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Archive for June, 2011

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The Neighbors

Monday, June 27th, 2011

Hosting guests gave us a good excuse to explore our neighborhood in Europe a little.  Just down road (actually through a tunnel under a mountain) is Slovenia.  The capital Ljubljana is about an hour drive and has enough sights to spend at least an afternoon.  It’s interesting that as soon as you cross the border there is a lot more English being spoken.  People in the shops and cafes realize that Austrian and Italian visitors don’t speak more than a few words of Slovenian, so everyone switches to English.  For us, it’s a nice little break from practicing German.

We took a detour on the way and stopped off at one of the more famous places in Slovenia.   Lake Bled is surrounded by mountains and has a little island in the middle with a quaint church on it.  It all adds up to a perfectly picturesque spot on a sunny day.   Here’s the proof:

Posted in Austria, Living Abroad, Slovenia, Travel | 2 Comments »

Munchin’ in München

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

My parents recently visited us and we got to do quite a few touristy things in the area.  The next few posts will be some short descriptions and reviews of them.

While we have a local airport about 30 minutes drive away, the closest big, international airport is Munich, about 3 hours away.  We met my parents there and spent the next few days visiting some sights in the area.  This was our 3rd trip to Munich in the last three months and it’s quickly becoming one of my favorite cities.

The U-bahn, S-bahn, and trams are pretty easy to navigate and everything you probably want to see is accessible from them.  The central area packs a lot of interesting sites into a small walkable area, and there quite a few day trips outside the city that are also easy to do.  We still haven’t seen everything, so I’m sure we’ll be back.

While we visited all the famous sites like the Frauenkirche and the Glockenspiel, this time around we also went to the BMW Welt, which is the center where you can pick up your car if you buy it there.  It has some great exhibitions and it’s free. We also drove out to Neuschwanstein to see the castle and then visited another at Nymphenburg within the city.

All the sightseeing worked up quite a thirst in us, so we made another stop at the Hofbräu Haus.  We bypassed the crowded tables downstairs and went up to the top floor.  I think this room is usually used for big groups, and there were a few obvious tour groups and some ‘company party’ tables as well. However, if there are just a few of you, you might be able to find a spot.  There is a different band that plays upstairs and the atmosphere is pretty nice.  We also tried out the Augustiner beer garden, which is near the main train station.  It’s huge, but if you can get a table in the Keller, you are in for a treat.  It’s worthwhile mentioning that everyone shares tables at these beer halls.  Don’t be surprised if the waiter seats other people at your table, and don’t be afraid to ask to sit at a table where there are a few open seats as well.  It’s actually an interesting way to meet people, or at least an entertaining way to eavesdrop on their conversations.

Here’s the fuel that kept us going:


Posted in Germany, Living Abroad, Travel | No Comments »

Mountain Stage

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011

Now that we have a car, it’s time to explore the area beyond our little town.  After talking to both expats and locals, we made a long list of potential things to do here in the summer.  Item #23 is the Giro d’Italia (kind of like Italy’s version of the Tour de France).  We went to a time trial stage two years ago, but have always really wanted to see a mountain stage.  The race organizers obliged us and picked a route this year that actually went through Austria and finished in the Alps in Italy just an hour south of our place.

The stage ended on the Monte Zoncolan, which is somewhat famous in the cycling world for being a hellish climb of 10km with an average grade of about 12%.  However, some spots are as steep as 22%.    It seemed like the perfect place to watch the pros suffer up the switchbacks.   The one important thing that I forgot was that in order to see them on the mountain top finish you have to actually get there, which in this case meant walking up.

Needless to say the hike was brutal and it gave me even more respect for the cyclists.  I still can’t believe how fast they are able to push up that mountain. While the race is exciting, half the fun is watching the other spectators.  They arrive long before (sometimes days) the race starts and camp out, alternately partying and sleeping.  When the racers come by they shout at them, push them up hill, or run along side “encouraging” them. Some riders shouted back,but most just laughed and kept pedaling.  It’s amazing that were no accidents caused by the rabid fans. In the end though, they are true fans – they know all the riders names and shout out in different languages (Vai, Venga, Allez, Go!).  They boo the ones who are suspected of doping, and cheer their favorites.  It’s a unique sport and I think we’re already scoping a stage of Le Tour to attend.

Here I am with the most famous of the fans:

Here’s Alberto in the pink:

Posted in Italy, Living Abroad, Travel | 1 Comment »