A View of Untersberg

Hello, long-neglected blog!

It's true: it's hard to update a blog about Salzburg when I don't live there anymore.  But, there has been a post on my mind for a while.

It's hard not to associate Austria with the Alps.  Climb Every Mountain?  And, for nine months, Untersberg was the view out of my window.  It was a daily reminder that I was living in a new place, and its appearance throughout the seasons was a visible representation of the passage of time. (Or, the fact that last winter lasted forever  - never mind about the elevation.)

We never got around to hiking up Untersberg or taking the Seilbahn (cable car) to the peak, but if you'd like some information on that, here you go!  No matter what season, bring a jacket and a camera.  In the spring, Spar was giving away coupons for discounted tickets for the cable car, so if you're in Salzburg long-term, check for that. 

Can you spot the Seilbahn in some of the pictures? 

September

November

December

February

March

May

Austrian Airlines Review

One year ago, we were busy preparing to leave the US for our nine month stay in Austria.  One of the major areas of preparation was thinking through the flight; I hadn't flown in a number of years, and a ten hour transatlantic flight doesn't really compare to crossing the country.   

For our flights, we chose Austrian Airlines as our carrier from Washington D.C.-Dulles to Vienna - Flughafen Wien-Schwechat.  And overall, we were very happy with our choice.

My review is based on a few key aspects: price, food, baggage allowance, and comfort.   

Price
Price-wise, our tickets with Austrian Airlines couldn't be beat.  To keep costs down, we chose to leave and return on Mondays in September and May, respectively.  Also, we booked about four months in advance, and our travel agent got us some sort of student discount since we booked before the end of the academic year.   
Food
The food was our first taste of Austrian cuisine (literally-I'm so funny), and I pretty much liked everything.  Part of the appeal, granted, was knowing that I was trying new flavors, but even considering that, the food was good!  On the ten hour flight, we had two meals, a couple snacks, and several opportunities for drinks.  Here are some amateur shots of what we had.

For dinner, we chose between pasta and chicken entrees.  The pasta was surprisingly well-seasoned, and everything tasted fresh.  Each meal had some sort of dessert, and coffee and tea came afterward.  

An assortment of salads with rolls and yogurt made up our breakfast.  Warm rolls were offered several times throughout the flights.  I understand that the photos aren't very flattering, but hey, they were served and consumed tens of thousands of feet above the ocean, and that is AMAZING.

Baggage Allowance
My review of baggage is a bit skewed because we obviously needed to take more for our nine-month stay compared to a regular traveler on vacation.



Our luggage waiting at the Salzburg Hauptbahnhof on our return journey.  That was fun to maneuver.

I'm not going to get technical with measurements, but we were allowed to bring one large suitcase (the largest in a three-suitcase set) with a maximum weight of 23 kg (~50 lbs), one carry-on (the smallest in a set), and one personal item (a small backpack, purse, or hand bag).  These limits were sufficient for our way there, but on the way home, we added an additional checked bag, a 70-liter rucksack.  It ended up costing us an additional 75 Euros (100 USD). 

I found that the airline workers at our originating airport in the U.S. were much more lackadaisical than their Austrian counterparts when it came to baggage.  Being the Type A person that I am, I carefully measured and weighed my bags before going to the airport.  Not to be penalized, I made sure my bags didn't protrude and exceed the limit.  Exciting, I know, but I didn't want to start our trip off with unwanted fees slapped in our faces.  When I got to the airport, I swear one girl looked like she was smuggling three tennis rackets in her personal item.  At the weigh-in, I was asked if my checked bag weighed more than fifty pounds.  "No, I weighed it at home."  My bag then went onto a conveyer belt, and I didn't see it again until Vienna.  Really nonchalant.  On the way home, however, my bag was weighed, and we had to distribute an extra ten pounds from my bag into our others.  The Austrian Airlines worker was very nice about it though, we did it immediately, and we went on with our day.  So, moral of the story: don't worry (too much) about your baggage.
                     
Comfort
A few things are lumped together for consideration in my comfort category.  The ride home was more comfortable than the ride there, primarily because the plane was much newer.  The entertainment system was much improved; we were able to select, pause, and change the movie or TV episode we were watching instead of having the videos play on loops during the flight.  Also, the selection of movies/TV episodes improved.  I also recall some sort of "I Spy" game on the newer system we liked.  Having quality entertainment on a nice screen helped me feel relaxed and not think so much about the flight.

Austrian Airlines should have limited the number of times it played this advertisement to passengers in Economy when we switched movies.  The first time: cool.  After: annoying.

Ben was apparently entertained by Gangster Squad.  He brought along ear buds, which was a wise decision. The ones provided by the airline were flimsy.

What can I say?  If you want to sleep well on a plane, go Business Class.  Our seats were fine; they did what they needed to do. It's amazing what sort of positions you can contort your body into when you really just need to nap for an hour.

There was room under our seats for our (modestly-sized) personal items.  Mine had my laptop, camera, purse, wallet, passport, external hard drive, etc. stuffed into it.

The flight attendants all spoke German and English, so I had no problem communicating with them and felt comfortable enough to try a little bit of German with them.

Overall, I was as comfortable as I could reasonably expect to be, and Austrian did their part to ensure that.  If going to Austria again (or elsewhere on the continent), I would absolutely considering flying with Austrian Airlines.

    
And we got home safely!

Hütten Gaudi Part 3: The Descent

On our final evening at the cabin, the lighting was absolutely magical.  I walked around by myself, appreciating the beauty of the mountains and a moment of solitude. 

