The Stuff of Which Dreams Are Made Of~

Our trip to Germany brought us down the Rhine and to the south of Germany to Fussen, a small village where people gathered throughout the centuries to work the land of their Monarch, Maximillian the II.

Later, his son, Ludwig II claimed the throne. He is responsible for the undertaking and rebuilding of Europe's most famous castle, Neuschwanstein Castle~

I had heard of this castle through the travels of friends, and had seen the posters sold at the castle at one of our German delis. I proudly said that"we were going to go here", as I pointed to the pictures and sighed...

The dream came true~I love it when that happens. It is sort of like a happy ending to the story instead of a quirky turn of events at the last that surprises you and leaves you wanting the story to end in "'happily ever after"~

Sadly, this story doesn't end in 'Hapily ever after', but I am getting ahead of myself..

~ King Ludwig lived in the summer palace just down the mountain where the family was entranced with the story of the "Swan Night"~ Maximillian had murals painted throughout the summer palace,(No pictures , please.) Darn!!

At the age of 12, Ludwig heard the opera 'Lohengrin', an opera written by Wagner. This captivated him, and began his vision of romanticism.

The castle is both breathtaking inside as out. Walt Disney vacationed here and brought back the vision for 'Sleeping Beauty's castle that we see today in the parks at Disneyland.~

The entire inside of the castle is painted with murals depicting the romanticism evoked by Wagner's music. Throughout Ludwigs's life he became more introverted and secluded using the music to company him. He did not intend for anyone to view the inside of this marvolous work.

Ludwig was engaged for a time, but shortly broke off the engagement. This is sad, as I wonder what the circumstances were, since he was a great romantic... No one is left to tell~

Soon before the castle was completed, Ludwig was committed insane.

Nothing points to this, yet two days after his committment, both he and his doctor were found drowned in the lake.

Such a sad tale ~Ludwig identified himself in his later years as the Swan knight, Handsome and romantic, loving Wagner's music~ As I walked through the gorgeous rooms amazed at the beauty and emotion evoked..( No pictures Please)! Darn!! I hummed the theme music to 'Sleeping Beauty' and wondered what it might have felt to be a resident of this richly entwined 'Golden Robe' that has stood as a beacon of romance upon the mount~