Finland - the other Green and Gold

If I had to use one word to describe Finland, it would be 'neat'.  Everything is just so, in it's place!

We left our accommodation just before 9 am as the car space is only free until then.  Made good use of the facilities - we each had a separate bedroom, separate bathroom, washed my hair and Donna did clothes washing.  Our hosts had generously left a few boxes of goodies for us, but we limited ourselves to one box of chocolate shortbread biccies (and if truth be known, we probably don't need them either!)  Still, a lovely gesture for visitors to the City.  Autumn is on its way to this part of the world - I had to clear yellowing leaves from the car this morning.  It has been parked in a very shaded street right next to a major park.

There are two places we really want to visit in Turku - the Cathedral and the Castle.  
The Cathedral is closer and has opened at 9 am, so we start there. Turku Cathedral is as old as the ages - that would be the medieval ages.  The cathedral was originally built out of wood in the late 13th century, and was consecrated as the main cathedral of Finland in 1300, the seat of the Catholic Bishop of Turku. It was considerably expanded in the 14th and 15th centuries, mainly using stone as the construction material. The cathedral was badly damaged during the Great Fire of Turku in 1827.

I downloaded a virtual tour of the Cathedral so we could tell what we are looking at - link here.  It is fascinating!  Like many of the Cathedrals and churches of this time, not only is this a place of worship.  It is also somewhere to learn of the social history and customs and in this particular example, some of the military history of Turku.

Absolute highlights included the fact that over 4,500 bodies were entombed under the floor of the Cathedral.  This practice was discontinued in 1784 for reasons of hygiene! There are burial chapels for the wealthy and powerful residents of early Turku dating back to the early 16th century. and a number relate to military leaders of the Thirty Year War in the 1600s.  It also includes the final resting place of Karin Månsdotter, Queen of Sweden who died in 1612.  Her coffin in black marble with a gold crown resting on a gold pillow atop it.

The ironwork grilles are the oldest remaining examples of this artwork in Finland, and quite a bit of the original wall and ceiling frescoes remain.  Now, the Cathedral is Lutheran, and the body of the church is quite austere.

The car needs to be moved by 10:15 am, so after an hour looking through this amazing piece of history, we go back out into the sunshine and walk across the square.  It is a 10 minute trip through Turku to get to our next destination - Turku Castle.  Enroute, we travel alongside the Aura river and see all the former ships that are now restaurants, the many gardens and parks and heaps of old and new sculptures and statues.  Like many cities in this part of the world, the pedestrian and cyclist have right of way and we are forever on the lookout for those who choose to just come out of nowhere!

Turku Castle is amazing - truly an O.M.G. experience.  Set at the end of the land near the Turku Port, and protected on all sides by islands at the mouth of the Aura River, the castle is an imposing edifice that towers above us.  The latest additions are all white-washed and gleam in the early morning sun.  The castle flag flies above the main entrance and in a stiff breeze, we were lucky to get photos of it a full extension.  The downside?  Cobblestones, blasted cobblestones. And no two are the same shape or orientation or even.  Thank goodness I had Donna's are to steady myself.  
Then come the steps up into the castle itself (of course).

We wander into the inner courtyard that bears testament to the medieval time of the castle.  Footings of the earlier buildings can still be clearly seen.  I was particularly taken with the following information - Before becoming a museum in the 19th century, Turku Castle served as a fortification and a stronghold for more than 600 years. The Castle was designed to be as inaccessible as possible.  Even the steps and the passageway into the entry hall of the castle are shallow and very steep - the first step (no guardrail) is almost knee high.  You all know me - I don't do bad steps, so I opt to wait here while Donna explores the inner workings.  She comes back with stories and photos of what is on display.  AND confirms my worst nightmare - narrow, steep, spiral staircases in much of the inside of the castle.

