Innsbruck

We trained from Vienna to Innsbruck, just under 5 hours on the train. The weather has not been great and seemed to be even worse when we arrived in Innsbruck. It was raining on and off and unseasonably cold. And in typical Lisa and Ctos style, we continued to wear our Birkenstocks (definitely my shoe of choice... just like Auntie Linda!) This was cause for lots of staring as we walked through the quaint old town.

Innsbruck is a beautiful place, burrowed in between the snowcapped mountains. Full of tourists, it is a great place biking, hiking and skiing enthusiasts. Our visit here was only one night and in the early evening the light rain gave way to an all night downpour. Locals indicated that Innsbruck is actually well known for its good weather and this was an anomaly. In warm sunny weather, this place would be incredible. We saw the golden roof and visited the museum to learn more about it.

By far, the best thing about Austria is the beer.

Austrian Wine

Just outside the city proper of Vienna, there is a small wine region with vineyards and all!

We ventured outside the city to check it out. It was a bit if a let down, not the winery and tasting opportunities that we are used to. However, we did sit down at a local place to taste at least one wine. The wine was okay but more interestingly, it was served in a mug.. Yes a full mug of wine – worthy of my mother (and Auntie Sandra!)

Beer Garden!

We arrived on Monday morning. Note that Austrian Air is worse than Air Can...

Austria reminds us both of Berlin / Germany. Yesterday we visited St. Stephens church -- it was nice but nothing really compares to the Pope's house.. We also went to a museum and learned about Elisabeth the Empress of Austrian Empire - it was interesting. Food is pretty good and the Beer is amazing!

Nothing says Austrian like a Beer Garden! It truly is the melding of two beautiful things...

Tickets have been purchased!

Toronto to Vienna May 9th!
Paris to Toronto June 22nd!

Under Construction

The trip has been planned, changed, planned and changed again. I think we have figured it out but you won't know for sure until we book the tickets.
Stay tuned!

Isis

She snuggles us at night, wakes us up in the morning and guards us in the shower.

The bottom shot is Isis in 1998 at 9 Hanna Avenue, a raw industrial loft space that Matt and I lived in for a wild and crazy year!

Newfoundland Escapes

In 2007, 2008 and 2009, Lisa and Christos visited Aare (Esto) in Western Newfoundland, Corner Brook to be specific. We stayed with Esto, quaffing beer, playing disc golf with Esto's mobile target, eating lobster and generally hanging out having a good time!

Aare moved out to Newfoundland in the early aughts and on occasion comes back to Toronto to visit but the natural beauty of Newfoundland has kept him on the "Rock" for years.

In addition to staying at Esto's, we also visited Gros Morne, an amazing national park with wonderful trails.

The first time we travelled to Newfoundland, it was the Victoria Day Weekend and when we visited Gros Morne, there was still snow on the ground!

Alas, we did not hike that time but embued with additional wisdom, our next two trips were both in July, one over the Canada Day Weekend! 

In 2008, we hiked the Gros Morne mountain trail, a long flat walk in followed by a climb over steep scree to the flat top of the mountain with amazing views out over the water (and also some caribou). 

After a lunch break at the scenic vista, we continued on a loop around the mountain, complete with a stop at a lake with a moose on the other side, before descending at a much milder grade down to the trail that had brought us in. All told the trip took about eight hours and our bodies were sore after, our feet doubly so!

The next time we came out in 2009, we hiked what Aare calls the Green Gardens trail (or so I recall). This was a much less strenuous trail with a descent from the entry point down to a trail along the water followed by an ascent and loop back to the starting point. It was aptly named as the whole journey was filled with lush greenery whereas the top of Gros Morne Mountain had been fairly bleak.