Mad, Mad Ludwig and the Bodensee

One Crazy (yet interesting) Dude

It does seem that there were a large number of crazy royal types running around Europe.  Maybe inbreeding, maybe too much money, maybe too much vino-- who can say.  My favorite is Mad Ludwig. He was part of the Munich crowd (the Wittelsbachs-- last blog).  While the entire family was given to excess, Mad Ludwig truly upped their game.  He had formed this "attachment" to Wagner (the Ring guy) and was running through money like crazy so his family banished him to the hinterlands of Bavaria.  Well, out of sight, out of supervision, so Ludwig started building Castles.  On our back packing trip we had gone to two of them --Linderhof and Neuschwanstein. Neuschwanstein is the castle that the Disney Land/World castles are modeled upon.  Looks the same -- really.

Anyway, there is a third Mad Ludwig castle that I wanted Michael to see -- Schloss Herrenchiemsee. This man had vision if not a sense of fiduciary responsibility.  The Castle sits on an island and you must ferry to it. It was designed to outdo Versailles.  Everyone wanted to outdo Versailles (see Ludwigsburg and Munich).  All the guides at the three castles describe Ludwig as "eccentric" but none will admit to his obvious, more than cozy relationship with Wagner ("just friends -- he almost married a ballerina you know") or abject craziness.  Nor will they confirm the story that his family, finally TOTALLY fed up with him, commissioned his doctor to dope him and take him for a midnight row on the lake from which he never returned.  They just leave out ALL the interesting parts.  Two of the castles have a unique dining room.  He didn't like people coming and going so the table would descend from the dining room to the kitchen on pulleys, They'd load up the food, hoist it up, he'd eat and that was how mealtime was chez Ludwig.  Well, the other story was that he had horrible teeth and slopped his food everywhere but the guide wouldn't confirm that either.  It's good to read up on these things before you go and they give you the white washed version.  While Ludwig was clearly monetarily irresponsible and drove the family to near ruin, the German government is very, very pleased with Ludwig.  Those castles are goldmines for the government today.

A view of the ominous skies before we boarded the boat.

A view from the castle down to the lake.

As can be seen from this series of photos, the grounds had some of the most spectacular fountains.

Other than the statuary, the exterior of the castle was not as spectacular as Neuschwanstein. The interior of the castle (in which photography was forbidden) was far more spectacular.

Only one example of the statuary.

And even more fountains and statues.

We chose to walk to the castle, while others chose this form of conveyance.

On to the Bodensee!

This is a little confusing because the Bodensee is also called Lake Constance.  And maybe the Swabian Sea.  Lake Constance is the international name and derives from the town of Konstanz which was named after some Roman.  Bodensee is German and named after a town called Bodman which is nearby.  The Lake is the only area in Europe with no defined borders and since it borders Switzerland, Germany and Austria they squabble about things all the time. Here's why we went there. Because NO TOURISTS go there.  A complete avoidance of phobia #3 (touristaphobia).  It also means very few people speak English so we were just guessing at food choices with varying results.

We stayed in a "old petite palace" that had been renovated into 18 condos right on the Lake.  It was very high end and totally weird and dysfunctional while being striking.  There were no lights, well a few, so you found yourself groping around like a blind person mostly.  The owner LOVED mirrors. Everywhere. On the bathroom door facing the toilet.  She had a hidden twirl around mirrored cabinet where she hid toilet paper and other things you REALLY need. But oddest was that there was a huge window between the shower and the living room.  If you were some kind of prude who didn't like having everyone in the living room watch you shower there was a second shower curtain you could pull.  But then the two shower curtains created some sort of shower vortex that sucked you into them. The deck was nice though.

The wonderful hydrangeas on the deck made up for some of the interior quirks.

An exterior view. We were on the bottom floor, front left.

The weather was bleak but we managed to see a bunch of things because every time we got in the car it rained and every time we reached our destination it stopped.  That was way better than the week before when seven people had drowned in Bavaria (and not while swimming).

Mainau Island

First stop in the Bodensee.  Not a lot of verbiage is required.  The island has a unique climate which allows a very broad array of flowers and plants to flourish.  The island belonged to the Teutonic Knights from the 13th-19th century and then was passed (somehow) to Grand Duke Friedrich I of Baden who was quite the botanist.  Over time the island went to his daughter who became Queen of Sweden (my dream) and now is owned by her son.  Another gold mine for royalty.  The island has probably the only Swedish restaurant in Germany.  It was really good.  I had reindeer.  Take a look at the photos.

Magnificent floral sculptures greeted us at the entrance.

The flowers throughout the island were spectacular.

This portrayed a representation of Lake Constance (Bodensee) using plants and flowers. Each of the signs is the location of the major towns on the lake.

This was the sign for the town of Bodman, from which the name Bodensee is derived.

The Swedish royal crest on one of the buildings on the island.

This whimsical sculpture was on an outlook...

from which water flowed down a series of stone steps, with the lake in the background.

There was a butterfly house on Mainau with the most amazing varieties of butterflies, not to mention orchids and even turtles, as can be seen in these photos.