Along with the Cathedral, the castle is one of the oldest buildings still in use and the largest surviving medieval building in Finland. Work on its construction was started in 1280!  A number of mishaps befell the castle over the years - a major fire in 1614 destroyed the original timber part of the castle and in 1941, a Russian incendiary bomb hit the main castle.
Major renovations on the castle commence in 1950 and continue to this day (with the major features completed in 1987).

While Donna explores inside, I observe outside.  Employees arrive in their civilian clothes, disappear into a small timber door opposite the entrance stairway and re-emerge in castle period costumes; a kitchen hand arrives hauling cold boxes, obviously empty, up the stairs and places them in  cart near where I am sitting.  She tells me that the main kitchen is in the castle proper even though the cafe is in the first courtyard - so they have to transport lunches each day!  And just before Donna re-emerged, two plasterers arrived and began working on the crumbling plaster at these stairs - I imagine that they could be guaranteed a lifetime of work in a building such as this!

So, castle done, we set out for Jyväskylä and Riikka and Runo and their family.  This drive of 3.5 hours takes us across half of the breadth of Finland, skirting regional towns and through rural landscapes that include countless lakes.  Today's blog takes its name from the green of the fir and beech forests and the gold of the barley and rye crops that gleam in the sunshine as they are being harvested.  Now that summer is at an end, there is a flurry of activity to bring in the crops.  Couldn't even hazard a guess at the number of harvesters we saw working today.  We got caught on the roads behind three in our travel. 

As we near Jyväskylä we can see an impressive building off to our right and take a detour to find Korpilahden Kirkko. There are two stunning features - the painted clock that will forever say 3 o'clock and its exterior bell tower.  This is not a particularly old church with the date 1827 above its door.  Nothing is open, so we cannot see inside.

We arrive in Jyväskylä about 5:15 pm and book into the Greenstar Hotel for the night.  Modern, slick and clean.  They have arranged an easy-access room and give us preferential treatment to easy parking and access from the carpark!  Then it is a short ten minute drive to Riikka and Runo's home which is just two houses back from Lake Päijänne, one of the largest lakes in Finland at over 200 kms long.

It is almost indescribable how great it is to see them all again.  I can't believe how the boys have grown now 14, 11 and 9 years old.  Riikka's hug was wonderful and Runo greeted us very warmly, saying how he is sorry that Michael has not come this trip.
Riikka has cooked a lovely dinner - chicken with pesto, tomato and bocconcini cheese with rice and veges - how nice it is to have a home-cooked meal!  Dessert was fresh berries and blueberry cream.  The blueberries are tiny but so intensely flavoured - Riikka explains that they are wild from the forest.  Sorry, no photos, we were too busy catching up!

All too soon, the night grows late and time for bed nears - Riikka has work tomorrow and the boys school.  We leave at 8:45 pm after accepting Runo's generous offer of being chauffeur tomorrow on the 6.5 hour drive to Rovaniemi.  We collect him just after 9 am, so these little black ducks had better get to bed!


We will be back to stay a night with Riikka and Runo on Friday night before we all do some exploring and visit Helsinki together on the weekend.

Its a long way on a full load plane

Well so much for the first blog on Friday!
For those who haven't heard, the weather in SE Australia went to the wall on Friday and after some serious doubt about whether we might need to make a dash for Brisbane, or worst still for Sydney, our flight finally took off from Hervey Bay 2 hrs 30 mins late.  A very 'chunky' flight with an almost empty plane (could spell a danger if that becomes a regular occurence), and a landing at a much higher power level than I think I have ever expected into a nasty cross wind on the ground.  A challenging start to the journey, but nonetheless, it was a start!

So got in to Sydney about 4:30 pm and by the time I had collected my luggage and got a cab to Donna's it was about 5:15. She finished work at 7 so at least I had time to catch my breath!  By the time we had eaten dinner and decided what cameras and chargers, adapters, power sources we could share, midnight was beckoning and so was bed.

And now I am truly on holidays.  Slept in until 7 am! Pure bliss. The wind continues to rage and I was very thankful for the electric blanket on the bed last night, even though I can't normally sleep in one. Definitely no longer in Kansas Toto, and nor am I in Queensland.  The day is miserable in the wind and Antony tells me that snow is falling in Canberra today.

