On the third day of our trip, we left the lakeside and traversed into the Alpine foothills of Schwangau. Though I'd visited Schloss Neuschwanstein twice before, I'd never actually explored the nearby Füssen with its castle several centuries older than that of King Ludwig II. We had just enough time before our tour to check out the exterior of the Hohes Schloss ("High Castle") and peek into some of the elegant men's clothing stores in Füssen.
At the base of the hill where Neuschwanstein is perched, we purchased hot chocolates and began our climb. The path split through a silvery forest ornate with rich green moss, and once we reached the top, we could view the glittering Swan Lake below. Our tour guide slandered Ludwig II as a madman unable to accept his unimportant place in politics, but what the king built was legendary. Were it allowed, we could have spent hours staring mesmerized at every nook and cranny in Neuschwanstein with all of its intricate depictions of German historical fantasy.
That night, we did two or three loops around the dark and quiet town before settling on a cheap Turkish pizza place for dinner because everything else was closed or booked. We ordered take-out and returned to our hotel (Hotel Ludwigs) for a movie. Dallin was out like a light.
We were in no particular rush the next morning. We drove forty-five minutes to Linderhof Palace, another lesser-known work of King Ludwig II. Compared to Neuschwanstein with its style based loosely off that of medieval and even Byzantine times, Linderhof was designed more like Versailles. After that tour, we stopped briefly at the grand Ettal Abbey and then stopped in Oberammergau to search for a nativity store. There are lots of nativity stores in Oberammergau, but the problem was I could not remember which one I purchased my nativity pieces from in 2016. It was my grandfather who urged me to buy the nativity from this famed town 6 years ago--I made the trip specifically in his honor--and now I wanted to add to my set. After not being able to find clear tourist parking, Dallin decided to park at a grocery store in spite of me translating the sign that said we would get a 25 euro ticket. "It's fine, there's nobody here this time of year, and even so, the worst that can happen is having to pay 25 euros." Alas, we got the ticket. But at least I got my nativity pieces!
