Five Go Mad

A few days of unashamedly touristy travelling starting with Wurzburg, another Bavarian town with walls, palaces and castles.  Upon arrival there was an unfortunate incident involving the sat-nav, a wrong turn, a pedestrian zone and more painful back seat embarrassment.  Fortunately I was put right in a forthright manner by a helpful German man, in German.

The town was obliterated at the end of the second world war by the allied bombing command, along with about 5,000 inhabitants, but recovered remarkably by the look of it. There’s a nice little information room on this part of history in the town hall including the “Community of the Cross of Nails”, an international group promoting reconciliation initiated by Coventry in England and including other cities around the world destroyed by war like Berlin, Dresden and Kiel.

We also partook in a spot on gongoozling on the main river in Wurzburg which is, as it happens, called the Main River, looked at a crane and walked part of the old city wall route. Nix took on the role as tour guide and ran a pretty brisk tour; no dilly-dallying. 

​A spot of Crane spotting

Tour Guide Terror

This boat

Fit in here (just)

Next day was another Autobahn dash down country to the foot of the alps and the Disney-esque castle of Neuschwanstein. Pretty pretty but some would say not quite authentic as it was built in the nineteenth century by Leopold II as a copy of a smaller mediaeval castle.  In fact he bowled the ruins of a really old castle to build it so bit of a nutter really. Very picturesque though and lovely countryside.

Final couple of nights in Munich which featured trams, shops and cake then our first train adventure to Vienna.  There was a little anxiety over a transfer half way at a little place called Plattling where we had 7 minutes to change trains and our first train was running a little late, but in the end all went according to plan with only a little straining of suitcases up and down platform stairs. Four and a bit hours on high speed trains; flashes of the Danube, red-roofed towns, barns, cow-less fields, solar panels galore, sinister chimneys then Vienna. Third floor Airbnb apartment in a somethingth century (read liftless) high ceilinged mansiony block. 105 puff inducing steps (panting when you add luggage).

There are more beards, waistcoats and piercings in Vienna than in Munich, plus there are shops dedicated to colourfully embroidered stuff so I’m picking that Vienna is more bohemian than Munich and possibly even invented the hipster.

Enjoying the half hour walk up to the castle

Traipsing has been a common feature

Nearly there

First glimpse

Neuschwanstein Castle

The bridge of the Single Hair

The neighbouring Castle

A busy day over the Alps at 10000m

A bit oif a view

Frosty foothills

More building jewellery