Neuschwanstein

I have just returned from a weekend trip. I planned to go to Salzburg but I ended up going to this place in Germany called the Neuschwanstein. On the face of it, it looks like one hell of a tongue twister. Just separate the syllables and understand the meaning NEW SWAN STEIN, stein means stone and it becomes easy. The swan was the favorite bird of King Ludwig the Second of Bavaria and he was obsessed with building castles, among other things. This is the most beautiful castle he built and arguably the most beautiful castle on Earth. There are a couple of other castles around but this castle, surrounded by beautiful lakes and the Alps, remains a symbol of fairy tales and the legends of the knights of yore.

                                        Neuschwanstein Castle
If the picture of the castle looks familiar to you, it would mean that you have been to Disneyland in California and have seen the Sleeping Beauty Castle there. The castle in Disneyland is built on the lines of Neuschwanstein castle. Personally the experience of watching this castle as you see in the picture stands shoulder to shoulder with the experience I felt when I watched the Taj Mahal, the snow-clad Kanchenjunga range and to a lesser extent, the Eiffel Tower. I wondered why Germany does not advertise this place aggressively as a symbol of their country's tourism. First they ought to call it by a simpler name and then make it a tourism symbol and I can imagine this place becoming one of the most sought after destinations in the world.

Caution: If you don’t like toilet humour and find it too crude and vulgar to your sensibilities, you can skip the following paragraph and proceed to the next.
On the face of it how would the idea of being taken to a castle along the hill side in a horse-drawn carriage sound? For me the idea seemed very exotic and taking this highly interesting and unforgettable ride made me reflect on the truth in that adage 'all that glitters is not gold'. Let me introduce you to the Farting Horses of Fussen. God knows what the bloody horses ate for breakfast but not less than a few minutes into the ride the horse behind whose ass I was posted started farting, to the thrill of the fellow sitting on the other corner of the seat and my consternation and horror. The stench was unbearable and adding to the misery was the embarrassment of the fellow sitting at the other end doubling up in cachinnations. Something to the effect of divine providence intervened to prove that that mills of the Gods grind slowly but they grind exceedingly fine and taking inspiration from its colleague the second horse started off a series of flatulences and shat all over the place to the annoyance of the aforementioned thrilled-chap for he was seated behind the second horse. Revenge, I would like to say, smells like shit.

On the way I passed this place called Frankenstein which if folklore is to be believed was the place that gave Marry Shelly the inspiration for the atmosphere and the name of her book.

When I was near the Alps, I learnt from a friend that Alpenliebe means 'love for the Alps' and so I wondered when I was in Heidelberg if one could call the love for the Neckar River, Necrophilia.

Over the weekend, I experience for the first time in my life the marvels of the invention called the GPS. Just feed in the destination and keep driving.

I also saw that the face of a young girl parting with her lover is just the same all over the world. The sorrow in the eyes and the tragic smile on the face is same everywhere on earth. I shall never forget that face of the young girl standing on the platform bidding goodbye to her love.

Comments

[Prashant]

Excellent account, mate. The horse shit incident was hilarious. Looks like you had a swell time with a heady mixture of old castles and horse-shit.

On a more corporate level, I think you are now well qualified to dish out differences between bull-shit & horse-shit, eh?

Cheers...

[Arvind Swarup]

Prashant: that was a profound parallel - the one on corporate shit.

notes to self: The farting horses of Fusson episode reminds me of another experience; the truth in the exotic cruise on the river Mandovi in Goa. let me leave the narration for another place and another time.

[Deepalii]

Hey Arvind,
Great post. I brought back memories of my two trips to see Neuschwanstein. Indeed, Schwangau is one of the prettiest regions of Germany.
I also found the story of Kind Ludwig, who was declared insane quite moving, and the tragic way in which he dies are what legends are made of.
BTW, who was the young girl parting from her lover?

[Arvind Swarup]

thank you, Deepali.
oh... i don't know who that girl was. i was looking out of the train and i saw this girl on the platform telling bye to the fellow who boarded the train. you know here right, the thing about standing at the door and talking does not happen. the glass door automatically closed off and that girl was on the platform and this fellow inside. both of them talking to each other in slight gestures and nods and meaningful looks. then they both started speaking on their mobile phones until the train started. too good i say. when i make a movie, i will have this scene in it.

by the way, if you were hinting at the possibility of the young girl in the way of being my girl then i have to tell you that there has been no such luck - because my girl is not young. :D

Arvind