Today, we were up at six-thirty to head out on our second day of touring. But first, we all gathered downstairs for a quick continental breakfast. And what a breakfast!! I don’t think there was anything quick about that breakfast; and that from somebody who usually inhales his food. The selection was unbelievable! Juices, coffee, tea, fruit juice, fruit, different types of meat, toast with about 10 different jams and jellies to spread on top. Really, it was almost too much and to boot, it was free. Needless to say, I think the hotel lost money on my stay. They were well in the lead (profit wise) until that continental breakfast and then they slipped into the red! Lol

After breakfast, we hit the road. We had two destination today. The first one was Linderhof castle and the second, Innsbruck (2).

Linderhof castle was built by one of Austria’s strangest kings, Ludwig. Apparently he was more of an artist then a king. He inherited the throne when he was 18 years old. In his lifetime, he started numerous castles. The castles were typically very small compared to other palaces of that era but lacked nothing in grandeur. What made this king so strange was his love for art and music (the arts).

In particular, he loved the music of Wagner and invited him to come live at his palace. Again, I’m slightly off topic. What made him so strange was that he didn’t like many people around him. Hence, his palaces were very small (max. of 6 servants). When he ate, he always ate along. Not even the servants were allowed into his presence. So, how did they get the food to this “shy” king? The table stood on top of a section of floor that could be lowered downstairs. Once downstairs, the servants would quickly load on the food and pull the ropes to lift the table back to the top. Maybe this is what inspired the tale “Tischlein deck Dich”!

Another very strange thing about Ludwig was that he loved the arts so much that he would be up all night listening to his own private orchestra. Come morning, the king went to bed.

To further enhance these performances,the king had a large grotto build. On the picture, you can’t really see the entrance because the door is artistically designed to look like it is part of the rock. It swings sideways to let you enter. The grotto looks like a very authentic cave, but is made entirely out of cement and wire mesh (you see the odd piece of rebar sticking up). Inside, he made a small pond on which which he had a floating boat (throne). On one wall, there was a beautiful painting. Also, there was a waterfall that could be turned on and off if watery sounds were wanted. Finally, the whole cave could be heated up by a couple of ovens located underneath.

Back inside the castle, you can find further examples of the kings eccentricity! All the rooms were made in accordance to French style. Ludwig loved everything France! Everything in the room was gilded with gold. Only one room was different and that was the servants waiting room. That room was gilded with silver. Sorry, we weren’t allowed to take any pictures inside the castle (copy right issue)!

There were so many other fascinating things to be seen, that I’m not even going to begin! Just suffice it to say, it was a wonderful tour!

Then, our crazy bus driver hauled us off to Innsbruck. He drove unbelievable fast considering that the roods twisted and turned.

Arriving in Innsbruck, we first went to visit a local jewelry/cystal shop known as Kwarovski. The displays in this store were simply stunning. I particular loved the coloured crystal displays.

After we were done with the jewelry shop, Jordi and I went to look for the “Goldene Dach”. We didn’t really have any trouble finding it. Also, we found the plaque that the Mennonites hung up to commemorate the place where Jacob Hutter was burned at the stake. Afterwards, we walked around and visited the numerous quaint shops that line the cobblestone streets. Everybody was selling souvenirs. Of course, I had to buy an Austrian hat but decided to draw the line with the ladder-hosen! . Also, I found a shop that let you sample snapps and liquors. This was a very “refreshing” store!

This evening we also went out to an evening of Tyrolean singing, dancing and yodeling. The performances was outstanding. The dancers were dressed in the traditional Tyrolean costume; the women with the dress with the apron and the men wearing their leather ledern-hosen. The singing was absolutely outstanding. I talked with some of the singers and could understand most of their dialect, even though there were some differences. Almost all the songs they sang were in the Tyrolean dialect which is very similar, but not the same, as our Kartnisch dialect. One of the things that struck me a little strange was that some of the singers looked familiar, almost as if I’d seen them before. Their facial features and their actions reminded me of some Hutterites I’ve seen. I guess that’s our common ancestry showing through.

Anyway, folks, I would love to be able to post some video clips about the singers and more pictures about some of the places we’ve seen, but we are having difficulty getting on the Internet. The first hotel we were at only allowed us 15 minutes of free time then they wanted 10 EUR/hour. The second hotel didn’t offer any free Internet. Maybe at our next hotel, we will be able to find a local Internet Cafe where I can take my time and post some pictures. Thank you for being so patient!