Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany

Let's go travel in Europe again! This time I am bringing you back to Deutschland or Germany in English. I am featuring one of the most beautiful castles not only in Germany but in whole of Europe as well. The Schloss Neuschwanstein as it is called in German, is considered to be the most photograph architecture in Germany. It is also famous not only because it appeared in several movies but due to the fact that this castle was the inspiration for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle.

I had been to this castle four times already and I always love it there. It is located on a hill in the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen in Bavaria, Germany. I remember during fist visit where we stayed in one of the hotels in Füssen. From there, Neuschwanstein is only less an hour drive.

The castle was commissioned by King Ludwig II of Bavaria from his own fortune and from extensive borrowing of funds. It is a 19th-century Romanesque Revival palace. Its construction started in 1869.

I read in a German newspaper last year that the Bavarian government would like to apply it to the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here are some images I took from this castle.

the beautiful Neuschwanstein Castle during my fourth visit with friends last July 2011.

view of the front of the castle with its towers. There is now a platform being made to see this scene.

I am joining again these wonderful memes: Special thanks to the Authors for hosting it;

Tuesday Travels, Orange Tuesday, 366 Blog Photo Challenge, WEDNESDAY WHITES,
Black and White Wednesday

I Love Alhambra in Granada, Spain

This beautiful city which is located at the foot of Sierra Nevada in the region of Andalusia, Spain is truly marvelous. I feel in love with its beauty adding to the fact that we visited lot of interesting and historical sights there including the famous Alhambra.

The Alhambra is considered to be the most striking, best preserved Arabian palace in the whole world.This is the monument that still gleams bright considering much of Moorish Granada. Alhambra an Arabic word which literally means the "red one" was constructed during the mid 14th century by the Moorish rulers of the Emirate of Granada in al-Andalus. It is occupying the top of the hill of the Assabica on the southeastern border of the city of Granada.

If you are visiting Granada, be sure not to miss Alhambra. Our tour guide told us that you must book your ticket months before especially during peak summer season. Alhambra is truly a must to see.

view of the Alhambra from teh garden of Generalife. I am glad to visit it once in my life. I was there with my friend Joy last December 8, 2011. It was a very memorable trip in this Andalusian city of Spain.

The Patio de los Arrayanes with the Comares tower, a crenellated fortress 45 meters high. I wish to go back again in this city and explore more about Alhambra. For some reason, I just love this place.

Skywatch Friday
Weekend Reflection
Scenic Sunday
Shadow Shot Sunday
Sunday Snapshot

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France

This is one of the famous landmarks in Paris, the capital city of France. It is called in French as Notre Dame de Paris (Our Lady of Paris), also commonly called as Notre Dame Cathedral. It has a Gothic architecture and very famous for its flying buttress. Until Catholic masses are held every Sunday in this Catholic cathedral.

I am so happy to visit one of the notable historical monuments in Paris. In fact, I already visited it twice. During my first visit, I was able to go inside the Cathedral. It is truly an amazing work of human architecture.

The beautiful and historical Notre Dame Cathedral is located on a small island called the Ile de la Cite in the middle of river Seine.

the interior of the Cathedral taken during my first visit last March 2009.

This is my first entry for these wonderful memes: Special thanks to the Authors for hosting it.

Tuesday Travels

366 Blog Photo Challenge
WEDNESDAY WHITES
Black and White Wednesday

a bust of Our Lady inside the Louvre Museum in Paris

My second entry for
Orange Tuesday

I Love Madrid, Spain

Another dream come true! I had the chance to finally visit the capital city of Spain. Madrid is awesome! I love love love love and love this city. For me, it is the most unique city I visited in Europe. I can't exactly explain as well but there is something in Madrid and in Spain as a whole that captured my heart. I fall in love with this country.

I have been to some big cities in Europe like Vienna, Budapest, London, Brussels, Prague, Berlin, Amsterdam, Zurich, Luxembourg, Paris, Cologne, Rome, Monaco, Venice, Frankfurt, Munich, Verona, Salzburg, Dresden, Las Vegas, California, Manila, Cebu, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, and so many more but Madrid is simply unique.

When I visited Monaco last spring of this year, I told myself, if I have the chance to choose where I live now, I would choose Monaco. Sad to say, it changed suddenly. When I recently visited Spain, I changed my mind. No more Monaco and how I wish I live somewhere in Spain right now.

Ah, I am dreaming again. But dreaming is the only thing I can have and it is for free. In fact, most of my dreams are coming true now. Most of the places that I am dreaming and aiming to visit went to reality. I was there, to the places where I can never imagine I was.

There are a lot of things I would love to share during our 8-days trip to Spain. I wish I have more time to slowly share it here or maybe in my other travel blogs. So please, sit back and relax..more updates and travel images about Spain to come soon!

