Munich's Neuschwanstein Castle #TravelTips

Once upon a time, deep in the heart of Bavaria, there lived a king named Ludwig II who had a flair for the dramatic and a serious obsession with fairy tales. Instead of just daydreaming, he went full Disney-princess-core and built himself Neuschwanstein Castle - a literal dream perched on a hill, complete with towers, turrets and tragic royal backstory. Legend (aka Google) says this iconic beauty inspired the Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland and Cinderella’s Castle in Disney World. So yes, technically, if you’ve been to Disneyland, you’ve kind of been here… but let’s be honest, nothing beats the real deal.

Now, let me spill the tea on what actually went down when I tried to visit this fairytale fortress. We didn’t get the online tickets (of course), so we gambled our way there — naik train from Munich (2 hours to Füssen), sambung bus to the castle stop, and sprinted like we were in Amazing Race. Alhamdulillah, berjaya dapat offline ticket — BUT you must datang awal ok! Entrance tickets can be booked online at www.hohenschwangau.de, and you can cover both Neuschwanstein Castle and Hohenschwangau Castle in a day. Entry is tied to a specific time slot, so jangan buat acah-acah chill sangat. Photos are not allowed inside (yes, sad), but trust me, the view from outside is already postcard material.

Neuschwanstein Castle Reel: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKL6rkCPuDA/

1. Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany, served as a major inspiration for the designs of both the Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland and the Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World. 

2. Tickets for Neuschwanstein Castle are available online at  www.hohenschwangau.de

3. You can cover both Neuschwanstein Castle and Hohenschwangau Castle in one day

4. Tickets must be booked in advance and are valid for a specific tour time. 

5. We couldn't get the online tickets, and took a chance and went to the castle to get an offline tickets. And we manage to get them, BUT MUST ARRIVE EARLY.

6. You can reach Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein castle on foot and by HORSE CARRIAGE. Antara ada duit ngan takde jerrr...

Neuschwanstein Castle Reel: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKL6rkCPuDA/

7. There's shuttle-bus to Neuschwanstein castle BUT depending season and weather. So check the website before you go.

8. Photos are not allowed in both the castles.

9. We stayed in Munich, and the train took approximatelt 2 hours to Füssen train stop. Then proceed with town bus to Neuschwanstein Castle bus stop.

10. No halal food around, so q brought 1qasnack and makan kenyang-kenyang before gerak.

Food-wise? Halal food is non-existent there, sorry geng. So we makan siap-siap and bawak jajan. Kalau tak, nanti tengah selfie dengan view cantik, perut pulak buat soundtrack horror. All in all, this castle is worth every step, every euro, and every mini drama. Just plan well, book early, and bring your patience (and snacks). Till next time — may your trips be magical and your tickets always confirmed!

Now, when it comes to getting up to the castle, you have a few options: hike (for the sporty-sporty ones), horse carriage (kalau feeling royal and ada extra euros), or shuttle bus — but the bus depends on season and weather, so jangan malas check website dulu. We jalan kaki je sebab duit tu simpan untuk souvenir yang tak seberapa tapi mahal. Speaking of which, there’s a souvenir shop near the ticket center — full of castle-themed goodies and stuff you don’t need but suddenly must have.

#TravelTips | Where to stay in Berlin, Germany

This is very key, you need to read this and take note on what I am going to share.

#TravelTips 1 : Never plan a trip during a convention in town.

#TravelTips 2 : If you plan your trip and realized it later, then please please please book your accommodation way in advance, else you’ll get into a big trouble like us.

Pic source : Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof website

Now that I got your attention.

This Scandi cum Europe trip was planned yet ad hoc. Why do I say that?

We have been planning for awhile but yet to purchase the flight tix, and when we did, it was 1 month before the trip. When our busy schedule and all, we apparently did not book anything except our flight. So. Our plan was to book our first accommodation and decide it in Copenhagen on when to stay in Iceland, and when in Iceland, purchase a flight tix to wherever and book an accommodation right after. Smart right. NOT.

Upon arriving in Berlin, we immediately fell in love, on everything we see, do, eat (there’s a lot of halal food near the highly populated Turskish/Middle East area), history, souvenirs and SHOPPING (because there’s Primark there and Anna wouldn’t mind coming here daily [me too *wink*]). The plan was 3d2n in Berlin and on the 2^nd day we decided to make it 4d3n and we figure it was easy to get an accommodation hence we went and book our bus the day after and you can guess…. We couldn’t get a room on the 4^th day. What happened in Amsterdam is going to happen again, history is going to repeat itself. We gonna sleep on street. I see this coming.

