After all the parties and adventure in Europe, it was now time for some admiration of nature and its beauty. It was time for Austria! Innsbruck - city of Alps is famous for being a winter sports destination. It has twice hosted the Winter Olympics (a record till date). Decision for this city was simply based on its association & my love for winter (literally without research). Searching for appropriate attractions though proved to be a challenge. Most tour organizers don't cover this city (mostly Vienna & Salzburg at max). Even top Google search results didn't yield much. Finding a reasonable hostel was also very difficult. At one point of time, I was open to the idea of dropping Innsbruck altogether.
After many a gloomy days, I finally came across the Innsbruck Card. It was only after coming across this card did I researched about other city cards and their benefits. Attractions & things to-do mentioned in this card introduced me to an Innsbruck, I thought never existed. It felt like getting a map to the hidden secrets of the city. Unlike other European cities, number of hostels is quite limited with Youth Hostel being the only recommended one from the famous group of hostels. However, given the last-minute rush I couldn't find a space in Youth Hostel and thereby was forced to book a room in a hotel which was 9-kms from the city center (furthest I have stayed).
To be honest, I did goof up on my train timings to this city (don't repeat my mistake). I had reached here around 4 in the morning which by all standards is very early. Being the city of Alps, it was quite chilly outside even though it was not winters. I had to sleep for a good 2-3 hrs in the waiting room at the station as the official information center was to open only at 8 to purchase my city pass. At times, even the police came around asking for valid tickets and reasons for the long stay making me feel scared and helpless. Little did I realize that there was an Ibis Hotel situated right outside the railway station which could also sell the city pass. This was a good learning experience for my future plans. I smiled on my luck as my hotel had a bus stop right outside its gates.
I started off with the Hofburg Palace and Maximilian I exhibition. The Palace has gigantic halls, imperial rooms from the 18-19th centuries, exemplary paintings and exhibitions from the life of Maximilian I (unlike modern art). Next I took the city hop-on, hop-off sightseeing bus as it took me across the city introducing the beautiful landscapes, view points and attractions. I then went to view the Bergisel Ski Jump (click the link for a virtual 360 degree tour), a stadium which has twice hosted the Winter Olympics and annually hosts a competition of the prestigious Four Hills Tournament. Although the stadium was empty, I could feel the noise of crowd cheering a ski jumper. The view of landing hill from the take-off table with the magnificent Alps Mountains in backdrop was simply mesmerizing (wish I had been there during sunset). At the same time, it felt dangerous to view let alone try it. But then the thought of successfully doing skydiving crossed my mind and immediately I felt better. A note for travelers - carry along plenty of liquid as steps up the hill can be quite tough. Later in the evening, I went for my first experience at a Casino. With a glass of champagne, I played hands at the Blackjack & Roulette tables until I ran out of money. It definitely wasn't the biggest casinos to be found around with only few tables per game but the experience was worthwhile. I even brought along an unused chip as a token of memory.
Following day, I undertook the most anticipated activity of my trip to Innsbruck - going up the Nordkette Mountain range using a funicular (sort of cable car). It starts underground like a metro and goes up all the way to the top at 7400 ft in just about 30 minutes. View from each station halt was beautiful enough to amaze anyone. Climbing up, more than anything else I was astonished at the human efforts to build such a strong foundation and base for this funicular. Reaching the top, the sight to behold was simply breathtaking. Up above the clouds, shinning sun rays, peak of mountain ranges drove me off my feet and all I could tell myself - 'Heaven is definitely beyond imagination'. After a brief photo session, I had a video chat with my mother, sister and brother-in law up at 7400 ft. All of them were amazed at network connectivity and the view received from the comfort of home. I thanked Almighty to have given me this view and experience. Trip to Innsbruck can't finish without a visit to the Swarovski Kristallwelten. It is a crystal world, an experience attraction of crystal glass manufacturer Swarovski consisting of a retail area, garden, art museum. Beauty of crystal manufactured articles simply left me spellbound. Thankfully I didn't visit this place post-marriage or else I would have surely become bankrupt that day. I was suggested to visit a Swarovski retail store in Old Town to collect a surprise from the brand which turned out to be a necklace-type crystal. For some strange reasons, the store-keeper looked at me and said 'I think you might need two of these' and handed it over to me (one crystal per Innsbruck card is the norm). A stroll across the old town here is highly recommended, you get to experience the beauty of classical European style of dining on the street.
One cannot help but fall in love with this beautiful city. This is definitely an European city I would love to visit again in my lifetime and this time probably with my better half during winter. Do enjoy the beautiful snaps of Innsbruck and a small video (click on video) from the top of Nordkette Mountain. Stay tuned for the next in this series - Salzburg...
