Fussen itself is picturesque but the big draw at the south end of the Romantic Road is unquestionably the fairytale castle of Neuschwanstein. Absolutely stunning, and well worth going out of our way to see it. The story behind it is fascinating, along with the tragedy of the king that built it. I’ll leave the following pictures to document our route north on the ”Romantische Strasse” ( as it’s known in Germany ) but a few favourite spots on the route ( to the surprise of no one who has travelled it ) would include Dinklesbuhl, Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Wurzburg itself. If you ever imagined what it would have been like to live, and/or travel through the Germany of centuries past, this road is a must. I’ll confess to originally thinking that it was a bit of a kitschy tourist gimmick, but it absolutely is not; rather, it’s a well connected route which pulls together some of Germany’s most beautiful and historic sights in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. It’s world class and Bavaria is just beautiful everywhere you look – we were so glad to have taken this detour for a few days on our way out of Germany.
The last place we wanted to see ( and had time for ) in Germany was Nuremberg. Just slightly off the Romantic Road (so not too far off our path) this city has a long history and ( sadly for Nurembergers ) was heavily associated with the Nazi era. It was here that many of Hitler’s largest rallies were held, that some of the classic Nazi films were shot, and perhaps appropriately, was the scene of the famous Nuremberg Trials, where, between 1946 and 1949 top Nazi leaders were prosecuted. As a World War II buff, I simply could not pass up this opportunity, especially to see the very scene of the Nuremberg Trials.
It was moving to actually stand today in the very courtroom where the scales of justice were applied to such hideous crimes committed by such truly evil leaders. It’s very well laid out with intricate and graphic detail telling the whole history of the trials and the court. One thing I learned that I did not know – why this particular courtroom, number 600, chosen for the trials ? Apparently, this was the very room where Hitler conducted sham trials for political opponents and other undesirables during the 1930’s. Perhaps fitting then, that some victor‘s justice might be meted out in the very same room.
Of course, there is lots of other history, famous food, and some beautiful architecture in Nurenberg, which we explored. It’s a tradition to try Nuremberg sausages and bratwurst – delicious I might add !
From Nuremburg, one long day along the autobahn got us to the outskirts of Amsterdam. Here we found a wonderful rural campsite where we could relax, do some overdue van cleaning and preparation before putting the vehicle in storage nearby. This all worked out well and we felt fortunate to find what seems like excellent storage in a secure covered facility just outside the city.
We will explore Amsterdam in more detail upon our return, but for now we have an airport to run to, a flight to catch, our kids to reunite with and of course, a very special granddaughter that we have not seen for almost 4 months . If you’ve been with us for the past few months, thanks for tagging along, we enjoy sharing the experience with those who are interested in the region and those who we know are contemplating bringing a vehicle to Europe. Hopefully the information we’ve provided along the way has been of some help. If you have any specific questions in that regard, feel free to send me a note via the website, I’ll have plenty of time to answer in the months ahead.
In the meantime enjoy your summer and we will connect again in late August !
