In the early 17-th century, Heidelberg played a key role in the Rosicrucian movement, which inspired us to visit.
Our hotel was located high on the hill overlooking Heidelberg in the Oden Wald (Odin's Forrest). We had a glorious view of the city below and enjoyed a lovely walk through nature each morning and evening complete with gentle water falls of Spring snow melt.
Here, a ruined three-story castle wall displays the heros on the first level, the virtues on the second level and the gods on the third level. Jupiter and Apollo were set in the place of highest honor, as rulers attempted to connect their rule to the sun god (Apollo) and the king of the gods (Jupiter).
Elizabeth's Gate at Heidelberg Castle is said to have been constructed in one day to celebrate the marraige of Elizabeth and Frederick V.
Courtyard at Heidelberg castle with an "ancient" tree and lovely fountain.
Graceful window...
Wandering through the city, we encountered this lovely gate with Venus and Mars dramatically depicted as “war and peace”.
View of Heidelberg from our hotel room high on the hill.
View of Heidelberg from Heidelberg castle.
Rothenburg is a completely walled medieval town that is both a picture postcard and a wonderful place to contemplate life over the centuries. Much easier on the eye than signage in the US. Also, a craftsman is employed to create the sign. We returned again on this trip for the fifth time and we never tire of this inspirational, medieval town.
You can never take too many photos in Rothenburg. We must have a million photos like this one and each is dear to us.
Love the craftsmanship of the signage that marks shops, hotels and restaurants in Germany and Austria. This photo is a view of the signage for our hotel, the Kloster Stuble, from our room.
Since Rothenburg is completely walled, many great shots present themselves as you walk the wall and peer through.
Rotherburg is set upon a hill and below in a lovely valley sheep graze, a river gently flows and a delightful village beckons...
Rothenburg tower.
Wolframs-Eschenbach is the birthplace of Wolfram von Eschenbach, the 13-th century poet who wrote the Grail story of Parzival. From the perspective of the Astrology of Location, this city and Bavaria are very special locations. I have a crossroads, where the energy of all three mapping systems (Astro*Carto*Graphy, Geodetics, Local Space) cross and connect my karmic past with my highest potential or dharma. Tammy has exact Geodetic Resonance with the Midheaven in her birth chart! For both of us, the result is magic!
We have just legally changed our last name to from Wolfgram to Wolfram, which is an original spelling of the name in German. Wolfram literally translates to Wolf (wolf) and Raven (ram). Here I am standing next to a fountain dedicated to Wolfram von Eschenbach. The coat of arms for this city displays both a wolf and a raven.
In Wolfram-Eschenbach, a cool museum (all in German with no English audio guide) presents multi-media exhibits honoring all of Wolfram's writings. Wolfram employed mythic and astrological themes in his work and, in one exhibit, the museum depicts the characters of Parzival represented by tarot images - cool!
Ettal is a beautiful little town situated peacefully between two mountains in the foothills of the Alps. Ettal is centered around a gorgeous, active abbey (Kloster Ettal), which is still home to many monks and famous for its schnapps and excellent beer!
A dreamy feature of small town architecture in Germany is that the homes often have wonderful painted images like the deer and hunter depicted here.
Speaking of beer, nothing puts a smile on your face faster than an unexpected sunny day in early March and a beer garden situated in the Alps!
Just outside of Ettal, among the Bavarian Alps, are the magical castles of King Ludwig II. King Ludwig loved the idea of being an ultimate ruler, like the gods. As a result, images of the gods abound both inside the castles and on the grounds. At Schloss Linderhof, high atop the castle, you find Atlas holding the earth complete with the signs of the zodiac.
It takes a lot of strength to hold up Atlas!
While the castles are wonderful, the beauty of the Alps and nature are always around you. Each trip to Schloss Linderhof includes strolling the park and visiting Tammy’s favorite tree, which is a 220 year old Beech. We have never seen this tree with leaves because we always travel in Winter/Spring - someday....
Innsbruck is tucked into a valley in the Tyrolean Alps in Austria and it seemed as if we were never without a view of the Alps.
More tyrolean views and a cool scuplture.
Love the snow caps!
Street musicians, like this dulcimer player, abound and add a special charm to the day. Over the month, we also heard a joking accordion player, a string quartet, Transylvanian folk musicians, rocking bag pipes and traditional Bavarian bands.
We learned about Kufstein from the songs the Kufstein Lied and Kufstein Waltz that our Minnesota friends in the bands Alpenrose and die Wolpertinger perform. If you ever want a place to relax amongst true old world charm for a few days (or melt away like the Alpen snow becoming mountain streams each spring), Kufstein is a great choice. Unfortunately, we had only one night.
I found this sun dial with the signs of the zodiac high the town hall in the main shopping area of Kufstein.
Vienna is a city filled with art, gardens, tasty cake and great coffee. Both traditional and modern, Athena stands before the Austrian Parliament, which was designed to connect the democracy of Austria to that of the ancient Greeks. This building is very well maintained and the picture does not do justice to it. The mosaics and gold leafing are incredible in the sunlight!
A close-up shot of Athena holding Nike, the symbol of Victory.
In the main entrance hall of the Vienna art museum, a view through the oculus to the floors above reveals just a glimpse of this gorgeous museum. If the museum were void of art, the building itself would be worth a visit.
A modern mosaic in a park in Vienna representing the signs of the zodiac.
The shield of Athena at Schloss Schoenbrun in Vienna, representing the triumph of wisdom over the curse and life-denying energy of Medusa.
I have always wanted a traditional Tyrolean jacket and finally found the perfect one!
This wonderful clock, complete with the signs of the zodiac and position of the Sun, is the first image to greet you as you emerge from the subway in Munich’s Marienplatz or main square.
On the final day of our trip, it snowed. While the driving was slow and the snow blocked the view of the alps, the scenery was gorgeous!
Thank you Germany and Austria for a wonderful adventure!
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In the early 17-th century, Heidelberg played a key role in the Rosicrucian movement, which inspired us to visit.