The morning schedule was the same except this time we were going to go to the Sächsische Schweiz (the so-called Saxon Switzerland). The ride there wasn't too bad, especially because I had no idea what to except from the day and wasn't anticipating anything. Our destination was Festung Königstein (Fortress Königstein [Royal Stone]). This place was massive. Standing in front of it, you couldn't see the whole thing at once, it seemed. We decided to get an audio tour to make things a little more interesting, but we were wandering a little too fast and walked out of order because we only had about two hours and some change. The castle, the view, the people working there, all of it was really cool. They had people dressed up in old clothing, cooking and eating as if they were from the original time era and they had men marching around in formation and having mock battles. We practically had to run around the whole castle to see it all once we realized exactly how large it was.
(Main entrance besides an elevator - a small turm[tower] that was blocked off - a shot of how the edges of the castle looked)
(I was trying to take a picture of Rachel, but it just reflected back. - The marvelous view from the wall - The beginning of our walk toward Bastei and Felsenburg Neurathen.)
After the castle, we hopped on the bus, ate, and then ventured toward the drop off point of us wandering through a really interesting geological area toward an even more fascinating place. At first it just looked like a forest, then rocks were suddenly towering left and right. The sky began to cloud up and rain, and the rocks and trees blocked a lot of light. Sadly, this meant I could only get a handful of decent pictures. Shortly after it finished raining, we found a bridge and it was decided we would take a group photo. I think it turned out quite well. The journey probably took us about two hours before we made it to Bastei, but it was certainly a great hike. It reminded me of a very mossy Starved Rock.
(Rachel and I taking a picture for our geology friend, Kate - Mossy Rocks - I'm holding up that whoole rock.)
(Group picture, courtesy of Ilja - Rachel and I found ourselves off the beaten path - Endless trees)
The rocks started disappearing and the trees began to thin. Someone pointed out they could see something through the trees. It turned out to be large far away rocks - we had made it to Bastei and the Felsenburg (mountain fortress) Neurathen. Yet another spectacular view. It's fascinating because it seemed so unusual. I'm sure if I talked to a geologist, they might have a reason, but to my untrained eye it was so strange. We wandered around in awe. I tried to find every view possible and get a picture, so that I could look back and have that same feeling (it's really not quite the same). Oh, and of course we played on rocks. Rachel's more of a daredevil than myself though, I don't like the idea of getting to close to the edge. Falling kind of scares me.
(A good view of the rocks - Rachel and I in front of them - Another area, where people had climbed to the top of [natural rock climbing anyone?])
(Another astonishing view of the river - The bridge built between the sides - Some sort of scare crow on the rocks?)
(I unintentionally wore this shirt, but I had to get a picture of me climbing with it. - A ferry that was going to take us across the water to the bus. - A little garden with a beautiful backdrop)
After the adventure in the rocks, we wandered down to the river to catch a ride back to Dresden, where we had ourselves dropped off not to far from the public viewing of the first Fußball-Europameisterschaft 2012 Germany game (European Championship Football). It sounded like it was going to be a lot of fun. What was more impressive about it, was the location. Right on the river across from some of the city's finest buildings. The game was scheduled to start sometime after 8, so I decided to buy some food from a stand. I wish I remembered what it was called because it was deelicious! Sauerkraut, brat, potato, and mustard. If that's not German, I don't know what is! I tried a drink called Diesel, not exactly appetizing, I think I later found out it was coke and beer, somehow it was better than either alone though...
(The local fans - Our view - My delicious food!)
(Germany scored, this is the fans going wild. - A cool statue on our way out.)
At about 2 or 3, most of us wandered back to the Hostel on a tram and hopped in bed.
[As always: more pictures on Shutterfly]
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