We tried to find an affordable accommodation; we tried everything, from hostel to Agoda/Expedia etc, to Air BNB or 1 to 2 star hotel, that was how desperate we were. Then as Anna was showering I bumped into a local hostel site, the hostel is located near Berlin main train terminal, which is perfect as our bus is departing late at night, we can just walk to the station, safely. I gamble and booked, worried that I might not find another place that is affordable, near and convenient. The only worries were, is it dirty and noisy, after all, it is a hostel (wanting to set the right expectation for myself).

Pic source : Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof website

Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof Hostel was simply perfect (unfortunately I did not manage to take any pic as there were already guests in the room, so I will use the visual from google and the hostel itself). Located at approximately 10 mins walk from Berlin Hauptbahnhof (main train stationattach to a small mall), near the hypermarket and walking distance to some of the attractions is a place if you are a budget traveller. Everything is clean and proper, facilities was great if you ok with just basics.

#TravelTips 3 : They also offer storage area.

#TravelTips 4 : Their canteen is super huge, they even have an ATM machine at the lobby.

#TravelTips 5 : WiFi is only available at the lobby.

#TravelTips 6 : Common toilet/bathroom for dorm.

Family Room

Pic source : Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof website

And they even have family rooms, apartment (1-6 mths rental) aside from the usual hostel dorm.

Family Room

A double bed and a bunk bed

Bathroom with shower and a separate toilet

Balcony

Apartment (Minimum rental period - 2 months)

One bed/living room with a double bed (160 cm), a sofa, a dining table and a wardrobe

Balcony

Kitchen with refrigerator, electric cooker, dishes, washing machine

Newly renovated bath room with shower

Central heating

Laminate floor

Flat screen TV with DVD player

Internet (DSL, 16.000 kBit/s) and telephoneflat rate

Apartment

Pic source : Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof website

I kinda like this place and wouldn’t mind to stay here again, probably will get a twin sharing room.

Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof

Lehrter Straße 68

10557 Berlin

Tel. 0049 (0)30 398350-0

Email : gaestehaus(at)berliner-stadtmission.de

Frankfurter in Frankfurt. And it's Halal!

Was browsing my Germany photos and realized I hardly (well 1 blog entry todate) blog about my trip. I guess there’s nothing much for you to blog about if you did a layover trip. Well, there was the Frankfurt old town and the factory outlet, that’s about it. For me at least.

Insisting myself to blog about Germany makes me relook al the whole Germany album. Ah hah! Found it. This will be a text heavy entry (which is quite rare for so I hope you read thru lah), enjoy….

As usual, when I travel, one of the main issue will be food; finding halal food to be exact. Of course alternatively I can go for pure vegetarian food, seafood, pork free and kosher (not in any particular order), but my first options will be halal food. The same goes for my layover city – Frankfurt. Having stopping here for less than 24 hours enroute to Balkan, I didn’t put any stress on it, maggi me will do. Yes, am simple liddat.

You know what? Was I wrong. Very wrong. So very very wrong.

“When you least expected, it’ll spellbound you. Always.” True?

Our journey begin when we arrived Frankfurt am Main Flughafen Fernbahnhof; the main train station, a short walk to the hotel we were staying. As I walk and look around, getting familiar with the surrounding I soon realized that there were a couple of halal shops, all within 5-10 minutes walking distance. I remembered saying to myself “I beginning to like Frankfurt, I underestimated this city”, obviously after the journey outskirt to the factory outlet, I told myself to revisit this city. A definite must.

Since halal restos are at abundance here, I do not need to ration my Brahim food stock *wink*, the days we were in Frankfurt, we will eat out.

I only have one concern though, frankfurter! I am in Frankfurt so obviously I should try their frankfurters. As we walk into the old town, Anna was leaping with joy “I must try this and this and that!” and I was only hoping to see a halal frankfurter stall/cart. Almost feeling disappointed, I saw this young chap selling frankfurters in green shirt, green container and green umbrella instead of the colourful rainbow coloured umbrella. Curiosity took over, and I made a beeline over and saw the word I was looking for “HALAL”, “Yeszaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…” I told myself (masa tuh rasa nak buat lompatan berpusing macam ‘Moero Attack’ hokkay). I told him what I want and eagerly waited. Snapped a few pictures *proud moment*.

Makanya… the taste?!?

Its ok, yummy but takde lah sampai termimpi-mimpi nak makan 3 juta kali lagi. Hehhehehhehe…..

Frankfurt Old Town : Touch & Go

Lie I will not.

So, the big question is “Can you cover Frankfurt in a day?”. 