All Heil the Hindenberg

Graf Zepplin, who was the force behind the giant Zepplin airships, was born in Konstanz so we went to the Zepplin museum which is on the Bodensee.  The neatest part was the reconstruction of part of the Hindenberg that you could walk through. It was pretty classy. You may remember that the Hindenberg blew up at its berth in Lindenhurst N.J. on May 6th, 1937.  That was because it was filled with hydrogen (flammable) vs. helium (nonflammable) because the U.S. wouldn't sell helium to Germany due to its military utility and scarcity at the time.  I have no idea of the military application of helium -- we just have to believe.  Anyway, during the war they converted the airship factory into an airplane engine and rocket (sorry London) factory.  Since all the workers had been conscripted, they used forced labor from the concentration camps.  While the inmates probably thought this better than the alternative, it was no picnic because the Allied air forces started to bomb the factory in a very diligent manner.  In fact the whole town.  It was the only town on the Bodensee that wasn't quaint and attractive.  Little wonder.  The Germans are very upfront about Nazism and don't sugarcoat a thing -- much to their credit.  The museum laid out the good, the bad and the criminal explicitly. Then it was time for lunch.

A recreation of the lounge on the Graf Zeppelin,...

a single berth and...

a double berth.

Sticks in the Mud

Literally.   Our next stop was the Pile Dwellings of Unteruhldingen. What?  You are unfamiliar with them?  But... they are a submerged World Heritage site that has been made visible.  This was actually very cool.  There were many, many of these "stick house villages" built on stilts in the Lake in ancient times -- Like the Stone Age through the Bronze Age.  Settlement first occurred around the lake circa 6000 BC (Neolithic age) and these villages were created and lived in/on the lake until about 850 BC when the climate worsened (stop it climate change deniers) and folks were forced back onto the fields and mountains.  As an aside, in 2006 the German TV station SWR sent 7 adults and 6 kids to live in these houses for 2 months -- a Germanic Survivor I suppose.  Take a look at the photos and see if you'd sign yourself and your tots up for that adventure.

 A view of some of the stick house recreations...

with some interior views.

More bear rugs.   I had no idea there were so many bears in Europe. Or used to be until they all became rugs.

The settlement was set up so as to allow for the capture or raising of fish.

There was even a gate, which assumed your enemies either could not swim or had not mastered any form of water craft.

They had mastered the wheel...

as well as the paddle.

The beginning of life was depicted...

as well as the end of life, as represented by this funerary ceremony.

More Unutterably Cute Towns About Which I have Nothing To Say

We just popped from town to town and they all had neat houses, castles, palaces, vineyards,  Doner Kepab places etc.  but what can you say after a while.  I know that sounds jaded.  But some photos are just so worth including that we will.  Michael -- exercise restraint.

Konstanz had interesting buildings...

fountains...

doors...

and murals on the buildings.

The statue Imperia in the harbor, commemorating the Council of Constance (1414-1418) stands 9 meters high.

In one hand is Emperor Sigismund (naked, except for his crown)...

and in the other hand is Pope Martin V (also naked except for his tiara)

The statue refers to a short story by Balzac, La Belle Imperia.

In Rothenburg we encountered another fabulous clock...

and more ornately decorated buildings.

Thanks to the help of the restauranteur we even found the fountain statue where Deirdre took a picture of our boys fourteen years ago on their backpacking trip.

And here is the photo from 14 years ago.

A better view of the fountain.

Our village of Ajijic is not the only colorful village.  

The window boxes with a profusion of flowers was also common in many of the villages.

In Search of Yet Another Waterfall

We decided to go see Europe's largest waterfall - the Rheinfall.  Even WE (the waterfall challenged) should be able to find the largest waterfall in Europe -- and we DID! Note that they said largest NOT tallest.  But still very terrific.  Par usual, it was teeming rain as we drove into Switzerland (where all great waterfalls lie) but it stopped the minute we arrived.  Given the torrential rains of the prior several weeks that baby was running on overdrive.  I had been blissfully traversing level ground since our departure from mountainous Prague but all that changed at the Rhinefalls.  Intent on seeing the falls from every conceivable angle, Michael force marched us up and down hundreds of steps, slopes and glass elevators (phobia #4 but I managed) to witness nature in her full glory.  It was very loud and wet/sloppy but very impressive.

Now, you may remember that a selling point of the Bodensee was that there were no tourists.  But what we forgot was that we were going to Switzerland to see the Falls.  We got out of the car and it all came flooding back to us -- there were Indians (from India) EVERYWHERE.  We had experienced some difficulties with Indian tourists both in Switzerland (trying to push us from the gondola on the Eiger) and Australia  (pushing and shoving and screaming to get the "best seat on the bus") --and they haven't mellowed out in the last couple of years.  It must be because India is so crowded that they have to be so physically intrusive.    But China is crowded....

Having survived the numerous climbs, the glass elevator and the Indians we got back in the car and it started to rain..... again.

Statistics on the falls were interesting...

but seeing the falls in action told more than any statistics ever could,

as did the power of the water cutting a hole through this rock.

This Great Blue Heron found an ideal spot below the falls for fishing.

The glass elevator that Deirdre bravely rode to the bottom.

Headed to the Land of Wine and Song

Well, that wrapped up Germany for a while.  We were off to Burgundy before returning once more to the Rhine in a week.  More in the next one.  And then we'll focus once more on Village Life. Oh, probably not.  We'll be off to the Fowler Family Reunion.  Well, eventually we'll get back to Village Life.  Happy July!