Day 7- Friday, September 28, 2001

We woke up about 8:00 and went downstairs to breakfast about 8:30, which didn't start until 9:00. On the way we stopped at the front desk to ask about seeing Neuschwanstein and we also mentioned that tomorrow we would be travelling to Zurich and wondered about getting breakfast since our train left at 9:05 and we would be gone before the 9:00 opening. The young lady asked why we were going all the way back to Munich to catch the train to Zurich. My only answer was that I didn't know any different. She said that wasn't necessary and offered to do some research on the train schedules for us.

We then proceeded to breakfast and were seated at a table reserved for us by virtue of our room. It was again a buffet with eggs, sausages, ham, smoked meats, all the usual things but unfortunately no smoked salmon, of which I have grown so fond.

Today was the day to see the castle. We requested a taxi to the area as it was quite a long walk and we wanted to save ourselves for the tour. At the ticket center we bought our admission tickets at 9:27am for the next tour at 10:55am. That seemed like a very long time to wait until we realized that we had to get to the castle for the start of the tour. We were told that it was at least a 30 minute walk on a very steep road. There was a choice of bus or horse-drawn carriage. There was a sign in the ticket office that said the tour is not recommended for disabled people. We would later find out that this was indeed very good advice. We took the carriage at DM 8 each instead of doing the walk. This proved to be a very wise move. The carriage ride took about 15 minutes and we were dropped off at a point about 2/3 of the way up the road and we had to walk the rest of the way. We made it up the rest of the hill and to the entrance. The tours were by number and were apparently coordinated by language. We waited about 35 minutes for the English-speaking tour. Even at this point we had a spectacular view.

The tour itself was about 35 minutes long and involved climbing many, many stairs. The tour focused mainly on the part of the palace where King Ludwig (King of Bavaria) and his servants lived. Surprisingly, the castle is relatively new, with construction having been started in 1869. Construction was halted in 1887 at his death. Many areas remain unfinished, such as the throne room, which is complete except for the throne itself, which was not finished because of Ludwig's death. All construction stopped because the money ran out.

After the tour we walked to the Marienbrucke, the bridge over the abyss near the castle. This walk too was all up hill at a very steep angle. It took us about 20 minutes to get there, but the view from the bridge was magnificent. Coming back was the easy part! We walked down the entire way to the little town (Schwangau) below the castle.

We were ready for lunch. We sat down in the outdoor area of one of the restaurants. We waited nearly 15 minutes and finally got up and left without seeing a waiter. We walked across and down the street to Café Mueller. We both ordered a ham and cheese sandwich. Shortly afterwards two men sat down at our table. They were both from St. Louis and we had a very enjoyable conversation with them.

After lunch we took a taxi back to Fuessen and walked around the city some more before going back to the hotel. We were both ready to sit for a while after nearly 6 hours of intense up-hill walking and stair climbing. Those of you who looking for a good aerobic workout should definitely do this.

Back at the hotel we stopped at the front desk to ask about the train information. Our new revised itinerary has us leaving Fuessen at 11:05, going to Buchloe, and changing trains there to Zurich. This saves many hours of travel time and waiting, and we don't have to go all the way back to Munich as we had originally planned.

Dinner this evening was again at the hotel. I had the roast veal and Barb had the sea bass. Dessert for me was a cheese plate and a glass of fine wine. It was, as usual, excellent. We took a walk after dinner before retiring to our room, where we watched the TV a while before going to bed. There have been only two or three English language TV channels available. CNN, CNBC, and BBC. It's hilarious to watch Sabrina, the Teenage Witch dubbed over in German.

Bathroom at Rubezahl
Our suite at Rubezahl
Flowerbox at Rubezahl
View from Rubezahl
Early morning fog at Rubezahl
Rubezahl indoor terrace
Forward to Neuschwanstein Pictures
Back to Fussen - Day 1 Zurich and Freiburg
Outdoor terrace at Rubezahl