Hotel Alpenhof Oberau

... it is covered with a chocolate ganache- it was delicious, much better than the day before.

The afternoon was Greg’s choice and we went to the Bergisel Stadium which is the new ski jump facility which was opened in 2001. This was on the site of the original ski jump facility which was used for the Winter Olympics in 1964 and 1976. You went in a cable car, then a lift to the top ...

... you couldn’t be convicted unless you had confessed to the crime, so consequently torture was frequently used. There was a slide show with a description of Maximilian’s life and achievements. As was the custom of those times, his first marriage was one of political convenience but they also loved each other very much. He was devastated when she died, but again married for convenience, this time to a woman who had a large dowry ...

Walked to the train station and did an expedition to the supermarket to spend our last Swiss Francs as we are back to Euros in Austria. Had a stopover in Zurich for a while and then caught the train to Innsbruck. Again this was a scenic trip over the mountains and it started snowing and was very deep as we got higher- just beautiful scenery. Innsbruck is surrounded by mountains, all of which had snow on them.

We checked into our hotel where we ...

... br>The only way to see the castle was by an organized tour, so we had to wait up at the top for awhile until our tour time-the views were more than enough to keep us occupied. The tour itself was a bit overwhelming-there were about 50 people and our tour guide had a very strong accent and was hard to hear, but at least we could see the inside of the castle, which was amazing. Ludwig had an obsession with swans and they were all ...

... about these things, and she claims she is but she always gets what she asks for!) and of course he said yes, and that is how we came to stay in a very nice room with free Internet and cozy beds.

Today we walked back to the main square to check things out. It was raining lightly but it didn't stop us from having a good time. We checked out the numerous shops and went to the top of the tower. Lincoln wasn't allowed up so we had to go in shifts. You really only need 15 ...

... too.
The rest of the tour took us to Linderhof castle and Neuschwanstein castle. What magical looking places they were. Neuschwanstein is the castle Walt Disney uses the sillohette of at the start of his movies. Anyway, after the trip it was back to Munich for a day or so and then on the plane home.

... the adults and the children on the tour. We saw the music room, the throne room (although Ludwig never received anyone at Linderhof), a couple of "Kabinetts" (small rooms by castle standards), the bedroom (ornate and oversized), and the dining room - where Ludwig ate alone; so alone, in fact, that the food was loaded on the table downstairs and the entire table rose to the dining room. Ludwig didn't even need to see the help while he ate. Since it took the table mechanism about 15 ...

... are still gorgeous. I am very much castled out by this point but was looking forward to this one. My brother and I knew it b/c of a computer game we had growing up used the castle quite a bit. This castle is also what Disney based the design of their castle off of. He used all of Bavarias $ to build 5 of his castles, but Neusch.. was never finished. The outside was beautiful, as I expected. The trees are all changing colors and all that ...

Another work conference for my parents brought us to Oberammergau for a week. We stayed in the cutest little wooden cottage - like the whole thing ceiling to floor and including flowering window boxes was made out of wood! Totally picturesque like you've read about in Brothers Grimm fairy tales. Aromatic town bakery. Absolutely enchanting.

Sadly, I dont remember much about Austria. Too bad because I have read so much about it lately as the music and art centre of Europe in the 1700s, I'd love to check that out.
I asked my dad recently if we had been there before. He said, 'oh yes, many times, we loved it'. Hmm, what a pity. I suppose it still counts because the images of scenery must be in my mind somewhere... curse this short memory of mine!