This night was a bit colder, we think. Definitely felt colder. But still doable. After waking up we spent way too much time on getting ready and buying some supplies (thermals FTW!), and only managed to set off to the next destination about midday. Destination Neuschwachstein Castle!
The road quickly turned from a motorway into a small sub-Alpine road that graced us with wonderful mountain views, and led us through some beautiful Bavarian villages that look like they belong on a chocolate box.
But the first thing we found after getting to Neuschwachstein was a bad surprise – it’s sold out for today! The online tickets were long gone, but we were hoping we might still get them there. Alas, we’ll need to come back early tomorrow and get them then. For now, we went for a nice walk and visited the sister castle, Hohenschwengau. Mostly neo-Gothic and not quite as picturesque, but still pretty awesome! But mostly, it’s based in the most idyllic spot, right at the edge of the Alps, with fantastic views over a beautiful late, as if guarding the entrance to the vast expanse of the mountains.
After the castle visit we went back to the Baron to eat something – a delicious Ratatouille from a jar, cooked over our fancy new camping cooker. Van life is great.
We then wanted to go to a cafe pick up some nice drinks and get some internet (catching mobile data has been a pain here…), but were sad to discover that after the castles closed, the area becomes a ghost town, and the only places left open are pretty generic restaurants with not much of an atmosphere but a lot in terms of price markups. Shame.
Disappointed, we went for a nighttime walk by the lake, and left for a nearby town, Füssen. Lovely place, yet another castle, and yet again – loads of restaurants (much better though) and expensive looking shops, but no cafes or even pubs. We ended up in a decent restaurant and, to the dismay of the waiters, ordered only beer and cake. Tough, should have opened some cafes, shouldn’t you.
We drove off towards a promising carpark recommended by fellow van dwellers, and we’re now hanging out in the van with some food and a very special treat. See, we discovered that my nan’s sweet sweet wine can be made into a fantastic mulled wine when heated up with some spice infusion (known by the ignorant as ‘herbal tea’). Win!
Now we are bracing for the night. We decided to stay here as the forecast said it will be +6 during the day and +1 at night. It was most certainly not +6 during the day, as none of the frost or snow was gone – we’re definitely in the negatives. Let’s hope we’ll survive this night! If all goes well, it’s our last one in the winterland, as by tomorrow night we will be on the other side of the Alps!
