After a great weekend in Milan, I went back to my apartment in Vicenza and picked up my rental car...a gorgeous little Alfa Romeo Gulietta. It's a pseudo-sports car with lots of power and excellent handling that seemed perfect for a road trip through Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, France, Monaco and back into Italy along the Italian Riveria. A good car seemed important!
Julie with her Gulietta :)
So, I set out on the A22 autobahn, which runs from Verona, Italy up through Innsbruck, Austria. The video below give you an overview of the trip - it was gorgeous! (It's time lapse, but still pretty long, so just advance the video forward and check out the vistas along the way!)
The trip takes just under 3 hours and was one of the best road trips I've ever taken. This is my first time in the Alps. I lived in California and drove through the mountains everyday. I've been up and down the Eastern seaboard amidst the Appalachians. I've been to Zurich and seen the Alps in the distance. But in my opinion, NOTHING prepares you for actually being in the Alps. It's gorgeous, awe-inspiring and makes every other mountain you've ever seen look like a charming hill in comparison. Not to be too corny, readers, but I found something that big, that old, that constant...to be life affirming. It made me feel tiny and insignificant (in a good way) .
All you see is Alps as you exit the freeway for Innsbruck. The trip takes just under 3 hours and was one of the best road trips I've ever taken. This is my first time in the Alps. I lived in California and drove through the mountains everyday. I've been up and down the Eastern seaboard amidst the Appalachians. I've been to Zurich and seen the Alps in the distance. But in my opinion, NOTHING prepares you for actually being in the Alps. It's gorgeous, awe-inspiring and makes every other mountain you've ever seen look like a charming hill in comparison. Not to be too corny, readers, but I found something that big, that old, that constant...to be life affirming. It made me feel tiny and insignificant (in a good way) .
...then a few hair raising turns and suddenly, Innsbruck comes into view in the valley below, nestled against the base of Nordekette mountain. It took my breath away and made me almost wreck my car.
My jaw remained dropped as I drove into the center of town. So THIS is why people go skiing! (ha, ha) I stayed at the Grand Hotel Europa, which I highly recommend. It's the same hotel that the Queen has stayed, I wont bore you with my review of the hotel, but you can read it on Trip Advisor here if you're interested. The decor was pretty fun, I must say.
The carpet climbed up the walls in the hallway!
And the bed was incredibly comfortable, somewhat of a rarity in Europe, if you ask me.
I was sitting at the bar in my hotel, enjoying a Glenlivet 18 year scotch when two very attractive men walked in.
The propped their snowboards up against the wall and sat down near me at the bar. After a few minutes, I noticed one of them kept looking over and smiling. I returned the smile and within a minute, he was sitting next to me, offering to buy me another drink.
He explains his name is Stephan. He's an Austrian snowboarder. We start talking and sparks are flying like crazy. About 30 minutes go by and his friend approaches. They exchange a few quick words in German and the friend frowns and leaves the bar. Stephan stays, all smiles.
We have dinner, more drinks, talking, getting to know each other. His English is broken and my German nonexistent (thank goodness for Google Translate). And yet somehow, he sings loudly when American music comes on the radio. He embarrasses me by standing up and pointing at me while singing Bon Jovi's "Shot Through The Heart" and everyone in the bar joins in. I turn 10 shades of red and drink more scotch. It's like out of a movie...a bunch of Austrians who can barely speak English, but can sing perfectly without any accent. I laugh and laugh. It's one of those perfect evenings...
The next morning, I had decided that even though I am not a big fan of heights, I will boldly take the cable car to the very top of Nordkette mountain to see the view. I walked about 5 minutes from my hotel to the Congress building to the Nordkettenbahnen station.
I proudly declare to the ticket agent I want to go "...all the way up, please!" only to be told in a monotone voice that it's a cloudy day and I can only go halfway up to the Hungerberg stop at 860m. DANG IT!
I buy a ticket to Hungerberg and on a whim, I also bought a ticket for the AlpenZoo.
The tram is just 5 cars, mostly glass and have a funny shape to them. I quickly learn why - they have to curve and almost stack on one another as the tram climbs the very steep mountain.
The tram
The views are stunning in every direction. I asked a stranger to snap a photo of me.
And a selfie for good measure....
The zoo itself is built into the side of Nordkette, so that the Alpine animals can live in their natural habitats. It's a bit strenuous to walk around the zoo between habitats, but it made for a great workout. I particularly loved the mountain goats (the ones who can grab the rocks with their toes) and the moose, who I think was fond of me.
Next, I continued up the tram to the Hungerberg stop. I am reasonably sure Patrick Dempsey was on my tram...seriously.
Hungerberg is the halfway point and the place where you catch the cable car up to the summit. More amazing views here, of course. My favorite was a glass wall in honor of Hermann Buhl, an Innsbruck born Austrian climber and all around badass.
Stephan had told me a bit about him the night before. Buhl died in Pakistan, doing what he loved...climbing, pushing his limits and exploring the world.
The rest of my time in Innsbruck went by quickly. I walked around the old town but didn't visit any museums. I wasn't in the mood for that type of experience. I really enjoyed strolling around, looking at architecture, window shopping, dodging trams and people walking by with snowboards and ski equipment.
I adored seeing the mountains over every building, always in the distance, like a safe sheltering force surrounding the town.
I studied the way the town was bathed in light and shadow at various times during the day because of the clouds (or lack thereof) on the mountain. It really is a beautiful town.
I think it's safe to say, Innsbruck is where in love with Austria and where I fell deeply in love with the Alps.
And now that I know gorgeous men like Stephan are up at the top of the mountain, singing Bon Jovi and drinking scotch, I really must learn to snowboard.
Auf weidersehen -
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