While Donna packs, I re-pack and end up leaving few items of clothing at her place. My suitcase feels a little lighter and when we way it, I have lost the grand sum of 1 kg! Garry has a mate who drives a Silver Service Taxi and so at 11:30 we call for George. We are at the international terminal just before 12 noon, ready to queue to book in and seats allocated. 

Chloe tells me that this flight is often full and sure enough it is a full load with not a single empty seat.  Luckily we are seated on the right side of the plane. Donna in the centre and me on the aisle. The lady at the window is Jennifer from New Lambton in Newcastle - about a 15 minute drive from Mum's place. It's a small world I often say.

We are away about 30 minutes late, again due to the wind in Sydney and all travellers are glad to be off.  It is a 13 hr 50 min flight to Dubai where we have a 4 hour stop. Service on the plane is good,and although Emirates offer seats with extra pitch and width, sardines still feel like sardines in a can. The aisles are narrow and when inconsiderate people fully recline their seats,it is still impossible to lay down the food tray. The 12,039 km trip feels every minute! Food is good, despite all the comments people make about airline food. With no where to stretch and too many people needing to get up and down to loos,there is no opportunity to walk the aisles,so a very long, cramped flight. 

With very little sleep under our belt, we were glad to touch down in Dubai at 00:15 am to a hot and steamy 37 degs! Thank goodness we are staying inside and not venturing ot in that! Unlike many other airports, this truly is a 24 hour operation. You can buy just about anything here. The gold sellers aren't too expensive with 24 carat gold selling for USD$65 per gram. Interesting, but truly, nothing appealed!
Did you know that Dubai's main Terminal B where all planes arrive is shaped like the wing of a plane? And it is the longest terminal building in the world. We seemed to have to walk forever to get from or entry point to our next gate, but in reality, only walked half the length. Oh, and that was before we are bussed out to the plane, into the heat, and have to climb a mount everest of stairs in front of us!

Our departure is also delayed 15 minutes, so at 4:00 am we push pack from the deck. When I asked if the flight was full at check-in, I am told it is overbooked. Bugger.  This flight we have two centre seats in the middle of the row.  And the same deal with inconsiderate people in front.

HELLO AMSTERDAM.  It is 17 degs heading for 21. A beautiful late summer morning. We join the never-ending congo line of passengers weaving towards passport control under the watchful eye of security. Plane after plane seems to disgorge its load on to the end of the line. Once at the front, Donna and I face no delays, no questions and walk through in seconds. The baggage claim area is frenetic (remember all those passengers). It doesn't take too long before we claim our suitcases and head through Customs. As there is no staff at the 'Something to Declare' gate, we just join the 'Nothing to Declare line with one man casually asking random people what they have in odd shaped packages. Again we just glide on through.  Starbucks and a coffee are calling. Mmmm.

We try all the sim providers, but the cheap ones are only offering local calls. So over to Telecom where I manage to get UK based sim that will cover all of Europe, but not calls to Australia.  If you want to send me a message, do so through Messenger or Facebook.
Finally it is time to go over to the Hotel. As we have dragged the luggage enough (and not to mention being dog-tired), I decide to shout us a cab. Donna just about wets herself when she realises we are getting into a Tesla. As a cab! And like all cabbies all over the world, he owns the road - across lanes, ignoring speed limits. 20 minutes later we pull up at Hotel Espresso which is just outside the old city area.  AND, showers had its in to bed we go for a couple of hours.


Definitely refreshed and with feet and ankles that have lost some of the swelling, we head out about 6 pm to start exploring. We have bought a 24 hour tram ticker as we are a short walk to the closest tram into Dam Square, the main square in Amsterdam. We hop off and head off on foot. How I hate the 'cats' we are walking on (in french, cobblestones are referred to as 'la tete de la chat' - the head of the cat). They are at times uneven and I have to take extra care not to trip.