Lastly, I would like to say,

"Live with your dreams,
Work for it and One Day,
Those Dreams will slowly come true."

Ruby Benz

I wish I had the chance to go inside this palace but a day trip in Madrid is not enough to see everything. I wish to visit this city again in the future. Taken during our visit last December 10, 2011.

The Palacio Real (Royal Palace) is an enormous palace, one of the biggest in Europe, with scorching plains of concrete around it. Though it is the official residence of the King of Spain, the royal family does not actually reside here and it is generally used only for state ceremonies. The Royal Palace is considered to be one of the most emblematic and beautiful buildings in Madrid, not only for its location on a bluff overlooking the river valley but also for its architecture and the artistic treasures to be found in its rooms.

The Matthias Church in Budapest, Hungary

It's over two months now since we visited Budapest. This is the capital of Hungary which is considered to be one of Europe's enjoyable and delightful cities. It was indeed an enjoyable travel we had. One of the highlights during that trip was our sightseeing of the different landmarks in this city.

If you happened to visit the Buda's Castle District, you will for sure see the Matthias Church. This was was said to have a Romanesque architecture in 1015 but later and the was constructed into late Gothic style in the second half of the 14th century.

a very interesting architecture in Budapest. I had the chance to visit it last August 2011.

The Matthias Church was the second largest church of medieval Buda and the seventh largest church of medieval Hungarian Kingdom. It is officially known as the Church of Our Lady.

Another Visit to Salzburg, Austria

The first time I visited Salzburg was in June 2007. I was there again last November 2008. My third visit was in July this year. A day's visit in this Austrian city is not always enough to see all of its main sights. If I have the chance to visit it again, for sure I will surely do.

Salzburg is an Austrian city located near the border of Bavaria, Germany. This city is not only famous because it is the birthplace of Mozart but also due to its notable sights. The Salzburg Cathedral (Salzburger Dom), the famous shopping street called Getreidegasse, the Residenz Palace, Siegmundstor (or Neutor), the Hohensalzburg Castle, St Peter's Abbey with the Petersfriedhof are only some of its famous sights.

view of the Old Town of Salzburg while we were riding the cable car going up to Hohensalzburg, a castle in this city. The Old Town with its world famous baroque architecture is now included in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996. You can also see the towers of the Salzburg cathedral in this image.

Brussels Town Hall in Grand Place, Brussels, Belgium

I miss this place and wish to visit it sometime in the future. I have some good friends and kababayans' in there. That visit and stay in Brussels was a very memorable one for me. I truly had a lot of fun and good memories. Thanks to Ching and the whole family for everything.

Below is an image of Brussels Town Hall. It is located in Grand Place in the city center of Brussels in Belgium.

photo taken during our visit last August 2010.

The Brussels Town Hall stands 96 metres (315 ft) tall and is capped by a 3 metre (12 ft) statue of Saint Michael slaying a demon

The Würzburg Residence in Bavaria, Germany

I had been in Würzburg (written in English as Wuerzburg) for a lot of times already. I had seen the Würzburg Residence but did not had the chance to go inside of it. Hopefully in my next visit, I can already go inside this beautiful and historical palace.

Front of the Residenz and Cour d'honneur. taken during our visit last August 2011.

The Würzburg Residence with its Court Gardens and Residence Square was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981. According to the Advisory Body Evaluation, the inclusion in the List was a "measure... so clearly desirable that the proposal of the Federal Republic of Germany does not require lengthy justification... The Residence is at once the most homogeneous and the most extraordinary of the Baroque palaces... It represents a unique artistic realization by virtue of its ambitious program, the originality of creative spirit and the international character of its workshop." more about this palace

Visit to the Warwick Castle in England

I was lead to this question of what country in Europe has the most castles. So far when I visited Prague, Czech Republic or Paris, England, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg or Netherlands, I did not see a lot of castles in these countries. I am not really so sure which country in Europe has the most castles then but I found a lot in Germany especially in the state of Bayern or Bavaria. I need to find this out later.

Warwick castle is one of the castle I visited in England. It is a medieval castle in Warwick, the county town of Warwickshire, England. It sits on a bend on the River Avon. The castle was built by William the Conqueror in 1068 within or adjacent to the Anglo-Saxon burh of Warwick.

Our visit to this castle was a very memorable one because it was Halloween as we went there.

I took this image during my visit last 2008.

Warwick Castle is situated in the town of Warwick, on a sandstone bluff at a bend of the River Avon. The river, which runs below the castle on the east side, has eroded the rock the castle stands on, forming a cliff.

