Hallstatt, Austria

Salz...salz....salz.... Our daytrip to beautiful but rainy Halstatt comprised of two things: the quaint town celebrating an elaborate religious holiday (where everyone was decked out in Dirndyl and Lederhosen), and the Salt mines! The lakeside town ...

This morning we arrived in Hallstatt, Austria. Hallstatt is a tiny town of about 1000 residents.  It is strung out in a narrow strip along the shore of Lake Hallstatt.  The shoulders of great green mountains tower out of the lake on all sides, ...

... . Ouch. What a way to start the day.) The next day, we took a train into the Austrian Alps to a small village called Hallstatt. One guidebook described Hallstatt as, 'A tiny town bullied onto a ledge between a selfish mountain and a sleepy lake with ...

As we were taking the train through the Austrian countryside on our way to Hallstatt yesterday, I was imagining the views I would soon have of this magical city carved into the mountains overlooking a swan ruled lake.  It was pretty much as I expected ...