.

The path to the castle was much steeper and longer than we anticipated and of course the air was thinner than we were used to.  Our guide urged her charges on to the top by using her umbrella like a majorette's baton. It was a misty day so it was a pleasantly cool day for a mountain stroll.  Our teen age daughters had no problem keeping up but my husband and I had to stop a few times along the way and fell quite far behind the group.  I remember at one of the stops I saw one of the biggest snails I have ever seen.  We finally made it to the castle and were reunited with our girls who were rather concerned about us.  The castle is a wonder of flamboyant beauty and architecture, a trip we will never forget.