Hallstatt, the reason for my coming to Austria (I went because desk calendar has a picture of Hallstatt in summer. I just had to verify it with my very own eyes.)

I arrived at Vienna on the Good Sunday, went to several masses (including one at Stephensdom on the very day of Good Sunday), and left Vienna two day later via train, stopping first at Durstein, a wine village which is supposed to be bustling with activities during wine season. But during down season (when I arrived), it is just a quiet village next to an inconspicuous train stop, with zero tourist. I arrived on such a quiet day, and it took awhile to find accommodations because most housing are closed for the season. The houses in the village are indexed by a number (i.e. #1 for house #1) – I found my abode (a room in a house) for the night with house #133, which is at the end of the village! Below is a view from the Castle ruin atop the village at 6:30 am.

I came back from the short hike to my room welcomed by a hearty Austrian breakfast.

Other pictures from the trip…

Steyr, an industrial down at the confluence of 3 rivers.

Steyr, during day time.

Melk, a little town where the summer palace of the Hofburgs is housed.

Below is Krumluv, a town in Czech republic, my slight detour en route to Salzberg – I befriended a couple locals in Hallstatt and stayed over at their house at the border of Austria and Czech Republic. Next day, they took me to Krumluv for breakfast (basically, it’s more a meal between lunch and dinner). Note the difference in the coloring style of Czech houses with Austrian houses. (I insist that Czechs like orange….similar color as in Prague) Then they drove me back to Linz, where I took the train to Salzberg.

Salzberg, where Sound of Music is filmed.

Nonberg Abbey, where Maria of Sound of Music attended as a nun (note that this shot is the same as the film!)