Blogs from Austria, Europe - page 264

Our first stop in Innsbruck was the Bergisel Ski Jump, home to both the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics. It was overpriced for sure - 8.30 Euro per person plus 3.40 to park your car - but interesting nonetheless. The views of the city from the top of the platform were incredible. It was also quite windy up there as you can see from the photos. I cannot imagine launching myself off on skis from that height! Schloss Ambras is a castle just outside the city built in the 11th century and acquired by Archduke Ferdinand II in 1564. We spent an hour walking through the Spanish Hall, armour collection, portrait gallery (of the Hapsburgs), and the "Art and Wonders Collection." This was definitely worth visiting, allows photos, and we even got a discount because it ... read more

The next morning, as my friends slept in the hostel, I decided to get up really early and wander around the city to catch some of the stuff I had missed. Listening to Peter Gabriel (my new obsession) on my iPod, I strolled down the fancy shopping district street and through a very big and impressive neo-Gothic cathedral by my hostel before the rest of the city had truly awoken. In walking around the city, I kind of came to the inclusion that, although Vienna is a perfectly beautiful place with perfectly beautiful sights, the city lacks a definitive character. Prague has its medieval mystique; Copenhagen has its quaint harbor-side feel. Vienna, on the other hand, is just big. I am still not exactly sure what makes Austria quintessentially Austrian. It is certainly not the German ... read more

We spent a night and a day in Salzburg on our way to Vienna from Interlaken. Arriving at the train station, I called and made a reservation at local zimmer that was in Rick Steve's book. The woman on the phone gave me directions, telling me which bus line to take, which stop to get off at, etc. Don't ask me how this happened, but we headed in the exact OPPOSITE direction, finding ourselves totally lost... like geese in a hail storm. After another phone call we finally got back on the track, found the zimmer and checked in, and took the bus to the old town. Salzburg was nice... yet I wouldn't want to live there... it certainly wasn't Paris or Rome, although the old town part was nice. Paraded back and forth until I ... read more

Welcome to Vienna!!! It’s a wonderful city, really, and I have been enjoying myself to the fullest. :-) I wasn’t able to move immediately into my dormitory because mine is used as a hotel during the summer and didn’t open as student housing until three days after I got here. I was put up in another student housing for two nights before I could move into mine, which was alright, but I was happy to be able to get settled into my own room. My dormitory is incredibly nice and I have about a 20 minute commute to where my classes are held. Most everything in the building looks brand new. I live in a double-room and we have our own bathroom, so I only have to share it with one other person. :-) Every floor ... read more

As you can see from the title, we are back in Austria again. Left Germany (Munich) this morning and caught the fast train down to Innsbruck. We had a bit of a hiccup in our travel plans last night when we tried to book a place to stay in Lucerne, Switzerland. We were up til late on the net and ringing around but couldnt find any vacancies there. So, we decided to backtrack a bit down here to Innsbruck. Glad we did, the railway down from Munich was absolutely fantastic. We thought we had seen it all on our trip from Salzburg to Zell-am-See, but today surpassed that. Today the "Wow" factor set in well and truly, oohs and aahs as we moved from one side of the carriage to the other. (Might add here that ... read more