Aqi Schladming

... focusing lens :-( We took it to a shop later and they said it would cost more to fix it than to buy a new one. Oh well that camera has been through a lot and was due for retirement, and what better excuse to buy a new one!!<br><br>Anyway.... The finals were brilliant. We got the gondola to the top of the mountain and walked down the track watching the riders come down. First up ...

... room.... but it got the thumbs up as it was clean, tidy and modern. The view from the room was amazing, perfect view of the Planai mountain slope, so good we could have sat there and watched the biking from our room!! Dropped our bags and went for our first meal out since leaving home, chilli fahitas and chicken burgers went down a treat, god bless Papa Joes!!!!

... buses at the top of the mountain when we finally got there.<br><br>Mom was already freaked out from the hairpin turns alongside steep drop off cliffs, so she decided to skip the mines. Instead she got to relax in the beautiful sunshine beside the glistening water of the large lake. We, on the other hand, managed to get on the funicular to the mines just in time to catch the last tour.<br><br ...

<br><br>We took a train back into Austria and headed for the Lakes District, another area we were told we must visit! We based ourselves in the town of Bad Ischl. Or as Brian says, Bad Ischl my N-ischl. There are 4 huge lakes completely surrounded by mountains. It really is beautiful!!! We arrived about 2:30pm and went to the information center where they tried to help us find a place to stay. Usually it doesn't take very long, but we had some major problems. We realized ...

... trains, the countryside got pretty boring again. So I actually wrote some blogs. <br><br>I arrived in Salzburg about 5 pm and caught a bus into the city center. I didn&#8217;t feel like doing anything, and besides, I figured I should rest up before Derek arrives tomorrow. He&#8217;s going to be very excited to be here and will probably want to see as much as possible in his one week in Europe. So I went straight to the hostel. It was a ...

... of myself.<br><br>The train ride down to Hallstatt became much more scenic. Prior to that, the countryside had been fairly flat and uninteresting. But as soon as we headed south, we crossed a couple of rivers and headed into some real mountains! We went along the side of a lake with some massive mountains jutting out of the other side and I was quite excited. This was the first time I&#8217;d seen real mountains since leaving home.<br><br>When we finally got to ...

We arrived in Hallstatt in the Austrian Alps on Monday. Its so<br>beautiful! Reminded me a lot of NZ in one way but also very different<br>at the same time. Its one of the top UNESCO world sites. We got there<br>in time for a sunbake and swim but by god the water was FREEZING!!!!!<br>Took your breath away! You could tell we were in the ...

8/19 Austria, Salzburg. This morning we drove to town and parked in a parking lot next to a Chrysler minivan of all things, who was driven by a guy from Utah and his large family. He is civil service of some sort, and wanted to know all about our most excellent luge experience, as that is high on his family's list as well. We walked the old town, toured the Hohensalzburg Fortress, marveled at the primitive decadence those in medieval power seemed to enjoy ...

... slivered almonds and jam. Very soft, I kind of liked it. I had wanted to have an early dinner, but this cookie filled me up - I didn't realize that it was two cookies sandwiched together; I thought it was just the top half. Dinner was a kebab - blah! Bad sauce, and it was served in a big hot dog bun. It was nice to eat it on the lake, however. Not feeling very full, I went back to the kebab shop for some awesome fries. They were twice ...

... with her and her husband. Pictures simply can't do this village justice. Steep, tree-covered mountains tower over the placid, ice-cold lake, and quaint Austrian cottages seem to rise straight out of the water. I met a lovely girl named Mary from Montana who hiked with me through the steep mountains, under waterfalls and jutting rock, with gorgeous views in every direction. Simply heavenly. The short time I had in Salzburg I spent ...