Vienna

Beautiful fall colours in Vienna.

Vienna was our "basecamp" for this trip. With direct flights to and from Toronto, it was a great place to leave luggage and change over gear requirements from visiting my cousin in Prague; meeting up with our paragliding group in Salzburg; and then meeting up with Andrew's sisters and also doing a backpacking trip in Corsica. We stayed near the main train station which was very convenient for getting around Vienna, taking the train to other cities or to the airport.

During one of our first one-day layovers, we had time to head to central Vienna and wander around the Stephansplatz square and see the Stephansdom Cathedral, one of the tallest churches in the world. It really is overwhelming to look up at it from the street level. It can be clearly seen from various points around the city.

The very tall Stephansdom Cathedral

One of the unique things we've noticed about Vienna is that there are small grocery stores everywhere, including almost every mall-type building. Not surprising, I guess, since the transit system is amazing (maximum 5 minutes between subway trains) and it seems like almost everyone uses it.

We had three days at the end of the trip to see some of the sites of Vienna. The first day was quite cold with mixed rain and snow so we chose an indoor venture, the Natural History Museum. While it did have some good exhibits (extensive exhibits!) I was more enthralled with the architecture of the building. Simply stunning.

Outside the Natural History Museum

The paintings, facades and ceilings interested me more than the natural history exhibits.

Ceiling dome

Atrium area between the 2nd and 3rd floors.

The next day we went to the Aqua-Terra Zoo. It was very busy due to it being the weekend and a cool day with everyone seeking an inside activity. The zoo/aquarium part of it was very good. The building is small in circumference and several stories high and, again, the history behind the building caught my attention. It was originally the Esterhazypark Flak tower or control tower.

"Between 1940 and 1945, 16 Flak towers were built in Hamburg, Berlin and Vienna by forced labour and prisoners of war. The Viennese Flak towers are positioned in a triangle around the city centre. They were used for defence against Allied air raids . . . If an attack occurred, up to 40,000 people could find shelter in the towers. . . The 1st-3rd floors were used for air raid shelters. A maximum of 3,000 civilians could fit in them . . . The main staircase and lift lead to the 9th floor and outer terrace. . . After the war there were a lot of plans for the Flak tower. A blasting could not be done without damaging the nearly buildings. Some plans included turning the tower into flats, a student home, at hotel or offices. But in 1957 the "Haus des Meeres" moved in a nd thru the towner into an aquarium . . . welcomes over half a million visitors a year and needs to subsidies. At least one of the towers has a meaningful and peaceful use today." (Summarized from an information board in the building.)

A turtle peeking its head out of the water.

The city views from the rooftop cafeteria and viewing platform were fantastic.

Vienna is famous for its Christmas Markets and I was happy that at least one of them was starting just as we arrived back in the city and before we had to head home. The one in front of City Hall is supposed to be one of the best and had 100+ booths. Unfortunately, I was sadly disappointed in it. There was a lot of food and booths selling hot punch (expected) but the rest was basically junk. I was expecting more locally made and unique items but it was your typical mass produced, made-in-China (or glass jewelry made in Italy) "stuff." On the positive side, the winterberry punch was very good and warmed us up and we kept the Santa boot mugs it came in. 

Hot winterberry punch - yummy!

Large present at the Christmas Market in front of City Hall.

It was slightly warmer on our final day so we headed to the Schonbrunn Zoo which was very good. Luckily there were quite a few indoor exhibits so we weren't outside the entire day. It would be great to see in the spring/summer time with the animals outdoors and the grounds in bloom. It would definitely be worth a repeat visit. 

The Schonbrunn Palm House - built in 1882.

Fresh water rays

Red Panda

Spectacled Bear

And now . . . we head home! I'm looking forward to seeing family and friends and getting back into routine after a great holiday!! 

Salzburg

We started and finished the paragliding part of our trip in Salzburg, Austria. We arrived a day ahead of meeting the group and spent the first afternoon simply wandering in the area of the Salzach River that runs through the city. One of the most notable features was all the "love locks" on the pedestrian bridge.

The Hohensalzburg Castle is a significant landmark and, sitting high on a hill, can be seen from every direction.

These gardens were past their prime but still beautiful.

Part of a large bronze sculpture called "Caldera" and located in one of the parks near the river.

A display of photographs from Dieter Huber's book called "Waste." A very powerful message when you're standing on crushed plastic water bottles a foot deep. A sign on the door said "Enter at your own risk!" 

Clock/Church tower with Salzburg Castle in the background.

Gherkin statues. Supposedly the inspiration for the band name "Red Hot Chili Peppers."

Our hotel was just steps from this tunnel that led to the "old town" of Salzburg. Great location!

The next day we went to see the Castle. We unintentionally took a "scenic" route (aka got lost)
and ended up on the opposite side of the Castle from where we started. 

Lovely house at the base of the hill with Castle on top.

Large ceramic stove used as a furnace.

Various levels within the Castle.

View of Salzburg from the Castle.

We also had an overnight and half day in Salzburg when we got back but it was rainy and cold and I didn't take a single photo! We visited the Science Centre and aquarium which was very close to our hotel. Then it was back to Vienna and a flight to Nice, France, to meet up with Andrew's sisters. The next phase of our journey begins!

Flying Werfenweng

The original plan was to fly at Werfenweng, Austria, for the day, leave early and head to Slovenia. But at the end of his first flight, one of the guys in our group fell while landing, broke his wrist and hurt his back. He took a taxi into town where they put a cast on his wrist, did a bunch of tests on his back and kept him overnight for observation and pain control.

We spent another night at Zell am See and the rest of us were quite happy to fly again at Werfenweng as it was a gorgeous location and we all got some good flights in. I'm so glad that Andrew and I often practice forward launches at our little sledding hill at home (Pest Hill, for those who know Saskatoon) as we've had to do some forwards here due to the light winds and some in our group are definitely not comfortable with them. I'm even remembering to look back and check my lines before takeoff!

On the first day, Andrew was thrilled to get up high over one of the big rocky peaks in the area. Of course, that was the flight he didn't have his video camera on and the flying was "active" enough that he didn't take photos.

The second day was a bit cloudy but I managed my best flight as I was getting more comfortable with my turns and getting into some thermals. The great thing about this launch is that there's a gondola to the top and the landing zone is about a five minute walk from the gondola so it's easy to get back up to launch. We would definitely come here again!!

Launch on the front side. All the students launched from here so they didn't have to worry about getting around the ridge from the back side. 

Launch from the back side. Head to the right to get around the ridge.

Another nice big landing zone (one person just landing; several gliders on the side getting packed up) and the training hill between the line of trees in the middle left of the photo.

Andrew, still high over the LZ.

Lots of people packing up in the LZ.

Lots of wings in the air! And this wasn't at the peak time.

In-flight selfie.

The big peak that Andrew spent some time over.

Love the view!

Gondola to the launch site. A few gliders soaring the ridge.

The gondola is set up for hang gliders too.

At the top of the gondola. Day 2 here was a lot cloudier. 

Waiting for some of the clouds to dissipate.

Launch areas on either side of the top of the hill. This clear ridge line provided some good lift!