Into the Lake District

An hour spent silently in the presence of the Lake District's sights is better than any length spent in front of a flashing box.  Perhaps this is the true root of my annoyance with technology...anything keeping people from spending time doing this cannot be good.  Our trip to the small town of Obertraun was short, but incredibly full.  We set out Monday morning and took two different trains.  I've said it before and I'll say it again; train travel is the way to go.  We certainly could've made it to our destination in shorter time, but there is something to be said for taking your time--particularly while on vacation.  I also love that I'm more accesible to my babies than on a car road trip.  Life is much easier on the littles when they can snuggle people at-will and retrieve their own fallen objects from the floor.  The accessibility of bathrooms is also priceless.  So, we leisurely wound our way into Austria's wilderness to the sleepy town of Obertraun.

Obertraun is situated on Hallstatter See, across the lake from the much-visited town of Hallstatt.  By the time we had arrived at our hotel and were shown our rooms by our excellent hostess, the girls were ready to burn off some energy, so we took a short walk to the town's playground...situated on the lake shore.  I think all of us were up for a little exercise (and SWINGING!)--we really enjoyed our time checking out the sights for the first time.  The only real downside to choosing to stay in Hallstatt's less crowded counterpart was the limited availability of markets or restaurants.  We walked a bit more than we are accustomed to on a quest for snacks and libations...and after what felt like a major undertaking just to get snack food, we found that all the restaurants in our 'neck of the woods' were closed on Mondays.  The only one in town that was actually open was back by the supermarket we had just trekked home from. Well, we sucked it up, and luckily, the Sturm and fresh fish from the lake were worth the walk to Gasthof Hoellwirt for a fantastic dinner.  Possibly the best money spent that evening, however, was for a five minute cab ride home in the torrential rain.  Bailey kept yelling "I'm in a car, Gramma!!  We's ridin' a car!!!" To her credit, it had been nearly six months since the kid had been in an automobile and the experience was clearly thrilling. Little did she know, we had a day planned in the morning that could top any cab ride.

I guess I should explain that our apartment at the Hotel Seerose was absolutely fantastic.  Situated on the top floor with incredible views, it had three bedrooms, two full baths, a kitchen, living room, dining area and three separate balconies.  But the breakfast, oh, the breakfast!!  It was honestly nothing I couldn't have put together myself (with considerable effort), but walking downstairs and having a full Austrian breakfast feast waiting, not to mention the hot chocolate delivered to me as I sat down to eat...well, it was euphoric.  Even if Bailey spent most of her time at the breakfast table trying to see if she could pass for technically bathing in yogurt. 


This morning, we needed the extra fortification of that meat and cheese platter...and even perhaps the liver spread.  Because first on our list was a trip to Dachstein Salzkammergut, the area's main natural attraction.  At Dachstein one has many options; the lifts here not only offer stunning views, but each level hosts a range of activities from tours of impressive ice caves or the 'mammoth cave' to hiking that would make any outdoor enthusiast drool.  We were limited by both time restrictions and things that were age-appropriate for the girls, so we headed up two different lifts (one of which stopped for a few uncomfortable moments) and took the trail out to what is toted as Austria's most notable viewing platform: 5fingers, named for it's five separate diving board-esque platforms that stick out of the mountain over a 400 meter drop.  The walk there was great...aside from worrying I might drop Bailey off a sheer cliff because the wind was whipping my unruly hair in my face...it was absolutely lovely.  We all teetered about the viewing platforms, but soon headed back to the trail since the cold whipping wind didn't really make for a relaxing break from anything.  I was about 2 minutes into our hike back, however, when I realized why the walk out had seemed so pleasant.  It had all been downhill.  Now I was windburned, cold and wanted nothing more than to sit down with a mug of cocoa. Even the distant memories of our magical breakfast couldn't sustain me.  Hiking uphill at high altitudes with 40 pound babies attached to your body sucks...just for future reference.

The mugs of hot chocolate waiting for us at the restaurant at the mountain's mid-station, though, were most welcome and well-earned.  We stopped there to eat some lunch before heading back down the mountain where we hopped in yet another cab (rapture!!) to visit the famed downtown of Hallstatt.

Anyone who hasn't been there is probably wondering what the deal is...actually, Joe is probably also wondering since he was basically shipped there without being consulted in any way. (It's his own fault)  Hallstatt has a very rich history as a town that has been mining salt for thousands of years...that's right: thousands.  Some of the earliest evidence of the Celts was found here.  It is really such a curious place; it is tiny, the population measuring under a thousand, and situated on a steep hillside directly on the lake.  Until the 19th century, the town was only accessible by boat...but now it seems accessible to everyone; the place was buzzing.  And for a good reason.  This quaint town built into the hillside just absolutely steals the heart.  We walked the length of the town along the shore of the lake and then headed up winding stairs to the catholic parish church where the church yard is absolutely crowded to the brim with grave plots...so much so that if you're willing to pay a euro or two, you can enter the charnel house of the church where bones of the once-buried have been exhumed (to make room for the new ones), cleaned, painted and displayed. (the most recent of these was in 1995).  This tradition actually dates back to 1720 AD...it was incredible to be somewhere with a history so deep.

After getting our fill of creepy old bones, we had an hour to bum around town before taking the ferry boat back across the lake.  Mom bought the girls a pair of 'sister sheep' from one of the shops and we ate ice cream (or drank beer) while taking in the scenery.  Our ferry ride across the lake was just the icing on the cake.  Seeing the town of Hallstatt from a boat on the lake was absolutely priceless--that vantage point was the one that took my breath away. It was a very sweet way to part with a place that is so devastatingly charming. 

The ferry we chose to take dropped us off at Hallstatt's train station, which meant we had a 20 minute walk along the lakeside to return to our hotel in Obertraun.  On the way, Bailey fell asleep on my back (sans carrier...that was interesting).  We saw several squished, dead salamanders and were almost run over by at least 4 cyclists (who we're assuming are also responsible for the aforementioned salamanders).  By the time we made it back, we were done.  Toast.  It was a hell of a day.  And we were so thankful that the Gasthaus down the lane was open for dinner.  Bailey was also excessively thankful, but mostly because we I let a cat in the door when we arrived (it turned out he lived there) and they also had a resident dog who was incredibly patient with my enthusiastic two-year old. The pork wasn't bad either.  Mostly, though, we were beat and ended up crashing as soon as we got back to the hotel.

The best part about waking up (next to seeing my cute babies sleeping next to each other) was knowing there would be another breakfast.  John and I were seriously considering relocating just so we could wake up every morning with the promise of that fantastic spread.  Checking out so soon was a bummer.  We really loved our time in Obertraun and Hallstatt, but we were ever so thankful for the time we had.  After lingering as long as humanly possible at our designated breakfast tables, we reluctantly headed to the train station where we sat, taking in the scenery for the last time.  Well, the girls were off making friends with a big friendly draft horse...the rest of us were sitting around trying to impress the loveliness into our memories.

Our train ride home was smooth sailing.  The girls are fantastic little travelers (even though one of them still has a propensity to scream on occasion *cough* Bailey *cough*).  We were happy to be home.  It was such a full trip, I couldn't believe how little time we'd actually been gone.