Wattens to Salzburg

After Wattens and those Crystal eyes at the Swarovsky Crystal World

ended up staying in a little village (Orberndorf) just east of Kitzbuhel. What an idealic setting for a world class ski area is Kitzbuhel - ski run after ski run. Forgot to take pics.

Anyways, had a great stay there and then on to Salzburg, where we met our friends, Peter and Christine from Vienna, who then alos became our tour guides for the remainder of our stay in Austria, and a good thing at that, as Peter really knows the country and history.

Oh, yeah Oberndorf had a great May pole going - celebrates the coming of spring.

Anyways, on to Salzburg - what an interesting and fascinating city. The area dates back several thousand years and owes much of its heritage to salt, which was discovered over 5,000 years ago and was mined as far back as 3,000 years.


The introduction to the old city was quite interesting as we parked in what used to be a 4 + levels WWII bunker complex. The entrance is at ground level, right next to the archway.

Truly a fascinating and historic city, dominated by the fortress on the hill that oversees old Salzburg.

A city rife with UNESCO world heritage buildings, it's also a cultural center where seats for world class performances will set you back around $1,500+, per person.

Perhaps no wonder since this was Mozart's birthplace and the setting for the Sound of Music movie, which by the way, although well known in the US and outside of Austria is mostly a Hollywood creation. There was a Von Trapp Family and they did go to the US, where they own and run a beautiful lodge in Vermont.

The Salzburg area hosted many of the settings for the movie and we had the opportunity to view a number of the movie locations. Although OK, most impressive was the setting and buildings in the old City. The fortress, the dome church, St. Peter's Cathedral, the neat narrow streets, the houses built into the cliff, the buildings built in the early 1400s and still being used, the Getriedegasse, where even Mc Donald had to adopt to the local sign regulations and a Big Mac may set you back a few Euros.

Now on the Salzkammergut-this has to be one of Austria's treasures.






 

Ehrwald to Wattens

Left our Guesthouse in Ehrwald and on to Wattens and the Swarovski Crystalworld. Had a great time in Ehrwald hiking and just taking in the fresh air and surrounding area, which was rich in picture perfect vistas. Below is a pic taken from a restaurant in Lermoos, which is one of the three villages in the Valley and a couple miles from Ehrwald.

On the way to Wattens briefly stopped Innsbruck, the capital of Tirol and host city of 2 Winter Olympics. Didn't spend much time there, although we did stop and see the Ski Jump.


Wattens is just a short distance East of Innsbruck and the location for major Swarovski facilities and the Crystalweld, which is a major tourist attraction out of the Innsbruck area. This is also the location Daniel Swarovski, its founder set up crystal manufacturing after leaving Bohemia. The location was chosen for its hydroelectric power, which is required for the crystal manufacturing equipment. The manufacturing process and equipment are a closely held secret, in fact the equipment is built in-house.

Anyways, the Crystalweld (Crystal world) museum, starting with the fountain head, which resembles an Egyptian Sphinx,  is impressive.  The numerous displays showcase artistic creations by various artists using crystals. The shop with its displays and associated pricing is even more impressive. Hold on to your CCds as these creations can put a big dent in your budget.    

OK, on to Salzburg and many more posts, including observations.

In Austria - Ehrwald

Drove from Fussen Germany, where the Neuschwanstein castle (Disney modeled his after this one) is located into Austria and Ehrwald, our first stop in Austria. Unbeknownst to me we ended up staying very near the mountain (Sonnenspietze) and setting I used in the heading of the All Things Austria.

Ehrwald is situated in a huge valley surrounded by high alps, which is shared with 2 other villages, Lermoos and Biberwier with ski areas surrounding the valley. This looks like a winters as well as a summer paradise. Hiking cannot get any better either.

Interesting thing about the food, Wienerschnitzel, goulash soup, fries and cordon bleau are on the menus everywhere, although very good and tasty, they are nor calories anemic. Looks like almost everything is fried and butter is not spared. I would guess that the meals are geared towards a winter type setting.

 And now saying goodbye from the Pension Tannenhof in Eherwald, Tirol, Austria.

 

   

Arrived in Frankfurt

A little bit groggy (jet lag) after a uneventful 8.5 hour flight from Atlanta to Frankfurt. Arrival 7:25AM local time and a new day, 1:25AM body time and wondering why we're still awake and starting a new day on top of that.

Anyways, neat scenery on the way to Ingendorf, near Bitburg, which is in the west central part of Germany and is where our youngest son and family live. No burbs, just little villages, with perhaps 10 - 20 houses dotting the rolling hill and valleys countryside. These villages have probably been here for centuries as is the case for Ingendorf.

And, yes the Autobahn is a hoot, should have my Corvette here or, maybe not.....

Anyways, a little jaunt up to England and then on to some serious exploring in Austria, starting with the Innsbruck area.

   

The Beginning of the Journey

Linda and I will be flying into Frankfurt Germany and from there driving down to Innsbruck in Austria. Yahoooo!! or shall I say Yodel, Yodel, Yoohooo?

We're really looking forward to the travel through
southern Germany, the Alpine country and then into Tyrol and the Austrian Alps. Innsbruck is in the heart of these Alps.

BTW, although we'll be sending posts from Tyrol, you may want to take a look at some of the summer time activities n the Tyrol region. Go to Austrian Alps Summer Activities. I'll also stay active on Facebook on my All Things Austria page. Yahooooooo!. I mean Yodel, Yodel, YOOOOHOOOOO! Until later.