We took a couple of side trips from Munich, the most notable to Neuschwanstein, King Ludwig's fairytale castle. We couldn't take pictures inside, but the entire thing was amazing in its detail and very unique architecture!!!
Dachau...another concentration camp. This photo is of the grounds. There used to be barracks located in those retangular spaces, but all but a couple have been dismantled now.
Salzburg was lovely and we thoroughly enjoyed the Sound of Music tour we went on...the pavilion is the one featured in the song, "I am 16, Going on 17." The town behind me in the above photo is home to the church where Julie Andrews' character, Maria, gets married.
Our last day in Salzburg was a skiing day. And even though I prefer the snow in the Rockies, you just can't beat the view of the Alps!!!
Back in Munich for a couple of days, we took off to visit some of the nearby towns. Then Rebecca and I boarded our last plane before the one that would take us home, and went to England. There, we picked up a rental car and launched into traffic.
Newcastle...the main reason we headed all the way up to the North of England was to visit Matthew, a great friend we met at L'Abri. We had a fantastic time spending New Year's Eve with him and his friends. Matthew gave us a tour of Newcastle, showed us around Durham which is a nearby city, invited us along to some pubs, and of course, introduced us to Doctor Who. It was such a great time that we even extended our stay an extra day! We also got to see Hadrian's Wall on one of the days Matthew was busy. We had been interested in seeing that when we were in Scotland back in August, so it was fun to finally get the chance to see the wall that at one time separated England and Scotland.
The Lake District was gorgeous. We stayed with Margo, a friend we met in L'Abri. Margo is from Australia, but is working as a vet in the Lake District, where she welcomed us into her home, showed us around, gave suggestions and directions, and even introduced us to some great BBC movies...Jane Eyre and the new Sense and Sensibility!!!
On our way down to Oxford, we stopped in the lovely town of Chester on Margo's suggestion. The architecture was beautiful, and probably one of my favorite's in England. We also had to stop in Stratford Upon Avon to visit the birthplace of Shakespeare. Of course, the house has been rebuilt, but there you have it!
We were incredibly blessed to be welcomed into the home of Kevin Bywater and his family in Oxford. Oxford was a fun town to wander, and we especially enjoyed having lunch in the Eagle and Child, which was a favorite location for a group known as the Inklings, which included C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.
Some of the fun, old sites to see in England (the reallyreallyreally old ones) are Avebury, Stonehenge, and Glastonbury Tor. Most people are pretty familiar with Stonhenge, but Avebury is quite impressive as well. It's a much larger stone circle (actually there were two). The problem is, it's not a intact as Stonehenge and you have to walk around a bit to get an idea of what it once looked like. Nevertheless, pretty impressive stuff... Glastonbury Tor is associated with various legends and mythology, including King Arthur. I don't know too much about it, but the main reason Rebecca wanted to see it was because it's the site of an important battle in one of her computer games...hey, we have sophisticated tastes, do we not?
Before spending our final days in London, we enjoyed a quick stop in one of the oldest tourist destinations...the city of Bath.
I'm not even sure London requires much of an explanation. London is London...Big Ben, the Eye of London, the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, and the changing of the guard...oh, and we even went to see Hairspray. I think one of the highlights for me, though, was going to the houses of parliament and watching the politicians in session. That was really interesting and I was completely enthralled. No pictures permitted in there, though, so sorry...
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