We left early Friday morning to get to Heidelburg, which involved a ridiculous amount of train changes. Along the way, we ran into Drs. Baker and Abell, our professors! They were also headed to Heidelburg for the weekend. I love running into them all the time while traveling- they are adorable, and so very wise and inspirational! In Heidelburg, we explored the town, which is more touristy than I expected but very cute. There are tons of squares with interesting fountains, some odd trees, and of course, old churches. We hiked up to the castle (Europe lesson # 85230932: all the best things are at the top of a huge hill and involve a hike that will very nearly kill you but it's always worth it) and it was gorgeous- we could see the whole town and the river.
All of the trees are changing colors here, and for someone from Louisiana and southeast Texas who has never experienced a real autumn, it is a wonderful shock each and every time I step outside and get to see all the trees splotched with brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow. These trees were especially beautiful, and the sun came out while we were on top of the hill; it was perfect. We didn't see much inside the castle except for a huge barrel where they used to keep some kind of alcohol- it was two stories high! Outside, there was a park and fountain, so we relaxed up there for a while and made friends with a squirrel. After that, we hopped on a train and headed toward Triberg, a small town in the Black Forest.
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| Heidelburg is falling apart! |
We arrived in Triberg with absolutely no plans, not even a hostel reservation or an idea of where one was. It seems that God was watching out for us, because as we began to meander into the town, we came across a lady walking home from grocery shopping with her daughter, and when we asked her about places to stay, she made it her personal mission to find us a place to stay, and she took us all around the town, showing us hotel and going inside with us to ask about prices. She was really feisty and kept trying to haggle with everyone to get us a good deal, it was hilarious! After we found a really great place to stay, we had a lovely dinner complete with Black Forest cake, which was so delicious! I have been missing cake!
On Saturday, we hiked through part of the forest right outside Triberg to see a waterfall. We hiked up high and got to see the whole town and the hills blanketed in bright fall trees, it was really peaceful.
Again, I am realizing that my favorite moments here are when I'm outdoors, surrounded by nature. It was great until... I fell in the creek that feeds the waterfall! We had all gone down off the path to put our feet in the creek and take pictures on the rocks, and I was trying to follow one of my friends who had climbed up the rocks, and I just completely slipped and wiped out and got submerged in the creek! I clumsily struggled out and back up onto a rock, and I was curled up in a little ball laughing hysterically, but everyone thought I was crying so they were just staring at me in shock; it was quite an awkward, chilly moment but it's been fun retelling the story to everyone back in Maastricht.
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| Just a little damp... |
We shopped at some adorable Christmas shops, then the rest of the day was spent on trains getting to Fussen, our last stop of the weekend, which is the closest town to the Neuschwanstein castle!
In Fussen, I had my first actual hostel experience, and... well, I won't say much, except that I hope that we will continue to be as lucky as we have been in finding super-cheap two star hotels to stay at instead of hostels! It wasn't horrible, but I've definitely been spoiled so far, so it was an adjustment. The castle was the main focus of our time in Fussen, though- we spent most of the day Sunday there. There are actually two castles there: Hohenschwangau is a smaller castle that was the childhood home of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, and when he grew up, he moved out and built a new castle for himself only a few minutes away, which is the "fairy tale" Neuschwanstein castle. Unfortunately, the weather was extremely foggy- so bad that we couldn't even see the castle when we were right in front of it!
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| Hohenschwangau |
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| Neuschwanstein through the fog |
We could tell it would have been gorgeous if we could have seen it from a distance all nestled into the hills with those wonderfully bright fall leaves though. We took guided tours through each of the castles, and I was surprised to learn about their history, especially how new they are- they were built in the mid 1800's! I guess I had always thought they were medieval castles that generations of royalty had lived in, but really that was the only family that ever lived there, and not even for very long. The insides were very gorgeous and ornate- my favorite part was the floor of the throne room that was entirely a mosaic- amazing.
After a full day of castle touring and exploring a little bit in Fussen, we were exhausted and actually excited for our overnight train back to Maastricht. It is always hard to sleep on those, but this time was a bit easier due to our level of exhaustion! I've been a little sick this week- that may or may not have something to do with
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| I love fall! |
Many thanks for another great travel-log. Know you enjoyed seeing the beautiful fall colors there and now you will be able to look forward to a trip to the New England area of the U.S.A. You will see all of the same beautiful colors but without the great castles. Glad you didn't twist or break anything when you tried your diving prowess in Germany. I'll bet being thoroughly soaked was bad enough. Good luck on your upcoming exams - hope you nail them as we are sure you will. Your Mom & Dad are gearing up to come see you and we will be anxious to hear more of your travels when you return next month.
ReplyDeleteWith Lotts of Love,
Gramsy & BG.
P.S. Thanks for the card - we loved it.