You only see what you know (Goethe)
Mirabell Palace (Schloss Mirabell) on the left side is especially known for its marble hall as wedding location. By the way Mirabell Gardens was also a set in the movie “Sound of Music”. On the picture above one can see the hindquarters of the Winged Horse (Pegasus) where Maria and the children danced around.
The Residential Palace of Ludwigsburg (Residenzschloss Ludwigsburg) is one of the largest Baroque complexes among the castles of Baden-Württemberg. A park behind the palace shows scenes from well-known children’s fairy tales with elaborate buildings.
Lower Belvedere Palace (Unteres Belvedere) and Upper Belvedere Palace (Oberes Belvedere) constitute an ensemble near Vienna Main Railway Station (Hauptbahnhof). Both palaces are venues of a museum and gallery named Belvedere. Next to the Lower Belvedere one also can visit art exhibitions in the former Orangery and the Palace Stables of the ensemble.
Bensberg Palace (Schloss Bensberg) was designed by Italian Baroque architect Matteo Alberti in the beginning of the 18th century. Today the former hunting lodge for the Counts Palatine of the Rhine houses a 5-Star Grand hotel.
In Paderborn I visited a palace in the style of Weser Renaissance named Schloss Neuhaus. In 1994 a garden festival took place on the grounds of the palace (Schlosspark) so I had a nice walk along beautiful plantings which were still there.
It was really a cold day when I took this photo of a frozen fountain on the grounds of the Würzburg Residence (Würzburger Residenz). The Baroque palace which was completed in 1744 is part of the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In the Bohemian town of Jindřichův Hradec, a castle of the same name is located. Its former German name was Neuhaus (New House). The literal translation of the Czech name means Henry Castle. Worth seeing is the roundel from the year 1596, which is counted among the major works of the Bohemian Renaissance.
The excursion along the Ilm Valley Cycle Path (Ilmtal-Radweg) takes us to the garden of Kromsdorf Palace. At first, the Renaissance palace looks like many others. But his park is special. 64 stone busts adorn the garden wall. The exact assignment of the busts is controversial, which even increases the appeal of a walk.
The city castle (Stadtschloss) stands out due to its tower. High above it towers over the castle building and is covered with a baroque hood. After major fires, the residence was renewed several times. In 1789, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was involved in one of these rebuilding projects as head of the castle construction commission (Schlossbaukommission).
This sundial is one of two pieces attached to a corner of Albrechtsburg. The Albrechtsburg is deemed one of the first palace buildings in Germany. Even from a distance, you can see the towering white walls of the late Gothic castle when approaching Meissen.
The Johannbau, a wing of the former Residenzschloss Dessau, houses the Dessau City Museum (Museum für Stadtgeschichte). The edifice was built in the style of Early Renaissance and is a remain of the palace which was destroyed in World War II.
From the balcony of Neuschwanstein Castle, I had this view of the nearby Hohenschwangau Castle. Whereas Neuschwanstein is known as a dream castle built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria, Hohenschwangau was the castle of his parents and his childhood. Living there, he probably forged out plans for a castle of his own the first time.