Linderhof Palace and the Ettal Monastery/ Pilgrimage Church

The Linderhof Palace is smaller and more quaint than the other giant castles in the area that were in the Ludwig family.  Mad King Ludwig retreated here for the last 8 years of his life surrounded by his Italian Sculptures and manicured gardens.  He became a bit of a hermit and even ate in seclusion.  His dinner table is still on display inside and could be raised from the kitchen below to bring him his dinner which he at alone.  As his entertainment, he had a grotto built close to the palace in some rock nearby.  He was “friendly” with Robert Wagner and enjoyed private Opera performances in this grotto where he was usually the sole audience member.  I don’t think we could have been there on a more beautiful day.  We leisurely toured the grounds, inside, and gardens. 

            
The fountain erupts every 30 minutes. 

After spending a few hours at Linderhof we headed back to Oberammergau and a few attractions nearby.  The Pilgrimage Church and attached Ettal Monastery were an enjoyable side trip just outside of Oberammergau. 
   
Oberammergau is a very dolled up picturesque village.  Almost every house has artwork on the outside, is half timbered, and completely decked out with flowers all summer long.  Besides being picturesque, they are known for wood carving.  People come from all over Germany to train at their wood carving schools.  There were display windows everywhere along the streets to show of some of their talented artists. 
 

   
To make a perfect day over the top, we swung by our favorite restaurant in Germany right by Garmisch.  We love it and it was every bit as good this summer as it was last summer when we first visited Garmish.  It is located right at the bottom of the Alspitze where you get on the tram to take you to the top.  We can never remember the name however!!  Their Schnitzel is lighter in color and way better tasting than up by K-town and the Cheese Spaetzle is the best!!  They also have amazing salad all cut into small shredded pieces.  Yum!  And to finish off the day, we headed back to the apartment and played CRANIUM.