Berger's Sporthotel Saalbach

Stayed at a beautiful spot in Austria (Saalbach) with Hilly, Stu's old friend and new Father..actually felt sorry for him, the poor sod was knee deep in relatives, in laws, newly purchased crib and nappies, etc.....we stayed for afew days and it was neatly timed with the arrival home of new born Frankie. Hilly's place is 3 feet from a field of horses so Lauren was easily kept busy with feeding duties.

Stu tried ...

... the mountains and on his 50th birthday the Nazi gave him the Eagle's Nest as a present. It was a retreat for him and was built on the peak of one of the highest mountains. To get there we had to take a special bus up a one lane road straight up the side of the mountain. When we got to the top we walked through a tunnel that went straight into the side of the mountain for 124 meters (406 feet) then we came to a huge brass elevator ...

... tour.

We had booked a 4-hour bus tour, which included the bunkers and Eagle's Nest. The tour was a half hour late in getting started (1:30). Our guide was fantastic. She was very knowledgeable and had a great skill in making the stories very fascinating. She had a lot of little tidbits of information. She gave her first little background talk on our way up the mountain to where what is called the ...

... of courtyards and buildings, and eventually a steep tunnel leading down to the courtyard below.

At 12:00 the Heldenorgel or Heroes' Organ pipes up and swells the courtyard below with its tunes.

I didn't see much to recommend more than a day's visit but we were glad to have stopped off here.

We wandered along the river back to the van to head off to Munich.

... of challenge and reward, leading ultimately right back to the farmhouse and that long-desired beer. There was a smell of burning coming from my rear brakes!

We packed ready for departure. Keith and Manu joined us for dinner, serving up a lovely home-made quiche followed by goulash made from one of the farm's own cows, and a home-baked apple-strudel. All great stuff.

... br>
Back up for another run at Flying Gangster without falling off, but by now the weather was closing in and it looked as though I was pushing my luck to try another run.

On the way home, we stopped off and did some shopping. We stayed in and cooked Krapfern, slow-roast tomatoes and roast sausage, which was excellent, and yoghurt for dessert, all locally-produced except the toms.

... views. We made it down to dinner just in time for the last servings, and celebrated by buying some local red wine recommended by the tour guides en route. Staff seemed very friendly too!

It was a bit dark to go out exploring so we took in the atmosphere from the balcony, drank our wine which they let us take upstairs and considered our plans for the next few days, the peace of the mountains slightly spoiled by the disco music from the triathlon!

... grumbling - I was just riding!! Her Day. Today I had a fabulous day on top of a glacier, snowboarding, in the Austrian alps, in the middle of summer!! My day started off with me being picked up in a mini van and taken to the bus stop where me and my snowboarding instructor Tom, a young English guy, hopped on the bus that would take us up the mountain. The bus trip to 'my' snow was a slow, sleepy, hour long trip that helped me catch up on the sleep I'd ...

August 26-Monday
We left Kitzbuhel at 8:30. There was a brief stop in Berchtesgarden, in Germany, at 10:00. Up on the side of the mountain, we could see Hitler's Eagle’s Nest. It was rather chilling to see that part of history. The bunker is now a restaurant. Our rest stop overlooked a valley filled with wonderful homes. What a view! Back on the bus and on to Salzburg. Time 10:35.

... plot’, if you will, for all its members…who are buried atop each other. Memorials, such as crosses and upright stands with names and dates, are surrounded almost completely by flowers. It is all so cheerful, not sad looking at all.

As we were walking around town, we saw several wagons decorated with flowers. We decided to follow them, just to see what was happening. Were we in for a surprise! Apparently there was a festival in town and ...