King Ludwig II

The snow that fell ended up being a non-issue.  We delayed our departure from Salzburg enough that the streets were slush and the temp was crawling above freezing.   There was no lack of  snow removal equipment. 

We back-tracked toward Fussen Germany along much of the same autobahn but the new covering of heavy white snow changed the views.  At one point we exited the Autobahn for petrol and the GPS gave us a new choice of crossing Bavaria via back country road or stay on the Autobahn; we chose the country road. The sites were out of a movie. 

Each town had a unique church tower to distinguish it from afar.  

 Houses had stores of wood that was beyond the size of their home. The road was narrow with congestion within the towns but open enough in between to enjoy the twisting rolling hills.  We traveled in the shadows of the Alps so the scenery was beyond grand. 

All of the sudden we drove into an open valley and Stephie saw the castle set against the mountains. It was like seeing the WDW entrance sign for the first time after a long drive. I pulled over to get a picture but the scale of it all was so big it could not be captured from so far.  

We drove another 5 miles right into the tourist part of Fussen and followed the guide books directions for parking and ticket purchase.  The castle tours were grouped by language and ours was 90 minutes away.  This gave us enough time to eat a snack and hike up the mile long driveway with the other pilgrims.  There was the option to takes a horse drawn carriage but the 40 min up-hill hike was what we needed after all of our driving.  The castle was built in the late 1800s so it had many modern conveniences unlike the Salzburg fortress we toured the day earlier.  After the tour we followed people over a barricade and hiked precariously across ice covered paths to a bridge  that was behind the castle giving a new view to the grandeur that King Ludwig built. 

Back in town we ate dinner and postured our next drive and choose a hotel for the night.  The plan was Switzerland but the cheapest hotels were out of our budget.  The price difference was amazing.  We decided to stay in Fussen for a good night sleep and then head farther West towards Zurich in the early morning.  WiFi in the room was not consistent so no pictures today.