Blogs from Austria, Europe - page 221

On the second day of my vacation, I proceeded to fight my way through the Italian Alps, bypassing the Passo Di Stelvio because I think that 500 hairpins in 11 kilometers is a wee bit much. Passing Bozeno, I made my way to the chi chi Italian ski resort of Cortina D’Ampezzo. I think Giacomo Agostini has a home here. No matter how many times you see them, the Dolomites never fail to impress. They shoot out of the earth like giant T-Rex teeth ripping the sky to shreds. Did I mention I loved Italy? You could spend years between the Alps and the Appenines and never run out of roads to ride. Austria is like some strange other-world where gas station attendants resemble doctoral candidates back in the U.S. Motorists don flourescent orange vests just ... read more

First, to Vaduz, the capital of Lichtenstein. Next an orientation tour of Lucerne and time to shop. Tonight stay at the base of the Jungfrau in the beautiful Swiss Alps. Went to Lichtenstein today. Left the site at around 8 and got to the Swarovski crystal museum about half an hour later. Had to rush through the museum so we'd have time to look around the shop as we only had an hour. There wasn't that much to see anyway, just displays and stuff, though they do have an original Dali. They prouduce 20 000 - 30 000 tonnes of crystal a day there as it's so cold. The crystal dome was the coolest thing there, I hope photos turn out. Took about 2 1/2 hopurs to get to Lichtenstein, which is the most industrialised ... read more

Hopfgarten is an excellent base to enjoy outdoor activities like walking, cycling or parapenting. Great to finally do some exercise. The rain stopped and the sun came out so we were able to do our mountain biking. Had breakfast at 8 of bacon and eggs, honey smacks with yoghurt and peaches (am eating some very random combinations of food for breakfast). Got our mountain bikes and met our guides at 9.30, then began our ride. Rode about 5km, half way to half way, and stopped for our group photo and to get some water from a stream that was freezing cold. The scenery was so amazing, the valleys are so green and the white capped mountains, the little cottages dotting the countryside, and cows with cowbells. Got to the top eventually, and had a bbq ... read more

On to lively Munich where we experience Bavarian hospitality with a chance to visit a favourite beer hall. Early start for our driving day today, had breakfast at 6.45am. Had a very sombre experience at Mauthausen, a german concentration camp from 1938 - 5th May 1945, the last camp to be liberated by the allies. 200 000 people were brought here to work, and 105 000 of them died. We went into the barracks where they lived, some had bunks where it was 5 people to a bed, others slept curled up on the floor and if there was nno room they slept on top of each other. They had roll call at 4.15am, and worked in the quarry carrying boulders up the 200+ steps until dusk. They were fed once every 3 days and ... read more

A whole day to take it all in. Our sightseeing tour shows you the fabulous Palace of the Hapsburg's, the State Opera House and fashionable Kartnerstrasse with a chance to try authentic apple strudel and Viennese coffee. Another public holiday, so all the shops were closed but at least we could sleep in as we didn't have to rush into town. Got into the city at about 10 and drove around the Burg Ring, and got dropped off at the Maria Therese statue and Amanda walked us through Hopfburg Palace to the opera house, where we had free time until 3.30. Went to St Stephen's cathedral, and Julia and I took the tiniest lift ever up to the top. The views of Vienna were great, not that there's much to see though. went to the ... read more

Carrying three Crocodille curry chicken sandwiches and a bottle of water each Nancy, Dorothy and I climbed aboard the train from Prague to Salzburg, Austria about six this evening. We were on our way to Zagreb, Croatia by way of Salzburg, Austria. The trail rolled out of Prague on time heading south across the beautiful Czech countryside through Taborg. We entered Austria just north of Linz. By that time we reached Austria I had climbed into the top bunk and gone to sleep. Nancy and Dot were in the lower bunks. Dot sat watching the countryside roll by all the way to Salzburg, even though the sun had set three hours earlier. We arrived in Salzburg at 00:40 where we changed trains. Our wait was less than an hour and we were aboard the train to ... read more

Royal life in Vienna Not just big - impressively grand - Vienna’s palaces and churches are every bit royal in noblesse, height and history. Being used to Swiss towns where rows of nice middle-class houses clustered around one or two market places form the city centre, maybe a church or sometimes even a cathedral being the only building with some kind of grandeur, Vienna is impressive. It is the mere size of the buildings which stunned us. It might not be especially beautiful (as St. Petersburg) nor especially well situated (as Prague), but noble, royally grand. We got a glimpse of what the royal life used to be to Franz Josef and Sissi’s times in their famous Schoenbrunn Palace a couple of kilometres outside of Vienna proper. A stunning reception hall, beautiful guest corner, richly decorated ... read more