Cruising the Canals in Venice, Italy

It was another dream came true! I finally had the chance to have a gondola ride in Venice, Italy. I had been to this city twice before and in my third visit, I finally rode a gondola. It was a nice experience seeing the narrow canals of Venice. The ride costs 80.00 Euros for 30 minutes and we were 6 people riding. If you want the ride longer, you need to pay more between 120 to 150 Euros up to 6 persons only.

I am happy and contented again after visiting the Venice, the so-called "City of Bridges" or "The Floating City".

a narrow canal in Venice during our gondola ride last July 3, 2011.

Saint Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy

The Saint Mark's Basilica, officially known as Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the most famous church in Venice, Italy. It is one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture. It lies at the eastern end of the Piazza San Marco.

the beautiful painting in the front entrance door.

Saint Mark's Basilica taken from St. Mark's Square. I took this image during my third visit July 2011.

Originally it was the chapel of the Doge, and has only been the city's cathedral since 1807, when it became the seat of the Patriarch of Venice, archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, formerly at San Pietro di Castello. For its opulent design, gilded Byzantine mosaics, and its status as a symbol of Venetian wealth and power, from the 11th century on the building has been known by the nickname Chiesa d'Oro (Church of gold).

Schlossberg, The Castle ruins in Hohenfels, Bavaria, Germany

This is the tower of Schlossberg castle. It is the only remain of the castle that is visible around Hohenfels. Hohenfels is a municipality in Neumarkt, Upper Palatinate in Bavaria, Germany. It is also the home of the U.S. Military Base or the CMTC, Combat Maneuver Training Center.

The original castle was built in the 14th century.

This was taken last spring 2010. The tulips add beauty to it.

Europe Travel in Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Frankfurt am Main is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany. It is simply called as Frankfurt. This city is the financial center of Germany and the the largest financial center in continental Europe. It is home to the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, the Frankfurt Trade Fair, the European Central Bank, the German Federal Bank and the many large commercial banks.

The images you see below were taken in Römerberg (written in English as Roemerberg), a famous square in Frankfurt.

a fountain in the middle of Römerberg. I also love the interesting and historical buildings in the background. These images were taken during my second visit last November 2010.

The Römer, a medieval building in Frankfurt am Main and also a famous landmark of this city. This historical building has been a Rathaus or city hall of Frankfurt.

Frankfurt is Germany’s second most expensive city, and the 48th most expensive in the world. It is also named as a world city.

The Windmill in Amsterdam, Netherlands

I believed most of you are very familiar about windmills and its purposes. Visiting Netherlands without seeing any windmill seems like you did not visit it. Today, there are around 1000 mills left compared to 9000 in the past. These are the words I heard clearly from our tourist guide as we visited Amsterdam, Netherlands. These mills contributed to the history of this country until today.

One of the windmills we saw during our visit last summer 2010.

This Dutch windmill in Amsterdam was built in 1757 and is identified as De 1100 Roe. It is a smock mill of the type called by the Dutch a grondzeiler ("ground sailer"), since the sails almost reach the ground.

A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational motion by means of adjustable vanes called sails. The main use is for a grinding mill powered by the wind, reducing a solid or coarse substance into pulp or minute grains, by crushing, grinding, or pressing. Windmills have also provided energy to sawmills, paper mills, hammermills, and windpumps for obtaining fresh water from underground or for drainage (especially of land below sea level). wikipedia.

The Royal Palace of Brussels in Belgium

The Royal Palace of Brussels is the most imposing building in the capital city of Brussels, Belgium. It is called in French language as Palais Royal de Bruxelles and is the official palace of the King of the Belgians. It was modified by King Leopold II in 1904. It is located in front of Brussels Park where we also had the chance to sit and relax.

a lion statue in front of the Palace fence.
These images were taken during our visit last August 2010.

the beautiful garden in front of the palace.

The palace is situated in front of Brussels Park. A long square called the Paleizenplein/Place des Palais separates the palace from the park. The middle axis of the park marks both the middle peristyle of the palace and the middle of the facing building on the other side of the park, which is the Palace of the Nation (the Belgian Federal Parliament building). The two facing buildings are said to symbolize Belgium's system of government: a constitutional monarchy.

Eiffel Tower in Paris, France

This is the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France climbing to the cloudy and misty skies of the city. It is considered to be the famous landmark of Paris. I took this image as we were in Trocadero during my second visit in August 2010. You can also find the fountain in Trocadero in my image below. For me, Eiffel Tower is an amazing work of art and architecture.
The Eiffel Tower (French: La Tour Eiffel, nickname La dame de fer, the iron lady) is an 1889 iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris that has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The tallest building in Paris,[10] it is the most-visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year. Named for its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair.

The tower stands 324 metres (1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building. It was the tallest man-made structure in the world from its completion until the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest structure in France after the 2004 Millau Viaduct.
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