Come morning, we awoke to an unpleasant surprise: snow in May.  Immediately, terror seized me as I thought about descending the mountain in slippery, wet snow with my leg still bandaged.  We waited for an hour or so, and the snow stopped.  I made the executive decision of taking the logging roads for most of the descent instead of going through the forest trails.

On one of these logging roads, we came upon this:


Walking down a mountain in the Austrian Alps, we came across a man who made logging look quite easy.

The fog began to clear.

Amy graciously gave me one of her hiking poles on the way down.

Snowmelt in May!

When we finally descended, we spent a few hours at Johannes' family's farm. His grandmother and aunt prepared a delicious feast fit for four hikers. We had schnitzel, potatoes with parsley, and a salad with vinegar dressing.  Afterward, his grandma put a pot of water on the stove and went out into the garden. She came back with a handful of herbs, threw them in the water, and had soup a few minutes later. I thought that that was the coolest thing. :)      

 Silly, Hahn.  Why are you standing next to the bee hive?

 Just your average, run-of-the-mill bus stop, no?

And, a final look up at the mountain we conquered!

Hütten Gaudi Part 2: Adventures

After getting over the initial shock that I got hurt within sight of our destination, I relaxed and started to enjoy life at the Hütte. A little information: in the late spring/early summer in Austria, some farmers drive their cows up into high mountain pastures. This movement of livestock is referred to as transhumance, or Almwirtshaft.  During the summer months, the farmers stay in the cabins and tend to their livestock.  Since farmers only tend to stay in the Hütten during the warmer months, some of the key comforts of home are absent, including running water, a furnace, and (sadly) indoor plumbing.  This particular Hütte is no longer used for Almwirtshaft; it's now used as a weekend retreat after one of Johannes' uncles restored it.

Ben buried some of our perishables in the snow.

The views at the Hütte were absolutely beautiful and unlike anything I've ever seen.  

From the balcony of the cabin, you can see the glacier, another cabin, and the remnants of a lost cabin.

The Grimming.

Here are my winnings from our never-ending game of poker: pocket change, tooth picks, and match sticks.  

On the second day, we rested enough to make the trek to the summit of Kampl.  We signed the book before Johannes and Ben went sledding.  When faced with a snowy hill, you're never too old...   

Hütten Gaudi Part 1: The Ascent

I'm back (!), and I've got a story to tell.  It involves hiking, cows, and three sections of my body that will probably be scarred for life.  Interested?

Before we returned to the US, Ben and I took a weekend trip to Kainisch in the Austrian province of Styria/Steiermark.  The view from the train was absolutely beautiful: placid lakes meeting craggy mountains with charming inns lining the perimeter.  The nun who wisely chose the correct side of the train to sit on obstructed my camera, but I did manage to get one shot.    

via

Google Image Search: For when nuns obstruct your view.

We met our friends, Johannes, Amy, and Leinie in Kainisch for what turned out to be one very memorable Hütten Gaudi.  From what I gather, "Hütten Gaudi" roughly translates to a "cabin jamboree," an apt description of our weekend.  First, a walk through the town.   

Johannes' family has a farm here, primarily dairy and absolutely authentic.  On our walk to the farm, we stopped at a little hut on the side of the road.  Inside was a large metal container connected to this pulley system that led up the mountain.  Johannes explained that farmers send their milk down the mountain using this pulley system, and customers collect the fresh milk from the container.

 Click!

Once inside the farmhouse, we met some of Johannes' family.  The dialect in Styria is heavy, so the three of us were pretty lost when it came to the conversation, some more so than others (me). Hey, I recognized a word or two. Maybe.   

Since the day was hot, I changed from jeans to shorts, an ill-fated decision.

Amy and Leinie led the way. 

On the way up, we passed a few pastures with Johannes' family's cows.  Most were content to glance at us.  You know how we say some words without really taking into account what they actually mean?  It's one of the things that I love about being an English teacher.  Take "breakfast" for example.  Yes, breakfast is the meal we eat in the morning, but if you break it down, breakfast is when one "breaks" her nighttime "fast." Now, cowbells are musical instruments that give rhythm and fevers, but they are also bells that cows wear.  Maybe I haven't spent much time on farms, but this was a realization for me.  Cowbells are especially important in Austria because the cows are allowed to roam freely, and farmers need a way to find any that go astray.  

Our ascent took us through the forest a majority of the time.  Snowmelt higher up caused ice-cold streams to run beside us.         

We stopped to eat lunch near this rock.  In days gone by, this rock served as a halfway point between farmers who were staying up on the Alm (Alpine pasture) during the summer and the townspeople below.  Farmers would hike down and put cheese and butter inside the rock, and some seriously buff townspeople would hike up to retrieve it.  Imagine Ben with cheese and butter in his hands, if you will.   

Shortly afterward, we crossed a logging road, and I saw snow again.

The view started to get really good. 

And then we have this view.  Johannes said that years ago, a major wind storm downed all of these trees. The enormous task of clearing the wreckage would have cost Austria lots of money if it used Austrian workers. Therefore, Ukrainian workers were imported to help clear the land.  We heard of importing Eastern European workers a few times while in Austria.  There was something about the railroad, and then there are hotels and restaurants too.  It makes for some comparisons to the United States and importing labor from Central America.  

Oh, look!  The Hütte is just past this snow bank!  Wouldn't it be fun to be adventurous for once in your life and climb onto the partially melted snow bank?  Yep. 

If you have a blood phobia, don't scroll.  

I've warned you.

As I posed next to a rock poking out of the snow, my entire leg slipped through the snow, and I ended up getting scratched in three places on my leg and arm.

It's been over a month since this little accident, and none of the scratches are completely gone. I could look at them as scars or as great conversation starters.

Guess which one I'll choose.