Hallstat (Austria)
13 September - 15 September 2015
No doubt, I was grateful that this would be the last stop on such 'bomb riddled' ride across the continent. Of course there had been highlights and of course there were moments of collective enjoyment, but the exercise of mandating active journeying for 'tick box' purposes made no sense, and neither did the active complaining. Still, Hallstat as the final destination was to be a real highlight.
Perhaps some 16-18 months earlier I had opened the travel section on a beautiful Sunday morning and come across Hallstat for the first time. A fairy tale like alpine village nestled between the Hallstater See and the Dachstein mountains. The Sydney Morning Herald had nominated it as one of their prettiest villages in Europe and hence is automatically made it onto the travel schedule that I had created for my parents as they traveled around Europe that year. I could not have imagined then all the changes that took place between that time and me arriving now. All the participants were the same except for me, I had replaced my father in this mission. Still, I'm glad that he had the opportunity to have seen it when he did.
Hallstat - Austria
Hallstat - Gmunden district - Upper Austria
Obertraun - Austria
Hallstat - Gmunden district - Upper Austria
Without question, this village is the epitome of cute, or sweet, or 'picture postcard' perfect. It has everything going right for it. Gorgeous scenery, picturesque architecture, a lovely cool climate, clean, crisp air. It's dream-like in Summer and I can only assume that Winter turs this place into something unearthly. It really is that impressive.
We actually took up residence in a town on the other side of the lake, a short drive from Hallstat, named Obertraun. Quaint in its on right but infuriatingly heedless, or unmindful, by way of their numbering system for commercial/residential premises. There literally is no rhyme or reason to the way they do it, No.2 stands next to No.47, No. 63 stands next to No.17. There's no logic, no algorithm, no code that can comfortably distill what you have into something that you may safely utilise to find your way. What's more, asking for assistance will either get you blank looks or directions that are unlikely to be of any real use. Apparently the travel crew had encountered exactly the same mindless situation the year before, and hey presto, he we were giving it another whirl just for kicks.
Hallstat - Austria
Hallstat - Gmunden district - Upper Austria
Hallstat - Austria
Hallstat - Austria
Another kick in the gonads was received whilst we checked in at the DORMIO RESORT in Obertraun. I wrote about this ridiculous situation on TripAdvisor, which you can also read about via this link SHOCKING BILLING PRACTICES - DORMIO RESORT (OBERTRAUN)
...the short of it being that a one night stay of 181 euros had a little 'cleaning fee' of 191 euros added to the bill, apparently 'fine print' which I had missed whilst making the reservation on booking.com. I've also seen that amount described by other people in the same situation has a 'Hallstat tourist tax' or some other fanciful name. Either way, completely bogus and shameful I have to say.
DO NOT STAY HERE! DORMIO RESORT - OBERTRAUN - AUSTRIA
Our days in Hallstat were pleasant, its hard not to appreciate a place as beautiful as this. Scenery and views in such abundance in the same sort of way that extremely attractive people somehow don't feel right to walk amongst the also-rans, they just feel so far removed from normal that they edge into uncomfortably abnormal territory - right! - you know what I mean.
An interesting attraction in that area are the salt mines, which have an estimated date of first utilisation sometime between the 8th and 5th centuries BC. Who knows, maybe I had some ancient ancestors that cruised this area for salt back in the day? Ancestry.com tells me that it's a possibility at least.
Salzwelten - Hallstat - Austria
Hallstat - Austria
Hallstat - Austria
At the end of the day you go to Hallstat for a dose of beauty and perhaps a great schnitzel, if you do that then guaranteed you won't be disappointed.
Somewhere on the road in Serbia - motoring back to Belgrade
After a couple of days we finally turned the car south and heading back to Belgrade, what was to become my new home. This trip, mercifully, had come to an end, but new adventures were just starting to appear on the horizon, and boy, the 'holiday attack' fleet looked absolutely stacked. I really had no idea.
