Blogs from Hallstatt, Upper Austria, Austria, Europe
July 1st 2011
We woke up early our first morning in Salzburg to take the city tour. After a tricky morning realizing that we had to put coins in a machine to get hot water and that our b and b owner didn't quite understand the concept of bed AND breakfast, we were picked up by the tour company to join the rest of the group. The city tour was about an hour long and the history was fascinating. We saw sights from the Sound of Music movie and palaces built by Austrian kings. The city was definitely proud of their Mozart roots as souvenirs with his face displayed were everywhere! After the tour, we had time to spare before our train so we jumped on a city bus to a mall. We desperately needed to buy a new ... read more
September 22nd 2010
We woke up early. Jer insisted the night before that we pack up for the next few days. We left a few things at the flat. Another sunny day greeted us! I still brought my newly purchased raincoat. The forecasters promise rain this weekend. Even though I am dread to have us in a downpour, I’d appreciate a light drizzle—while wearing my raincoat—to justify my bringing it. We bought more sandwiches for breakfast. This time, I had ham and cheese and Jer had cheese. We settled into our seats for the first leg of our trip and had to transfer a second time to a third train. The journey on the third train was the best, even though we were hot from the sun and the air in the train was stale. The Alps came into ... read more
August 22nd 2010
Hallstatt egy csöppnyi ausztriai barokk kisváros, melynek neve a kelta hagyományok szerint „a só helye”, lakosainak száma 1 000 fő, ami a hely szűke miatt lényegében évek óta nem is változik. A városka érdekessége, hogy egyetlen főutcából (Seestrasse) áll. Különleges ékszere a festői természeti környezetén kívül az a kis gótikus templom, melynek három különösen szép szárnyasoltára van. A helyszűkével küzdő kisváros különös és egyben bizarr nevezetessége a templom kertjében található teraszos temető, melyben a halottak maradványait 10 évente kiássák, majd koponyájukat kifehérítik. A koponyákat festett virág- és babérkoszorúkkal ékesítik, majd a fehér „homlokra” gót betűkkel vésik fel a elhunyt nevét. A templom melletti sziklafalba vájt Csontház így őrzi a megboldogult földi maradványait. A városka a szikl... read more
July 11th 2010
I had to wake up before 8 today because that was when the lady was coming to make me breakfast. I felt a wee bit bad for her coming all the way to the hostel just to make ME breakfast. It consisted of buns, meat, cheese and coffee and very regular breakfast here in Europe so far. After breakfast I did some laundry in the sink and hung them out the window and on the other beds. I did some much needed sewing that I kept putting off. Around 11:00 I went to the train station to figure out how I was getting to Cesky Krumlov from there, since I can't find any place with Internet this was my last option. I was also meeting Cathy who was coming in on the 11:30 train. She was ... read more
May 23rd 2010
Today we took a day trip to Hallstatt in the lake country. This was to be a major stop on our tour and we were planning to spend several restful days there; however mother nature intervened, the cold rainy weather the past week, made the thought of camping in the moutains unsavory. It was only a few days ago that we planned to go today to Hallstatt, which turned out to be the perfect day! We caught the bus, a little more cramped than the train, but that's O.K.. We saw some nice little towns on the way up and saw a wonderful moutain lake at Oberion, where we had to switch form the bus to the train. Winding it's way through the moutains the train dropped us off at an abandoned station across form Hallstatt, ... read more
Another town that, unfortunately, can only be described as "cute"
Published: May 7th 2010Europe » Austria » Upper Austria » Hallstatt
April 9th 2010
After a very "pleasant" train ride through the lakes district of Austria, we stopped at Hallstatt where we took a ferry across the lake to get to the town. We found a guest house where the owner was super nice and they had a museum of items that were found at the bottom of the lake which included a number of Nazi and war relics! He recommended a good restaurant, so we went. I got fresh fish caught from the lake which was amazing (something about the water conditions as to why the fish was so amazing). We took a walk around the area and came across a "bone church" and Megan made friend's with a cat (what's new). On our hike up the mountain to the top of the salt mines, we saw a dope ... read more
Hitlers handymen....Schutzstaffel
Published: May 26th 2009Europe » Austria » Upper Austria » HallstattMay 26th 2009
This next entry is going to be sullen and serious. Today we woke up bright and early and boarded our tour bus and made the 3 hour drive out to a small town called Mauthausen. It was a beautiful day, about 85 degrees, and not a cloud in site. The rolling hills of the area were filled with crops of all kinds. We approached the town and drove up a winding road in our bus and parked in a parking lot near the gates of Mauthausen. I saw the walls of the camp and they looked very old, but still in very good shape. We walked around a bit and finally met up with our guide. He started by showing up where the Schutzstaffel (SS) barracks were located, and the administration offices of the camp. He ... read more
A little hole in the wall Austrian town...
Published: April 24th 2009Europe » Austria » Upper Austria » Hallstatt
April 24th 2009
I wanted a little Austrian town away from the tourists, so I went to the local vacation region called Salzkammergut, pretty much a lakeside paradise! I took a detour leaving Salzburg to see the town of Hallstatt. My guide said it was a treasure, and it was! The train stopped at the Hallstatt station, and you have to take a boat across the lake to get to the town. The boat only had about 4 people on it, including me, so I was happy it was going to be non-touristy. The views... ah, the views. The town is lakeside, cradled in the majestic arms of towering snow-capped mountains. I can see why locals vacation here (see the pics, but I'm sure they don't do it justice...). I got into the small town and walked the entire ... read more
Rick Steves Recommended Hallstatt
Published: September 10th 2008Europe » Austria » Upper Austria » Hallstatt
August 18th 2008
Monday, 8/18 Melissa and I woke up early Monday morning, stuffed our faces at the breakfast buffet, and went to go find the rest of our group at the hostel. It was Shayna's birthday, so I poked into a few shops trying to find a birthday card and a small gift. I thought it was really important to make her feel recognized on her birthday. When we finally got the group together, I made everyone say, out loud, what they wanted to accomplish out of the day. Since my group was so big, there were a lot of conflicting agendas. I don't know why it didn't happen naturally, but I felt it was important that we all verbalized what we wanted. With this exercise proving to be a success, we divided up into groups based on ... read more
April 27th 2008
We left Bavaria today for the last leg of our trip... a tiny town in Austria called Hallstatt. A lake on one side and a mountain on the other, the town is so small, they say you can walk from one end to the other in about 10 minutes. Mom and I tested this theory when she decided that we needed to go back to the parking lot to retrieve something from the car. Angie said she would sit down and have a beer while waiting for us, and we set off in search of the car. She should have known better than to let the two of us go off by ourselves, as neither of us have any navigational skills. The town is built on the side of the mountain, so there's one main road, ... read more