The Square is quite stunning, although the amount of litter is amazing. Lots of people out. The are numerous little lanes and streets fanning out in every direction.

Tram lines criss-cross the streets and run very frequently. between them, crazy cab-drivers and the millions of cyclists, pedestrians (who if I remember correctly have the right of way, take their lives in their hands.
It is after 7 pm now on a Sunday evening. Many of the retail stores are shut, but the ubiquitous Coffee Shop (not to be confused with a Cafe) are doing a roaring trade and so are all of the adjoining eateries, from pizza slices, to pommes frites, to sitdown restaurants - all catering to people with heightened appetites!

Donna manages to be dwarfed in a pair of clogs outside a Cheese Shop where we sampled the wares including some amazing flavoured gouda, only leaving after bu a sample pack to take with us.

All the way we are heading for Anne Frank's House (or are we Donna?) up alleys and down streets first north then west then east. We cross canals, climbing up and then down the cobbled bridges. We are nearly collected by a car coming at speed around a corner, with more passengers than should fit, jumping out and taking off at a run - a pub Crawl is on! Oh to be that young and have that much energy again!!

We eventually reach Anne Franks House. No photos and I wait because of all the steep narrow stairs.  Looking across the canals and down the streets we see the fabulous architecture that the city is known for and manage to get photos of quite a few - small selection here.

I peep in through the grilled of a closed museum door but still lit within for another perspective.


Finally we are really flagging and our feet still somewhat swollen and sore. We have dinner at 9:45 pm just as the light is falling in to the dark of night. A cosy little pancake restaurant where we celebrate our arrival with a Prosecco, have a savoury pancake apiece (Donna = spinach and goat cheese, me = cheese and ham) and share a plate of Poffertjes, mini Dutch pancakes.

Then its off to the tram for the journey back to the Hotel.
More walking and a canal trip tomorrow.
Night all, I've had it and its time to crawl into bed at 1:40 am here!  See you on the morrow.

 

 

 

 

Bucuresti - a contradiction of times and places

As we are in an apartment, there is no breakfast on tap today, so we need to make do with foccacia and croissants from the patisserie one the corner - and coffee - GREAT coffee!

Bucuresti (Bucharest) is a city living in two times or maybe more. We are staying near the Jewish Quarter and the highrises around here are tired looking on the outside, and speak strongly of communist influence. Inside, however, they are spacious and comfortable if or apartment is anything to go by - small bathroom, large kitchen with stove, fridge, washing machine and all the normal accoutrements and a large bedroom complete with lounge and TV - this may have once been two rooms - oh, and a small semicircular balcony.

A few minutes walk from here and we come upon Kotor - a large shopping mall with all the known international names - we don't bother going in - seen one, seen them all. We start to see some of the splendour of Bucuresti on our walk to find the hop on - hop off bus.  Canals and fountains - fountains everywhere which is a sight for hot eyes on another 34+ degree day. They spew forth - some continuously in a fine mist, others in rythymic patterns.

We try the tourist office around the corner where we are staying - supposedly open from 10 - 6 daily, except today for some reason. So we head towards the Old Town as my web research shows that the bus goes near here. Michael stops at a news-stand where the seller speaks Romanian and French and just a little English. Between them, Michael manages to buy a map and she very helpfully shows him where we are and we think where the bus leaves from. There is a flower seller nearby and he buys her a posy and makes her day! 30 Lei for the map, 30 Lei for the posy!  (About $10 each). Might sell the map on ebay when I get home ;)


So off we wander again - the sun is burning hot and I scurry from shade spot to shade spot, managing to keep out of the sun for the better part.  The streets are very wide - accommodating 3 + 2 lanes of traffic in each direction - 2 local and 3 through lanes.  Crossing them is something that you do quickly - no jaywalking here!  We continue on and I see one of the buses, mid route. Further still and we still haven't found the stop.  We cross the Dâmbovița River that begins its journey high in the Fagaras Mountains - really now just a canal and spy a local fisherman and diving ducks chancing their luck! 
An angry policeman has pulled up to move on a couple of Roma women who are selling home grown flowers on the sidewalk. There are lots of florist stalls, and I guess these undercut them and don't contribute to the local economy. The two women are arguing with him and he is getting very agitated. Slowly, they pack up and make to leave.  We ask him if he speaks English and he is delighted to help. We are still about half a block and across the boulevard from the nearest stop for the Tourist Bus, and he willingly shows us where to go, wishing us a great visit.  Like most of the Romanians we have met, he is super friendly.


