I was always fascinated by the fairytale castle of Ludwig II, which stands in the German Alps. That is why my visits to it are numerous. The first goes back to my childhood, when, with Mom and Dad, I crossed Bavaria from west to east by step in the various homes of this king a little bizarre. Subsequently, a fast visit one Sunday in the autumn of 2003 made me rediscover the beauty of Neuschwanstein. Finally, once i managed to involve some friends in my admiration for these works of art and architecture and for the context in which they were created, I retraced the journey with them made years earlier with my parents.

The fairytale castles of Ludwig II

The castle of Neuschwanstein is one of many homes built by Ludwig II of Bavaria. Friend and patron of the composer Richard Wagner, he was a dreamer who detested politics and preferred to spend his state's money for the realization of a castle after another. For this, having squandered the coffers of Bavaria, he was declared crazy, isolated and sadly ended his life. The money spent then, are coming back in abundance today, with millions of tourists who visit his castles: from Herrenchiemsee, imitation of Versailles, to Linderhof, the only really ended when the king was still alive, through Hohenschwangau, the castle of his parents. The most famous and magnificent castle is Neuschwanstein, built between 1869 and 1886 and copied by Walt Disney to build the palace of the story of Snow White.

My last visit to the castles of Ludwig is dating back to May 2006, when during a weekend long celebration i decided, together with some friends, to retrace the path made years earlier during a trip with my parents. Left from Trento by car early in the morning, we come to Füssen, near Hohenschwangau and Neuschweinstein at lunch despite a small involuntary deviation has led us off the road for about fifty miles. The afternoon is dedicated to the rediscovery of the castles and beautiful landscape that Neuschweinstein dominates: the palace is built on a hill immersed in the Alps, which dominates the entire valley dotted with numerous lakes. The following day we move into the hunting reserve of Ludwig II, Linderhof. Here we are surprised by a terrible storm that ruined a little stroll trough the park that surrounds the castle where have been placed many fountains of gold. Given the very bad time, we decide to shorten the stop in Linderhof and move towards the Chiemsee lake in which lies the island on which Ludwig has built, in honor to the admired French Sun-King, Herrenchiemsee, unfinished copy of the palace of Versailles. The sun come out among the clouds and we can end the day by closing umbrellas and enjoying the return on the mainland by boat. The next day we do the short transfer to the city of Salzburg in Austria, where we devote the day to visit the castle and the center, allowing a well-deserved break with a great tasting of Mozartkugeln, "balls" of chocolate and almond paste truly unmissable! The last day we move back to Germany to visit the Königsee, another beautiful lake nestled among the peaks of the alpine zone. The season does not allow us to make the trip by boat so we continue towards Lienz back in Italy by Puseria valley.

I end the story of this nice week-end in company with a personal thought. The vision of so much pomp and wealth arouse  contrasting feelings in me: on one hand I can not help but admire the skill of the artists who have produced such wonders, on the other hand I can not even imagine what must have suffered the peasants and craftsmen who lived during the reign of Ludwig, who starved his subjects subtracting from state's coffers precious money that could be better spent for the welfare of the people.