Back in 1991 when Margaret and I went to Germany, Austria, and Switzerland on a bus tour, we stopped to see Linderhof castle in Germany. We only got a glimpse of Neuschwanstein, but toured Linderhof. Neuschwanstein is such an iconic castle, even the inspiration for Disney's Sleeping Beauty Castle in California. But we loved visiting Linderhof. It was gorgeous.

Neuschwanstein:

• Located in the Bavarian Alps of Germany not far from Munich.

• Built for Louis II of Bavaria, sometimes called Mad King Ludwig and the fairytale king.

• One of three royal palaces, it is in 13th century Romanesque style.

• Begun in 1869, it was not finished by Louis's death in 1886, and is in fact, not completely finished to this day.

• Ludwig only slept 11 nights in the castle.

• Had many modern conveniences, toilets with automatic flushing, running water, warm air heating system for the entire building.

• Built of brick and covered in limestone found near Swan Lake in Alterschorofen.

• King Ludwig admired the work of composer Richard Wagner and many of the rooms of the castle contain characters from Wagner's operas in paintings.

• Wagner never visited the castle as he died before it was finished.

• Neuschwanstein means "New Swan Stone," from Wagner's opera's character, the Swan Knight.

Linderhof:

• Located in the Ammerhau Alps in Germany

• The name comes from a mighty weeping-willow, Linde in German

• The smallest of the three royal castles, the only one that was completely finished, in 1878

• The castle has only 10 rooms, 4 which were waiting rooms for the servants.

• Known as the King's Hut, it was built as a hunting lodge and belonged to Ludwig II's father, Maximilian II

• Ludwig wanted it to be the New Versailles, is a Rococo palace in French style

• The King's bed is 2 meters (6.56 feet) by 2.5 (8.20 feet) meters wide

• In the dining room, the table magically disappears into the floor, goes to the kitchen where it is set with food and sent back. The King designed it this way so he didn't have to see his servants or be bothered during meals.

• There is a hall of mirrors as in Versailles.

• The formal gardens are divided into 5 sections decorated with sculptures of the continents, seasons, and elects.

Tags: flashback friday, germany, castles, linderhof, neuschwanstein