Over the border again

 Another day out in the company of two historians and where do we find ourselves?  The Eagles Nest, high above Berchtesgaden in Germany.  Not qualified to go into too many details of the background here and will simply say that on a beautiful morning such as this, it was simply glorious up there.

We drove to the car park, from where one buys tickets for the obligatory bus ride to the summit.  All wonderfully organised, the tickets allot each passenger a place on a specified bus number and on arrival at the summit, one reserves the return journey for a chosen time.

At the car park, we met our guide who explained much of the background of the place and enabled us to manage the system to our advantage...to wait until most had gone through that tunnel to the lift which goes up to the Eagles Nest itself and then to take us around the building, illustrating our visit with photographs of earlier days and previous occupants and visitors.

It was very interesting indeed and armed with a some background knowledge, a little easier to understand why it had been seldom used.

Today's a different story.  Lots of visitors enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful views. 

And maybe a beer or two.

with the Konigsee to the left

looking down towards  Berchtesgaden straight on

and down the valley towards Salzburg in the far distance to our right.

Breathtaking.

Nice house, shame about the trophies

We've visited the holiday home - hunting lodge - of Kaiser Franz Josef  today, where evidence of every succesful shot is on the wall somewhere - and in the small space left, there's probably a picture of Sissi.

The house itself, in Bad Ischl, is gorgeous and rather more than the label "hunting lodge" might suggest.  I really loved the colours of the house - outside, the ochre, grey and bottle green and inside, a palette of rich but subtle colours - burnt orange and petrol blue, grey and malachite green, crimson and ochre.  Yes, take away all those hunting souvenirs and I'd move in tomorrow!

No need to take away this figure in the garden, though.  I rather like the colour and think the contrasting textures of the two dogs alongside their handsome master works well and I could live with it just as it is, thanks.

On, through the Salzkammergut to Salzburg then, where the sun was shining and the whole city inviting a closer look.  We checked into our hotel and immediately went out to explore.

It seemed like everyone had moved on from Cesky Krumlov and joined us here.  Oh dear.

We found one or two quieter corners, thank goodness, and not everywhere ooozed Mozart.  Except on this corner, where I enjoyed hearing a performance of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik played on the glasses.

Classy, eh?

Style and comfort

Before we move on, I should share a bit about the beautiful hotel we chose in Linz.  Hotel am Domplatz  wasn't actually finished when we booked our stay but promised to be special, even then.  We have the corner room on the first floor, overlooking the Mariendom - the one with the blinds drawn when this photo was taken.

Our room is almost all glass.  Behind the bed, there's the bathroom - with separate, closed in loo!

 

From the bathroom, you can see where I sit and blog...or curl up and read on a rather comfy sofa.

There is no real room for art, but on the one solid wall, there hangs a (very reflective, sorry) panel with some braille script.  I'd like to think it describes, in some way, the view that is revealed to those of us lucky enough to be able to enjoy it.

Pretty good, eh?

Though yes, it is a bit like living in a goldfish bowl, so the net curtains remain closed.  Shame.

Oh, nearly forgot.  The view from the loo. Densely frosted glass with one small clear strip at eye level.  Works well.

European Capital of Culture 2009

With this magnificent cathedral outside our door, it was clear where to begin our exploration of the city.

 

For me, it was the beautiful, modern stained glass which made it so special.  I loved the picture panels, the richness of colour and the lovely, realistic portraits of the people depicted.

I also rather liked the pixel-like patterns on the very modern windows towards the altar, which replaced some damaged during WW2. 

Our next stop was the Postlingberg, from where we could see a grand view of the city - so much larger and more industrial than our short walk had suggested.  We reached the summit via the tram, said to be the steepest track railway in Europe - and very popular too.

We hopped off the tram at the ARS Electronica Centre - a rather fascinating mix of science, art and technology.  The 3D journey through the universe was rather mind-boggling (for me at least) but the more creative exhibits were fascinating, particularly the small, quiet machines which didn't attract the attention of every ten year old in the building! 

This structure, made from a network of plastic tags and feathers wafted gently in a man-made breeze, lit from several points against a black background.  So effective and so gentle.  Other small machines were equally fascinating and somewhat captivating; Edward in particular, loved Theo Jansen's Strandbeest films.

The attractions of this city of culture are quite tiring, even for us, the most enthusiastic of visitors, so we returned to the Hauptplatz for ice-coffee and a little light window shopping - well, I had seen a wool shop on the way out this morning!

This evening, we've enjoyed a second night at the Klosterhof, this time out in the beer garden where the sun shone until well after eight and the leberkaese was as tasty as ever.  We were "welcomed back" and felt rather at home there.

Oh dear...time to move on!  Salzburg tomorrow.

Honey pot

We left Karlovy Vary this morning, heading south towards Linz but planning to stop in Cesky Krumlov , world heritage site and according to the Lonely Planet guide, the most beautiful town in Central Europe.

So I guess we shouldn't have been surprised to find it crowded.

Of course, the buildings were as beautiful, the square as attractive - but the crowds, coupled with the showery weather meant that we didn't feel as enthusiastic as we might have done.

Whilst there I kept an eye open for Magic Armchair Traveller Sue, on holiday nearby, yet hoping at the same time that she visited on a quieter, more sunshiney day than today.

As we walked back to the car, we couldn't resist joining the queue for some trdelnik which were delicious!

We drove along the Vltava river for many miles, following the progress of families canoeing down the river and camping alongside.  More of an adventure than usual for the river is so high right now.

We arrived here in Linz late afternoon and checked into our almost-new hotel in the shadow of the Mariendom.  It's a beautiful place, stunning design and so very comfortable.  A glass bathroom is an interesting feature, though, especially considering those large glass windows!