Last time I purchased the tickets 3 months early and turned up half an hour late. German precision and order meant that was the end of it. This time I tried to buy the tickets the day before, only to find out German organisation requires you to buy tickets at least two days before. The queue was an hour long and that was for a tour starting in 5 hours time!
 
We avoided the ticket queue and opted to inspect from the outside. That same white granite that gives the Lech river such a captivating colour gives the castle such a majestic look. Not that majesty is lacking in these surrounds. its so ornate and romantic, its hard to imagine it as a contemporary of the Eiffel tower.

 A second visit and we still haven't been inside. This might be one of the most modern palaces that you can inspect, and with a patriarch whose full time was decoration it must be astounding to see. It's still on the list - one more reason to return to Bayern one day,

  We strolled down the mountain, lunching on the way for one of the last opportunities to have HB on tap. Down in Füssen we checked into a mini castle of a hotel that clearly knows how much Disney drives tourism to Neuschwanstein - Hotel Fantasia. We went looking for the Lech falls, but the access road was cut off. Even through the trees the pale turqoise of the Lech river was eye catching. Look it up on google earth and you can see the colouring come down the mountain and dissipate as the river opens into the lake, 

  We ended up spending the afternoon strolling in the old town. Odd little shops pulled us along through the narrow streets until we came to a corner pub, the kids and I headed in whilst Gab pressed on with the more important things. Odd - this pub is one room with three bars, each appears to be an independent business. Better yet, each little business likes a different brewery! Paulaner, König Ludwig, HB & Augustiner! Only one beer missing, but around the corner a well placed little bistro called Zum Franziskaner both finished off the brewery list, and our last night in Germany. Auf wiedersehen!