Travels with Tricia

Author: Tricia A. Mitchell

  • Perusing the Pumpkin Patch

    After ten years of life abroad sans an authentic jack o’lantern, I was delighted to awaken my Halloween spirit by visiting a veritable American pumpkin patch last autumn, following a splendid long weekend in Napa Valley. The California farm’s scruffy scarecrows, colorful gourds, and pumpkins transformed into storybook characters brought to mind some of my favorite Halloween…

  • An Autumn Afternoon at the Neuschwanstein Castle

    As we inched closer to the Neuschwanstein Castle, I couldn’t help but think it looked even more fairy tale-esque thanks to the autumnal hues Mother Nature had dressed it in. Rich yellow, copper and crimson leaves framed the world-famous castle on the craggy rocks, contrasting sharply with the lime-green fields below it.

  • The Lüftlmalerei-Adorned Windows of Oberammergau, Germany

    Oberammergau, Germany is famous for the colorful frescoes that adorn the exteriors of its homes and businesses. This painting technique is known as Lüftlmalerei.  Luft means ‘air’ in German. It’s believed that the term illustrates how fresco artists must work quickly to apply watercolor paint to the wet plaster before it dries in the open air. During…

  • A Stroll Through Paris’ Sainte-Chapelle

    Shimmering like a radiant jewel box, Sainte-Chapelle is often overlooked by visitors to Paris, who only visit Notre Dame Cathedral. I’d long read how Sainte-Chapelle is a must-see and favorite among shutterbugs, yet it took me several visits to the City of Light to see this Gothic masterpiece.

  • A pair of bicyclists ride on a pedestrian lane, in the shadows of Mount Kofel, a mountain peak in Oberammergau, Germany.

    Hiking to the Kofel, Oberammergau’s Signature Mountain

    Towering over the village of Oberammergau is the Kofel, a Matterhorn-shaped mountain with an elevation of 1,342 meters (4,400 feet). The name Kofel means “cone-shaped mountain” in Celtic, and so hints at the different peoples who once passed through this mountainous part of Germany. The Bavarians we’ve met in this picturesque town are well-versed in the art…

  • A Peek at Linderhof Palace

    Schloss Linderhof is the smallest of three castles built by King Ludwig II in Germany’s state of Bavaria in the mid to late 1800s. Simultaneously referred to as the “Fairy Tale King” and “Mad King Ludwig,” eccentric Ludwig is perhaps best known for having commissioned Neuschwanstein Castle, the so-called “Cinderella” or “Disney Castle.” King Ludwig…