Slovakia

Introducing Slovakia!!! This 19 year-old country (able to drink everywhere in Europe except Iceland) is perhaps Central Europe's least known. Since her divorce from the Czech Republic in 1993, Slovakia is single and ready to mingle. She speaks sexy Slovak, she enjoys the great outdoors (20% of Slovakia is National Park), she is financially savvy (one of the EU's fastest growing economies) and she likes a smooth glass of wine before bedtime (as opposed to beer crazy neighbours, Slovakia has many fine vineyards).

On October 15th it was our 1st wedding anniversary. Rather than do some exciting site-seeing, we decided to spend the entire day in romantic Bratislava, in bed, eating chocolates.

We did go out for dinner in the evening and made sure to see the Danube for a 3rd time.

The historic city of Bratislava was delectable, despite the weather.

Bratislava may not have the rich history of most European cities, but it does win in the cool statues department.

We advanced upon nearby Devín Castle. Unfortunately, our heavy casualties of 2 umbrellas required a hasty retreat.

 On our way to the highlands, we passed through the enthralling mountain village of Vlkolínec.

The High Tatras are a mountain range on the border between Slovakia and Poland where we spent two days of wonderful weather scaling their peaks.

The mountains are home to bears, lynx, marten, wolf and foxes. After walking past her once, we sat for a while with this beautiful and gentle vixen.

Traditional Slovak food is tasty, hearty and always topped with bacon.

 At the peak of Predné Solisko.

The view across the basin below is stunning.

The serene lake, Štrbské Pleso.

The following morning a damp mist presented the perfect setting for exploring gloomy medieval ruins. So off we went in search of Spiš Castle.

The site (like at Devín Castle, mentioned above) was fortified by the Romans on the Danubian frontier of their vast empire. From the 11th century onward, as a borderland of the Hungarian kingdom, Slovakia was scattered with defensive castles.

From this vantage point they could see their enemy coming, providing their enemy was of the avian variety.

Also at Spiš Castle was an animal labelled by the informative sign as a spermophile. We are currently awaiting lab results to determine the appropriateness of this name.

Our final visit was to Slovak Paradise National Park. We were definitely there at the most utopian time of year, as the park was bathed in a heavenly glow.

We did one of our funnest hikes yet which involved climbing ladders and crossing rivers and all kinds of fun stuff like that!!

The Long Wiener Weekend

We spent a glorious three day weekend in Vienna, exploring the extravagance of the Habsburgs, the wonder of its musical history and its modern lifestyle.

But we began on Friday in the world's oldest zoo, officially known as Tiergarten Schönbrunn.

Clockwise from top-left, a red panda, some lions, a jaguar and two year old giant panda Fu Hu.

Again from top-left, a loud gibbon, a bearded vulture, some playful elephants and banded mongeese.

The zoo, once a menagerie for the Empress Maria Theresa, is situated in the grounds of the Schönbrunn Palace.

Also within the grounds are a series of mazes which we entered with childlike enthusiasm and exited with jaded annoyance.

In the evening we wandered the historic centre which had its fair share of exceptional buildings.

Saturday in Vienna was perhaps our most sophisticated day yet, beginning with a morning visit to the Spanish Riding School.

No photos were allowed during the performance, but this video shows what we paid good money to see.

In the evening we went to the opera to see The Marriage of Figaro at the famous and grand Vienna State Opera.

Also while in Vienna we saw the Danube for a second time.

We went to the amazing gothic town hall, which was temporarily swarming with teenagers attending a video game exhibition.

It was all too much for some.

On Sunday we strolled along the Naschmarkt Flea Market. It is perhaps the most extensive antiques market we've seen on this trip. The woman on the left was even selling old sets of keys.

The neighbouring food market.

In Austria it seems strange men like to hand sauerkraut to children from a barrel.

Speaking of sauerkraut, Josh drank some sauerkraut juice. Here he is preparing for sip number 3. It was unimaginably bad, but on the plus side, he now likes the taste of everything else.

The Musik Haus, a fun and informative museum dedicated to the science of sound and the history of Viennese classical music.

Finally, we paid a quick visit to the Wurstelprater amusement park. You may recognise the Ferris wheel (the Wiener Riesenrad) from films including "The Third Man".

We like this photo...

...because the facial expressions sum up our visit to Austria; Ticklish, Cramp-Inducing, Rather quaint and Oh My God My Legs Are Falling Off!!!

Autumn in Austria

We headed North from sunny Italy and drove across the stunning as always Alps. Autumn had arrived and for us Australians, the patchwork of coloured trees on the mountains was really exciting.

An hour later and it was winter.

We were driving Austria's famous panoramic path, the Großglockner High Alpine Road. We were looking forward to the drive and fortunately for us, we can maintain that wonder and suspense, because we had an excellent fog.

In the picture below are several of Austria's highest peaks. You can use the diagram at the bottom of the picture to work out which is which.

The following day we visited the Eisriesenwelt, the largest ice cave in the world.

The ice stays frozen year round due to cool air coming through the cave entrance. This formation is known as the elephant.

Our guide, Franz (or Otto, or Johann or something equally Austrian) led the way with burning magnesium so as to allow the colours to look most natural.

Outside the cave.

Then it was off to Sunny Salzburg.

The first reason that you've heard of Salzburg is that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born here. Yaz explored his birthplace while Josh drove back to the ice caves to recover his forgotten backpack.

The second reason that you've heard of Salzburg, is that the Sound of Music was set and filmed here. Amazingly, we got a great deal and stayed at the original Von Trapp residence. We can now confirm, that in Salzburg, the hills really are alive with the sound of music.

Steps featured in the film. They too are alive with the sound of music.

Pegasus also had a minor role in the film. Even he was once alive with the sound of music.

The third reason you've heard of Salzburg is because of its incredibly beautiful and ornate baroque architecture. The Mirabell Palace is just one example.

The Palace's Pergola.

The Hohensalzburg Castle sits above the town and is one of Europe's largest.

The castle itself wasn't very interesting, but the view was quite marvelous.

Before leaving we took a stroll through a local market, and we were reassured that we were going to get more than just an hour of autumn.