Kur- Und Landhotel Muhlenhof Oberstaufen

... well back in the UK and that the weather isn't too rubbish.

oh, the only other thing to say is that the place we are living is pretty cool, it's a proper appartment, not your usual chalet staff accommodation of bunk beds and room sharing. we've got ensuite! also got sky tv and, rather than driving up the motorway for 45 minutes to get to work each morning I have approximately a 5 minute walk through the snow!

that's how for now.

Dave and Gemma xxx

... Unlike most Australian beer, Austrian beer actually tastes very good, so if we are comparing value for money here then the outcome is clear.

Alcohol purchased at the bottle shop (or supermarket, in Austria) is no contest. A 6-pack of 500ml beer here is unbelievably cheap, costing about $10 dollars!

2. Lunch (main course)

Perth: $22.00

St Anton: €8.80
= $14.10

Admittedly, Perth does have some great restaurants but most of ...

... ber diesen Blog werden wir unsere Familien und Freunde über den Verlauf unserer Reise auf dem Laufenden halten und Eindrücke und Gedanken teilen.

Also dranbleiben! Am 27.1.2010 gehts los und wir werden euch hoffentlich mit abenteuerlichen und spannenden Geschichten unterhalten - hoffentlich auch alle mit happy end :).

... damage public relations and deter potential tourists. That's fair enough in my opinion - people have to take responsibility for themselves and accept that a clear and present danger exists when they venture into unpatrolled areas outside the resort.

Changing to a less morbid subject, the local bakeries here are amazing. Their ability to create a bread that is crisp and crunchy on the outside yet delicately soft on the inside is ...

... by r*il on * mission to purch*se snow ge*r. After h*ving difficulty finding where to shop we consulted the loc*l tourist centre who were gl*d to point us in the right direction. After * few hours of w*ndering *round in circles we c*me to the conclusion th*t Innsbruck re*lly doesn't h*ve m*ny big snow stores *nd the wholes excursion *ppe*red to be * pointless one. Fortun*tely we were ...

Travel to Austria from Perth via Tokyo, Milan and Innsbruck is not recommended. To describe this route as a 'milk-run' would be an understatement of epic proportions. I calculated the total travel time to be somewhere in the vicinity of 30hrs (not including time spent in transit) so you can probably understand our relief when we arrived at our final destination in the town of St Anton, Austria.

Our home for the next 4 ...

... can watch all the processes they go through to make the cheese, which was pretty interesting! We watched the cheese-makers go through all the processes for quite a while and had a drink at in the restaurant before going back to Gossau for an authentic cheese Fondue!

We got up early the next morning and said goodbye to Heinz and Elsa, and caught our 1st train to get to Prague. It took us about 10.5 hours to get there.. LOOOOOONG time sitting on trains!!

... Feldkirch I got lost. Actually I was just trying to get to McDonald's because the group wanted a bathroom break and the public toilets here were not to our standards. Anyway, I drove past the McDonald's twice - once my fault and once the navigator's - and drove down a pedestrian only section of road before we gave up and continued on our journey out of town and deeper into Austria.

... weren't too interested so they took Lincoln (who couldn't go with us) and we went to have a look. It was a rewarding visit. It is amazing to think how long ago some of those books and transcripts were written, and how well cared for they must be to remain in excellent condition. The library itself is breathtaking, with leather bound books lining the shelves, large windows (no doubt filtered), elaborate woodwork and staircases, and a muraled ceiling ...

... painted in Munich. On it is the baby Jesus surrounded by his loving family. The child's position with outstretched arms is supposed to a foretell his death on the cross. Above the altar is a golden statue of a pelican. According to legend when the pelican is unable to feed its young, it stabs itself in the chest to allow the young to feed on its blood. The pelican provides another symbol for Jesus who allowed soldiers to spear at his heart so that man might live ...