We have enjoyed great experiences in the last month, we count ourselves fortunate and blessed. We've made progress in our home schooling, on our house and our business. The biggest event was a trip to Stubai, Austria. The drive into Austria from our home took between 4-5 hours, I would consider this our first real autobahn experience. We were traveling at 130-145 km/h and were getting passed like a little old lady! It's incredible how fast some of these cars can and do go. For the record, all the interstates here are "autobahn", some have speed limits, some do not.
Here are pictures from the drive; honestly, they do not do justice to the landscape. The part of Austria we traveled through was breathtaking. One part of a curvy road we drove had ruins of a castle sitting off to the side.
Driving the highways in Austria requires a special highway sticker, called a Vignette that can be purchased at any gas station near the border. It can be purchased for different lengths of time, prices adjusted accordingly. Driving without one can result in heavy fines. We purchased a ten day sticker for 12 or 14 Euro, the stickers look like this:
Brandy made all the arrangements, she is incredible. She found a two bedroom, 3 bath condo on www.homeaway.com for 4 days & 3 nights. It was between the glacier, where you ski, and the nearest village, Milders. Hailey, Grace and Ryley shared a bedroom that had a pull out bed for Ryley; she was so excited to sleep in the same room as her sisters. Brandy and I took the other.
Kitchen:
And, finally, view of Austria from our balcony:
Stubai is definitely all about skiing, there are several shops that cater to the demand. We rented our ski gear from the Army's Outdoor Recreation Center, website located here, on Panzer Kaserne base. It was roughly 100 Euro for each of us for the whole season. We found a ski shop with sizes to fit Ryley and rented equipment her for 1 day/6 Euro. The Ski passes on the glacier are a little expensive for a family, For all of us to go up and ski for a day it was around 114 Euro.
It was interesting seeing the Austrians and Germans ski, it seems to be second nature for them. They stand at the bus stops in their full ski gear, boots to helmets, and make their way up to the glacier. I assumed if they could wear their ski boots from the house to the bus stop, all day on the mountain and back, certainly we could wear ours from the parking lot, to ski, and back. This was a tragic assumption. All rookies, like us, please put your boots in a duffel bag and switch your shoes for boots right before you ski. Hailey and I walked away from the first day of skiing with blisters on our shins from the boots, Brandy had some pretty good bruising. This prompted the purchase of some high dollar ski socks which I assumed, could only be but so good. High dollar ski socks are worth every penny, they make you super human. I would wear them daily if not for the immediate loss of sex appeal.
From the entry area you take a gondola, or a sky tram, or cable car up the mountain. It was a beautiful ride, although nerve-racking for Brandy. Ryley would yell "Airplane!" as soon as we left the ground, followed by rounds of "We're flying, we're flying!" Its a ten minute ride up the mountain, during which we "flew" over waterfalls, gorges and beautiful landscape. The lodges on the glacier are great, they offer equipment, lessons, food (great food!) and warmth. Ryley's perception of skiing is an airplane ride, playing in the snow and eating good food, she loves to "ski".
We stayed mostly to the bunny slopes as we are all in a beginner status, Brandy had the most experience of all of us, she and I went down a more aggressive hill for awhile. She took only one spill that resulted in a few of those serious bruises that eventually turn green, but the girl is tough as nails.
This is the Stubai entry to the Glacier:
And the ladies suited up, ready to take on the slopes:
We consider this trip a practice run and are excited to go again. There are a few things we may do differently but all in all it was great. The places we go make us think about more places we want to explore and things we would like to see. Traveling as a family and enjoying these things together make it that much more special.
We have more trips planned and are looking forward to having some friends and family visit so we can share this with them.
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