Well, that depends, if you just wish to a touch a go kinda a trip then the answer is possible. You can do an 8 hours in Frankfurt too if you are kiasu on pinning on number of countries and cities but my sincere advice is to not to. During the 1 day I spent upon arriving in Europe (before departing for my Balkan countries), Anna and I decided to venture to a factory outlet located outskirt of Frankfurt and as the bus took us on an 1 hour journey to Wertheim Village, I must say, the journey was picturesque and the town were both quaint and charming. A place I wish to stay for at least a night. One of the best view which I hope to do is rent a bike and cycle at the country site. I feel the longing by just thinking about it while writing this entry. I guess I have reached a point where city dwelling is not in my wish list, not even the off beaten track, now am just looking for tranquility while traveling, doing what the locals do, take a bike ride and picnic by the river. Sounded over the top? This was the scene I saw during my trip to Wertheim and looks relaxing.

What did I do during that 1 day I spent in Frankfurt on my way to Malaysia?

Not much really, I visited the city prominent landmarks and attractions while at the same time did a little shopping. Jadilah kan…

Römerberg 
The Römer is a medieval building in the Altstadt of Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and one of the city's most important landmarks. The Römer is located opposite the Old St. Nicholas church and has been the city hall (Rathaus) of Frankfurt for over 600 years. Source : Wikipedia

This is basically the landmark for Frankfurt, kira kalau tak pergi tak sah lah. And this is where you get your souvenirs at a reasonable price. Everything is within walking distance from Römer so you can use this as a meeting point.

Seufzerbrücke or Bridge of Sighs
Part of the Römer, the residents of Frankfurt who paid their taxes in the North wing. So they needed to cross this bridge and aptly named this the Seufzerbrücke or Bridge of Sighs.

After googling, this is all I can find tapi prominent gak lah sebab google ada kan *wink*.

St. Catherine's Church (Katharinenkirche)
St. Catherine's Church is the largest Lutheran church in Frankfurt am Main, dedicated to the martyred early Christian saint, Catherine of Alexandria. It is located in the old city centre near one of the most famous plazas in the city, the Hauptwache (Main Guard). Source : Wikipedia

This is located just next to Hauptwache Building and this whole area is called the Hauptwache Plaza, apparently very famous around the old town. Dah balik Malaysia baru tau. Keh keh keh…

Hauptwache Building
The baroque building which gave the square its name was built in 1730. It was the headquarters of the city's Stadtwehr militia when Frankfurt was an independent city state (→ Free City of Frankfurt) and also contained a prison. Source : Wikipedia

Didn't even know this is a famous building, I thought it was a nice looking restaurant. Hehehhehee.... nasib baik tangkap gambo

Eschenheimer Turm
Eschenheim Tower was a city gate, part of the late-medieval fortifications of Frankfurt am Main, and is a landmark of the city. The tower, which was erected at the beginning of the fifteenth century, is at once the oldest and most unaltered building in the largely reconstructed Frankfurter Neustadt (new town), now better known as the Frankfurt-Innenstadt (city center). Source : Wikipedia

Since this was a touch and go trip, I only managed to walk pass it and take a few shots (well, 3 shots)

MyZeil
MyZeil is just a ashopping mall but I was so fascinated with the glass facade since forever that I make a point to visit this mall, it looks as it the glass been sucked in into the interior. Cool giler. It is located at a shopping street and on this street, Adidas shop bersepah. Sekian, gi shopping!

Frankfurt Cathedral
This Roman Catholic Gothic church is located in the centre of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The cathedral is the largest religious building in the city and a former collegiate church. As former election and coronation church of the Holy Roman Empire, the cathedral is one of the major buildings of the Empire history and was mainly in the 19th century a symbol of national unity. Source : Wikipedia

My landmark when I walk from the train station to Römer as it is the tallest building within the area. Takde apa nak cite kat sini sebab masa it was being restored so I was looking at scaffolding most of the time jer lah. 

Eiserner Steg
Eiserner Iron Bridge is a pedestrian bridge built in 1868 across the Main River in Frankfurt am Main, connecting the Römerberg to the Sachsenhausen district. It is a riveted steel truss bridge 170 m long. It has two pillars and attributed to the Gothic Revival style. At the time of it's construction the use of the term "iron" was common, and the bridge was so named. Source : Wikimapia

I did take a walk on this bridge and roam on the other side.



Like seriously, touch and go kinda trip is mainly walking pass somewhere take a few shots and move on. Nothing to write and nothing much to experience… the only different is arriving to a new city or countries and seeing everything for the first time. Hence, I always advice to not do a touch a go trip, 1 full one day in a city need to exclude night time (or sleeping time), transportation, meal time etc, at the end you probably have few hours to spare in 1 particular city.

So, can one do a day trip in Frankfurt? Yes, tapi cam yang I blog lah… seimbas lalu jer.