Munich and the Castles of Ludwig II

This year, taking a cue from a few travel diaries on Turisti per Caso, we thought we'd once again take advantage of the hospitality of my sister Cinzia and her husband Andreas, who live in Munich. The goals of this holiday were mainly to save money and to explore the surroundings of Munich, especially the castles of Ludwig II. If you want to see all the photos from my trip you can visit:

I'd like to start with a few tips and recommendations:

- on German motorways there is no speed limit, but on many stretches you'll see speed-limit signs; in those cases try to respect them; - Munich is full of bike lanes; if you're driving remember that cyclists have right of way; if you're on foot, walk on your side of the pavement; the Germans are very precise about this; - if you want to save money on lunch and dinner I recommend the Biergarten scattered all over the city; the less touristy ones, however, don't have their menu translated into English. There are also guides with the addresses if you're interested; - the Munich underground is expensive (2.30 euro per ticket); I recommend buying multi-trip tickets to save money. 13/08/09: we arrive in Munich in pouring rain, go to pick up the house keys at Cinzia's office and rush inside to shelter. We'll spend the evening here too.

Usually people tell us we bring good weather, but this time it didn't work out that way.

14/08/09: today the weather looks kinder; we buy a metro pass valid for two people for the whole day. After the obligatory stroll through the centre we go to the Residenz. Wear comfortable shoes and allow plenty of time because it's immense. The rooms are very beautiful, but the one that truly leaves you open-mouthed is the Antiquarium. The audio guide thoroughly explains the contents of the rooms and the life of the Wittelsbachs.

15/08/09: since it's Saturday, Cinzia and Andreas act as our guides and together we go to visit Ludwig II's first castle: Linderhof. On the way we see the dome of Ettal Abbey, but decide not to stop. Linderhof is the only castle Ludwig II managed to complete; the rooms are few but very well kept, and the entrance garden and fountains are very beautiful. Inside the park you'll find an artificial grotto dedicated to Wagner's opera Tannhäuser, a Moorish kiosk and a Moroccan house. Around 18:00 we decide to go and visit Oberammergau, a small town but one of the best known; it's famous for its painted houses and for the Passion Play performed every year at Easter. Once the stroll is over we go to dinner in a nearby village to taste typical Bavarian specialities.

16/08/09: today we're a bit tired and slow to get going; the only energetic one is Andreas, who guides us once again. We set off for Starnbergsee, but on the way we make a stop to visit a tiny church on a hill with a beautiful view of the lake. We get back in the car and approach our destination, but it's so crowded that we can't find parking, so we continue to Staffelsee and again visit a little church on a small hill. Once at Staffelsee Cinzia and Andreas decide to take a swim while Ale and I snap photo after photo of the lake.

17/08/09: Ale absolutely wants to visit the BMW Museum, but we get a nasty surprise: the museum is closed on Mondays. We fall back on a walk around Marienplatz and its side streets. We watch the beautiful carillon move to the music. I didn't miss a stroll through the shops in the centre. This time even Ale agreed.

18/08/09: today we have to "clock up" kilometres: destination Fussen and the famous Neuschwanstein Castle. Along the way we see the centre of Landsberg am Lech and decide that on our next trip to Munich we'll definitely visit it. We drive a stretch of the Romantik Strasse. Arriving in Fussen we realise it won't be an easy feat: there's a 40-minute queue to buy tickets and the first tour in Italian is at 16:55, so we decide to follow the English guide. We take the lazy option and catch the bus, which leaves us about 16 minutes from the castle. The scenery is spectacular; you can see Lake Alpsee and Hohenschwangau Castle, the home of Ludwig II's parents. Neuschwanstein is one of the castles left unfinished for lack of money; it's so spectacular that Disney was inspired by it to design the castle in Sleeping Beauty. The tour inside is short precisely because only 5 rooms were finished.

19/08/09: Ludwig II's last castle is on one of the two islands of Lake Chiemsee. It's about an hour from Munich. One of the towns from which you can take the ferries is Prien. The Herreninsel (the island that houses the castle) is the largest. The castle, inspired by the Palace of Versailles, was lived in by Ludwig for only nine days. It's very beautiful, and so are the garden fountains. We also recommend strolling around the rest of the island because it's very pleasant. The lake's second island is the Fraueninsel, which houses a Benedictine monastery. It's inhabited mainly by fishermen, and you can buy fresh fish at the small shops.

20/08/09: today is dedicated to Ale. First stop, the BMW Museum. The cost is a bit high, 12.00 euro per person, but for car lovers it's a must. Don't forget to cross the bridge and go to the BMW Welt, where you can look closely at the new car and motorbike models. After this tour, which lasted all morning, we took a nice walk in the Olympiapark. The structure is imposing and leaves you open-mouthed. The little lake inside is beautiful.

21/08/09: last day, we're a bit sluggish, so as a first stop we decide to go and buy a fruit smoothie at the Viktualienmarkt, but we waste too much time looking at the stalls and realise it's time to take the metro and meet Cinzia and Andreas for lunch. In the afternoon the sky clouds over more and more, but we decide to walk until the rain really arrives. We visit the Theatinerkirche next to the Residenz, and right after we enter the garden and come out onto Maximilianstrasse, famous for its luxury shops. We reach the bridge over the Isar; the dome of the Annakirche draws us and we go closer. We just about manage to "wave goodbye" to the Deutsches Museum before the rain arrives. Tomorrow morning we're set to leave; we know it'll only be a goodbye.