Coming home - via Munich

We were packed and ready to leave our apartment by 9.30am but not looking forward to walking to the station in the thunderstorms which had been occuring since we got up. Luckily they seemed to vanish when we opened the door and it was an easy walk to the local Haunstetten station where we caught a train to Munich.

On arrival in Munich we put our cases into a locker at the station and took the U-bahn to Olympiazenturm and the BMW-Welt (BMW World). We had a great time there looking at some magnificent cars - BMW and also Rolls Royce - and the building itself is quite spectacular.

We took the train back to the centre of Munich and visited the Asamkirche (Asam Church). This was originally the private chapel of the Asam brothers who specialised in decorating churches, so it was their showroom and is quite 'over the top' with rococo decoration. While we were there an organist was practising which really added to the atmosphere.

Next we called in at the Frauenkirche, Munich's cathedral, where we saw some beautiful modern stained glass windows as well as the 15th century windows behind the main altar. These survived World War II because they were taken out piece by piece and stored in safety during the war.

We walked past the huge Residenz palace where there seemed to be some sort of 'urban loungeroom' in the square - people lounging on couches and hammocks, with book shelves scattered around.

We stopped for a cool drink in the Hofgarten and watched a group of elderly men playing boules - they didn't seem to be having much success! Then it was time to retrieve our cases from the station lockers and catch the train to the airport. We had dinner at a surprisingly nice restaurant there - roast chicken and chips for Ian and freshly cooked scampi and spaghetti for me.

The flight home was the usual endurance test, with the best leg being Munich to Dubai when we were in an Airbus  380 - a bit more spacious and more variety in the entertainment program. Dubai airport is so huge that we walked a total of 2km, were carried down several levels in an elevator, travelled on a railway and then for twelve minutes by bus to the terminal where our next plane was waiting!

Sunrise through a porthole on the way to Dubai

Our break in Singapore was only an hour, just long enough to disembark and then return to the same plane. We reached Melbourne at around 7.30am and, although the process through Security and Customs was quite streamlined, it took ages for our cases to arrive. We were very grateful to Jenny and Neil who picked us up from the airport and we enjoyed breakfast with them at Krifi Restaurant.

So ended another wonderful overseas adventure. We both agreed that the highlights on this trip were the medieval town of Rothenburg, the magnificent Rhine Falls, the walk through Partnach Gorge and the joy of catching up with Britta and Frank and their family - although there were also many other contenders for the list. I hope you have found the account of our travels interesting and thank you to those who have emailed comments to me. I have enjoyed sharing the adventure with you!

A Mad King's Dream

Today we visited one of King Ludwig II's creations - the Royal Palace of Herrenchiemsee. Ludwig intended this to be a copy of the Sun King Louis XIV's palace of Versaillles and a tribute to Louis. The rooms at Herrenchiemsee are modelled on those at Versailles including the copying of the interior decoration, but with a Germanic influence. Ludwig began this project in 1878 but his money ran out and, when he died in 1886, only twenty of the seventy rooms which had been planned were completed. He only stayed in the palace on one occasion and that was for only nine days.

To reach Herrenchiemsee we took the train to Prien station, walked along a laneway to the shore of Chiemsee where we caught a boat to the island of Herreninsel, and then had another short walk through woodland to the palace. We enjoyed the boat trip in the  early morning light with a hazy view of the mountains in the distance and a cool breeze. Germany has been having a heat wave this week and, as the day went on, it became very hot again today.

Our first view of the palace was to see it, as at Versailles, with several glorious fountains and landscaped gardens in front of the long  expanse of the building.

The palace interior can only be viewed on a guided tour and we were booked into an English tour at 11.15am. This tour also seemed to include anyone who did not speak German, and notes in Rumanian and Chinese were handed out to those who needed them.

We were taken from the Ambassador Staircase, through the State Apartments and Ludwig's private apartment. The highlight would have to be the Great Hall of Mirrors which is longer than the hall at Versailles and has 52 candelabra and 33 glass chandeliers with 7,000 candles, which took seventy servants half an hour to light.

(Apologies for these photos of postcards - no photography allowed in the palace!)

After a picnic lunch we visited the King Ludwig II museum in the south wing, where we found some  interesting information and lots of artefacts relating to Ludwig and his family. There was also an audio-visual presentation about Ludwig's last project, the proposed Falkenstein Castle, for which plans were made before his death. Ian and  I have been fascinated by this crazy king and his sad story ever since we visited Neuschwanstein in 2004 and we enjoyed seeing some more of his creations.

The design for Falkenstein Castle

This evening, our last before we leave for home tomorrow, we  had a special dinner at the Drei Mohren restaurant at the Steigenberger hotel just down  the road from where we are staying. We went to the outdoor Grillbuffet where we enjoyed all sorts of grilled meat and salmon, as well as salads and grilled vegetables, and several serves each of lovely little desserts like a minature chocolate mousse, a scoop of icecream in various flavours and some berries.

Tomorrow we will be spending the day in Munich, before we go to the airport in the evening. I think it is  unlikely that I will  be able to post the final blog until we are back in Melbourne on Sunday so you will have to wait until  then to hear about the special place we intend to visit on our last day! In the meantime, go Pies - we are looking forward to a win tomorrow!

A restful day at Starnberger See

Although our itinerary listed Oberammergau as today's destination, we really didn't feel like another early start, long train trip and late return. Instead we decided to visit Starngberger See, just an hour by train south-east of Augsburg.

We arrived at the town of Starnberg just in time to join the 11am cruise on the lake. It was a pleasant jaunt for an hour, calling in at two small towns before alighting at Berg.

Berg's claim to fame is that it was there that mad King Ludwig II drowned (either by suicide or murder). It was Ludwig II who built the romantic Neuschwanstein Castle and several other exotic palaces, including Herrenchiemsee which we are intending to visit tomorrow. There is a memorial chapel for Ludwig at Berg but, yes you guessed it, it was wrapped in scaffolding and temporarily closed. There is also a cross in the water just off-shore so we photographed that instead!

The woods on the way to the chapel

The chapel - somewhere in there!

We enjoyed lunch in Berg, but the menu was in German so some of our choices turned out to be a bit unexpected. For example, I ordered a glass of Moscato which turned out to be a liquer!

Back in Augsburg we decided to check out the extensive gardens and park close to where we are staying. There is a large outdoor theatre (a bit like the Myer Music Bowl) where the Blues Brothers are performing for the next couple of nights. We found a lovely garden with big shady trees, climbing roses and beds of herbs where we sat in the shade and read for a while - a lovely way to end our relaxed day.