LANGUAGE & LANDMARKS - 11/03/2008
Travel is Rewarding! Whether it is done for business or pleasure, travel expands our world literally and figuratively.
To make the most of every travel opportunity, it’s essential to know something about the language of your destination country.
Language, along with an understanding of a country’s culture, holds the key to successfully communicating abroad whatever the
situation. Managing a global business adds a special urgency to acquire language familiarity – spoken or written – quickly and
conveniently. The experts at Global LT can provide language training, translation, and interpretation whenever and wherever you
need it... that’s our specialty.
We hope you enjoy receiving Global LT’s Language & Landmarks in your mailbox. We hope they demonstrate our expertise so that, when the need
arises for language training, cultural training, translation or interpretation services at your company, you’ll think of Global LT as
your solution provider. Please feel free to forward these tips to others within your organization who can benefit from them.
Visit www.Global-LT.com and read past insights as well as all the services we offer to help your business achieve more globally.
Global LT’s Language & Landmarks for this month focuses on Guten Tag and Herzlich Willkommen.
Guten Tag and Herzlich Willkommen to Neuschwanstein (New Swan Stone) Castle in Bavaria,
Germany. If the fairy tale spires and turrets look at all familiar, it may be because Neushwanstein was the model
for Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle, one of the trademarks for Disney theme parks all over the world. King Ludwig II,
often called Mad Ludwig, began construction of this palace in1869 and planned its completion for 1872. His vision was
inspired by the beauty of the Hohenschwangau Valley, where the castle stands, and was a tribute to Richard Wagner, the
famous German composer of an opera entitled Lohengrin, the Swan Knight. Ludwig identified with Lohengrin, and was a
devotee of Wagner, a brilliant composer and conductor who greatly influenced European classical music. This beautiful
structure, originally known as “Neu Hohenschwangau”, was designed by a theater set director instead of an architect,
which might account for its dreamlike, other worldly aura. It wasn’t until 1884 when Ludwig finally took up residence
in the still incomplete palace. Sadly he only lived there for a total of 11 nights. Economic woes, poor leadership
and general political chaos surrounded his reign and he was declared insane and unfit to rule by a board of cabinet-appointed
psychiatrists who never even examined him! Just three days later he died under mysterious circumstances, and the
castle, which never even had a throne, remained incomplete. Cultures around the world are brimming with fascinating
histories, intriguing people, romance, art, music and a language that describes these elements in a unique and
unparalleled way. Why limit ourselves to speaking one language?
-- Mary Beauregard, Global LT Intercultural Consultant
Global LT’s Cultural Training Programs - Travel is Rewarding
Neuschwanstein Castle
Global LT - Language Training, Cultural Training, Translation Solutions
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