Hohenschwangau Castle

Germany won last night's soccer match against The Netherlands 2-1.  Cheers went up from all the nearby cafes.  I tried to pick up the game on TV but couldn't get any reception.  Rob later discovered that the hotel was using our TV cable--sent out our window--to their outdoor cafe below.

entrance to Hohenschwangau Castle

We walked the town this morning but didn't make any stops except for lunch supplies, after noting that the city museum didn't open until 11 am.  By then we were off on a few busy and many not-so-busy roads toward Fussen, with a picnic stop overlooking Nesselwang.  Fussen is the site of two famous castles--Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau.  Since we had visited the first (and more famous, built by Ludwig II of Bavaria) several years ago, we opted this time to tour the second, built by Ludwig's father, Maximilian II, in the mid 19th century.   We had time for a pre-tour walk along the lake. Due to a staffing problem, the 5PM English tour turned out to be conducted via audio cassettes.  The castle is relatively interesting but not as dramatic as Neuschwanstein.  

evening walk

We headed for nearby Schwangau for lodging and were successful in finding a quiet hotel on the edge of this small town (avoiding  all the tour bus hotels), with a view of both castles and the mountains from our balcony.  An evening walk along the shore of the Forggensee finished off a lovely day.  The sun kept us company throughout, though  wetter weather is promised in the near future.