Saxon Switzerland. Bastay Reserve and Königstein Fortress

How harsh nature can be! Naked, unassuming rocks, blackened from time, blown by winds in fierce cold and heat, stand here for centuries, day after day, year after year, a silent reproach to us, people who imagine themselves kings of nature. Here you understand that it is enough for Nature to click a finger and there are no such arrogant and courageous people. It is here that a feeling of reverence for Nature, her strength and wisdom appears. After all, the rocks take their toll.

Here you are not flat, here the climate is different.

The bridge, thrown from rock to rock, stone, floating in the air - this is the creation of human hands, arguing with the forces of nature. The brave and courageous were the people who built it. To look down, from almost half a kilometer high, at the Elbe, at the trees that seem so thin and small, while dragging heavy stones and building a bridge for the likes of us - simple, clumsy tourists with cameras - this is a heroism that is equal to the power of Nature.

And on the neighboring rock lies the military fortress of Königstein. Morose, impregnable. For centuries, its soldiers built to overcome the onslaught of the enemy. But the years passed, the authorities replaced each other, the enemies became friends, and the defenders of the citadel sunk into oblivion. And the fortress remained. As a monument to human strength, perseverance, power ... but also the short duration of military conflicts. Now from the high walls of the fortress, as in the palm of your hand, you can see the landscapes of beautiful Saxony.