Munich

Neuschwanstein Castle (picture taken from bridge over nearby gorge)
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The southern German province of Bavaria is a land of rolling farmland, forests, castles and beer. We made sure that we sampled the latter two during our short stay in its main city. We were due to return for Oktoberfest in a few weeks and already there was a sense of anticipation as the rollercoasters and beer halls were being constructed at Thereisenweise. We climbed up the inside of the 18m high bronze Bavaria statue overlooking the Oktoberfest grounds.

A couple of hours away by train, Neuschwanstein Castle is quite possibly the most well known mountain-top castle in the world. It was used by Walt Disney as the model for his Sleeping Beauty Castle. We picked a superb clear day for our visit, the views over the lakes and forests of the Bavarian countryside were just amazing. The castle had the large summer crowds queued up outside, but we didn’t have to wait too long for our number to be called. You can only get inside the castle with a guided tour which was well worth taking. The extravagant rooms and furniture gave us a good idea as to how the project almost bankrupted the state when it was constructed. A short walk around the hill from the castle is a deep gorge crossed by the cantilevered Marienbrücke bridge which gives unparalleled views of the castle. The dizzying drop to the waterfalls below is not for the faint-hearted.

Beer, parks, castles, glockenspiels and more beer

Bridge over gorge taken from inside castle
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The main square in Munich is called Marienplatz and is famous for the town hall’s gothic clock tour and glockenspiel. Four times a day, crowds of tourists gather in front and crane their necks to witness the clockwork figures do their thing. Worth a look, once. There is also great shopping on the Neuhauser Strasse from here to Karlsplatz and on the surrounding streets. We found a great Italian coffee shop next to Frauenkirche, one of the huge city cathedrals.

Northeast of the city centre, we wandered through the Englischer Garten with its beer garden, nude sunbathers (even in September) and, get this, a surfing wave. The fast flowing river which is diverted through the park drops over a manmade ramp as it enters the park, creating a standing wave which draws surfers like a magnet. Wooden platforms on both sides of the river enable them to step or jump onto their boards and give the spectators on the bridge above a thrill.

Stunning Bavarian scenery from the windows of Neuschwanstein Castle
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We also visited the Augustiner beer garden near the main railway station for dinner and a 1 litre stein of quality German beer. The leafy garden could easily seat thousands of people and we noticed the number of families enjoying themselves as well. There is even a children’s playground right in the middle of the seating area. We couldn’t help but compare this with the pubs and bars we are used to at home. Germans seem to have a much more mature attitude towards alcohol that we kiwis could learn a lot from.

Enjoying a 1 litre stein of Augustiner beer in their massive beer garden
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As we prepared to fly back to the UK and conclude our 5 month long tour of mainland Europe, we reflected on all the places we had seen, people we had met and food we had tried. Out of the many highlights, Croatia would have to be the place we remember as best. The towering city walls and crystal clear seas of Dubrovnik will always be somewhere we will want to return. We had also swapped countless stories with other travellers and we now have a list of ‘places yet to see’ a mile long.