Thursday, May 07, 2009

Stage 19 - Seeg (pic)

Neuschwanstein castle, from Füssen.

Just had to include this one - a glorious (OK, touristy) place we've been to before. But it is amazing.

5 comments:

MW said...

I don't think any of us will ever complain that you're posting too many pictures, whether you think they're touristy or not! ; )

Your write up today made me go read all about "war elephants". Good stuff! I thought Hanibal's elephants died due to the cold, but apparently it's not so. They died because the Romans adjusted their tacticts and were able to defeat them.

Check this out:
"A war elephant is an elephant trained and guided by humans for combat. Their main use was in charges, to trample the enemy and/or break their ranks.
Hannibal led war elephants in a famous march across the Alps during the Second Punic War and terrified the Roman legions. As had Alexander, the Romans eventually developed tactics to neutralize the dangerous elephant charges.
In Hannibal's last battle (Zama, 202 BC), his elephant charge was ineffective because the Roman maniples simply made way for them to pass.
More than a century later, in the battle of Thapsus (February 6, 46 BC), Julius Caesar armed his fifth legion (Alaudae) with axes and commanded his legionaries to strike at the elephant's legs. The legion withstood the charge, and the elephant became its symbol. Thapsus was the last significant use of elephants in the West."

There you go Russ, something to share with your colleagues over hopefully some flavorful german food!

(Nasty humid in Austin today)
Mike Wilen

Unknown said...

Gosh, I don't think I can top Mike's post for the day except to add have a big ol' German beer for me, please. Doing great my friend! How's the cold and cough?
Cathy Bridge

alma said...

Wow...your blog continues to inspire and now thanks to Mike I have learned some new stuff in history...

ann said...

Beautiful pictures Russ! Hope the cold is getting better. Most people barely make it to the couch when they have a cold and you have ran across two countries! Stick to your plan because it sounds like it's working. Enjoy the beer!

Rob Secker said...

been there!