Innsbruck

We are having a chill out for a few days here in Innsbruck in Austria. We have a few boring type things to get done such as Laundry and updating Tomtom maps to get done so we decided we deserved a break. Plus today in Slovenia, our next destination, is National Day, a public holiday where everything will either be shut or really busy!!!!



Yesterday we saw a bit of the Bodensee (Lake Constance) as we drove past, sadly the clouds are still around so we didnt see much, I think there were some mountains surrounding it but not that we could tell. Once we managed to locate the Austrian border (having gone through Switzerland to ge there (Europe is cool!!!)) and get our Vingette to allow us to go on the motorway we actually started to relaise how high up we are now and that we are actaually in the Alps, as the mountains started poking out.



The motorway from Bodensee to Innsbruck is the most scenic we have been on so far and it was amazing!!! the really steep mountains just go up and up really dramaticlly right by the road, covered in forest and with little villages clinging on. And when the mountains are too much the Austrains just make a tunnel. There were loads of tunnels everywhere, the longest we went through was about 13 kms i think, it just kept on going!!!!!

Innsburck is a pretty big town with a cute medieval old town right in the middle, we are staying in a Gausthof right in the center, from the window we can see the river and all the cool old buildings. Its soo interesting as we travel around seeing how the houses change as we move from country to country. Austrians must actually wear traditional dress sometimes as there seem to be loads of shops selling leiderhosen and dresses and hats. or maybe its just to con the toruists into paying 300 euros for a costume!!!



After getting most of our chores done last night, today we have reverted to tourist mode and climbed up the city tower. The cloud has lifted a bit so we got a great view of some of the mountains surrounding the town. so beautiful. We also have visited the Hofkirche where the Hapsberg Emporer Maximillion has his tomb (not that he's actually in it tho!!!) there are heaps of bigger than life size statues around it of all his family, ancestors and people he wished were his ancestors like King Arthur of England!!!!!!