In a generous gesture, Leon, a Welsh friend Nora met in Australia, invited us to stay with him and his girlfriend Johanna in Innsbruck if our travels took us to Austria. As luck had it, we were already planning to travel through this area, but we might not have stopped there if it weren’t for their hospitality. Leon and Johanna were wonderful hosts, making us breakfast and dinner each day, and we wish we could have spent a little longer with them in Innsbruck.
Innsbruck is located in the Tirol region of western Austria, where it sits in a valley surrounded by the Austrian Alps. It is a popular destination for mountain sports enthusiasts (it has hosted the winter Olympics twice). Unfortunately, we did not have great weather during our stay and we weren’t able to explore the outdoors as much as we would have liked. Still, we were able to explore the lovely Old Town (Altstadt), including the Golden Roof (Goldenes Dachal), Imperial Church (Hofkirche), the Stadtturm (City Tower), and a folk museum where we learned all about “stube” (the parlors/social centers of traditional homes in this region that were decorated with wood from floor to ceiling and relied on ceramic-tiled stoves to provide heat). The poor weather also encouraged us to take shelter in cafes and restaurants, where we happily sampled Austrian cuisine (including strudel, knudle, and Austrian beer). One night we went with Leon to English-language trivia night at an Irish pub and ended up winning the entire thing (and a bottle of Jameson’s whisky each) thanks, in part, to being the only people in the entire pub (including the MC) who could recognize a photo of (or had even heard of) Rod Blagojevich!
On our last day in town, the weather improved and we set out for the Nordkette mountain range that towers over the city. At the lower reaches we stopped to visit the Alpenzoo (housing alpine animals) before taking two cable cars to the highest peak - Hafelekar (2256m) with a great view back toward Innsbruck. Sadly, we didn’t have time (or the proper clothes) to explore more before heading down the mountain to catch our train to Vienna.
Click the photo below for our Innsbruck photo album.
Innsbruck is located in the Tirol region of western Austria, where it sits in a valley surrounded by the Austrian Alps. It is a popular destination for mountain sports enthusiasts (it has hosted the winter Olympics twice). Unfortunately, we did not have great weather during our stay and we weren’t able to explore the outdoors as much as we would have liked. Still, we were able to explore the lovely Old Town (Altstadt), including the Golden Roof (Goldenes Dachal), Imperial Church (Hofkirche), the Stadtturm (City Tower), and a folk museum where we learned all about “stube” (the parlors/social centers of traditional homes in this region that were decorated with wood from floor to ceiling and relied on ceramic-tiled stoves to provide heat). The poor weather also encouraged us to take shelter in cafes and restaurants, where we happily sampled Austrian cuisine (including strudel, knudle, and Austrian beer). One night we went with Leon to English-language trivia night at an Irish pub and ended up winning the entire thing (and a bottle of Jameson’s whisky each) thanks, in part, to being the only people in the entire pub (including the MC) who could recognize a photo of (or had even heard of) Rod Blagojevich!
On our last day in town, the weather improved and we set out for the Nordkette mountain range that towers over the city. At the lower reaches we stopped to visit the Alpenzoo (housing alpine animals) before taking two cable cars to the highest peak - Hafelekar (2256m) with a great view back toward Innsbruck. Sadly, we didn’t have time (or the proper clothes) to explore more before heading down the mountain to catch our train to Vienna.
Click the photo below for our Innsbruck photo album.
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