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“a” plan is to climb up to the
Marienbrücke by bus and from
there walk to the castle amidst a
landscape almost out of Lord of
the Rings. The castle has been
designed by the palace painter
Christian Jank with the request
of the Bavarian King Ludwig the
2nd the construction for which
was started on September 5th,
1869 and was completed on
1886. Ludwig the 2nd has grown
up with his brother Otto away
from his young mother who was
the Princess of Prussia and his
Bavarian King father Maximillian
and he became a reserved
young man who preferred to live
in isolation due to his childhood
and youth that passed around
the lakes, mountains and forests
of Swangau and this character
of his has been reflected in the
Neuschwanstein Castle. This
picaresque castle is actually
the fantasy of a young king who
came to the throne when he was
19 years old. He lived in it for only
3 weeks but Neuschwanstein
continues to survive where it
should be, at another surreal
location; the logo of Disney. The
castle has been opened to public
only 6 weeks after his death and
it has hosted about 50 million
visitors until today.
There are many alternatives for
those who spare a longer time
for Munich. The third ‘distant’
is in the neighboring country
Salzburg. One can reach the
Austrian city of Salzburg which is
in the Unesco World Heritage List
with a train ride of one and a half
hours. Families with children who
are not interested in Mozart’s
Salzburg can choose to go to
Legoland which is located at the
other edge. Legoland is located
at Günzburg which is also 1,5
hours away from Munich and it
is a large park that can entertain
children almost as much as
Disneyland… Of course, winter
is coming. I did not even mention
the important ski centers located
at the Alps. Even though Munich
does not seem like an attractive
spot at first thought, it is a rich
city that can meet the demands
of any tourist. The classical
motto of Munich is “Courageous
World City” as has been stated
in the title, but today “Munich
loves you” is more popular. Let’s
see if you will also love it back?
München heißt Sie willkommen.
