Bucket list destination of the week: The Shleissheim Palace complex. Friday's are a tough one for doing much exploring because our kids get out of school early, like right after lunch early. Wherever we choose to go has to be nearby and we have to be able to fit it all in within a short amount of time. While I was looking up things to do in Munich I found that Shleissheim fit the bill perfectly. It is only 14 km away (about 9 miles) and with no guided tours we could wander the Old, New and Lustheim Palaces and gardens at our own pace making sure we were back in time for pickup.
We set off in two cars and, with only a small snafu in the navigation system, we were at the New Palace doors as soon as they opened at 9 am. As I mentioned, the tour was self-guided so we leisurely wandered from spectacular room to even more spectacular room as we chatted and caught up on each other's lives. I'm not sure we retained much information about what we were seeing, but the company was so incredible that it almost seemed beside the point. Plus, if I have to be really honest, once you have seen about a bajillion palaces/churches/castles it starts to all run together anyway.
A group photo in front of the New Palace.
Impressive from the very moment you walk in and look up at the grand staircase, the New Palace was constructed in 1701 after the military defeat of Max Emanuel, the now not so popular King. The Baroque Palace, which had been intended to be a four-winged complex that enclosed the Old Palace, the hunting lodge of Lustheim, a canal system, and the gardens, was downsized to a single building shell. But no matter, it is still considered one of the most impressive Baroque palaces in Europe and the gardens are some of the most important.
The grand entryway and staircase.
The ceilings were painted by Jacopo Amigoni in 1722 and are still the originals (save a very minor touchup).
Back outside and another selfie in front of the Old Palace...which didn't have much to take photos of inside so we walked the length of the gardens and canal.
The fountains were going off as we were walking by! This is the back of the New Palace building.
And creating rainbows!
The original Lustheim hunting lodge is all the way at the end of the canal and currently houses the porcelain of the 1700's.
And this cute mouse orchestra.
It was getting late and we still needed lunch so back through the gardens we walked.
And drove the short way back to school where we grabbed a quick lunch and made plans for our next adventure.