Ah, a shady spot and a soon arrived bus - who could ask for more.  At 25 Lei ($8) each, it's a bargain! We set off to do one lap and to get our bearings. The route is a little more than 9 kms, and it takes just over an hour to do a lap. The bus is full, and the upstairs open air deck is full before we get on - I'm just pleased that we manage to get a seat for this first trip. 

We see that Bucuresti is filled not only with fountains, but also with some really impressive parks. There are gardens down the centre of the main boulevards, all in full bloom, and there are lots of buildings undergoing significant renovations. As we move out of the old city centre area, we enter a more genteel area where the buildings are grander with lots of trees. A number of up-market doctors, dentists and allied health services abound and as we near the Free Press House we also see the makings of the commercial world in a modern Bucharest - complete with a World Trade Centre and Microsoft House!

And the Arch of Triumph is modelled on the famous French one - closed for renovations at the moment.  Not sure how I managed to snap a shot with no cars in the frame - this is almost as busy a stretch of road as the one in Paris! This one celebrates the victory of the Romanian soldiers in WWI.

Down past the Palace of the Parliament - the second largest civic government building in the world after the Pentagon.  Built by Communist president Nicolae Ceausescu during 1984-1989, it is 84 m high, it has 12 floors and 6,000 rooms (hundreds of offices, dozens of reception and conference halls). The building was intended to house the presidency, the ministries as well as the headquarters of the communist party. The building is endowed with an antinuclear bunker with 1.5 m thick walls covered with radiation-proof panels and is connected to the main official institutions through a 20 km-labyrinth of tunnels. Much of the old city was destroyed to provide space for its construction with some 40,000 people displaced, leading to countless suicides we are told. It is jarring in its arrogance and holds no interest for us to explore.



Back to where we began, we opt to alight at the next stop along (I make a mental note that this will be the closest stop for us to get back to the apartment later today also). We are close to University Square and it is here we find the first of some very unique Orthodox churches.
The Coltea Church - the Three Holy Hierarchs was consecrated in 1702 and replaced an earlier timber church. It has weathered the hundreds of years with little impact to its external and internal frescoes - but those flagstones have been worn with the feet of the faithful - as in most of the churches we are seeing in Romania.

From here we cross into the Old Town and explore little streets, back alleys and tiny squares. The architecture through here is Romanesque and Baroque. Not quite classical, but stunning just the same. The attention given to statuary on rooftops is amazing. There are full copper roofs gleaming in the heat of the afternoon sun. I peer into a shady courtyard and smile at the City's attempts to manage people parking on

footpaths. So many of these buildings are under repair and restoration. One houses an 'antiques' and arts bric-a-brac market. Thought of buying some 'stuff' to take home, but the words of Gen still echo in my brain "you guys have so much 'stuff' - time to de-clutter again!" Cheeky daughter!!

We hear music playing as we pass by the first national Romanian Bank building and in the next square there is a musician frantically and with much fervour, belting out tunes on an instrument that looks something like a zither.  He grins broadly when Michael deposits 5 Lei in his bucket and hits away with renewed energy.

Another amazing Orthodox Church - this one Stavropoleos Monastery completed in 1724 and dedicated to the Saints Archangels Michael and Gabriel. It is more a convent than a monastery and we see a quite young nun bustling about her chores - dressed from head to toe in black - how hot she must be at this time of the year.  We marvel again at the frescoes and at the collection of carved tombstones and pieces - we even find a couple of early coptic written pieces. They offered early travellers solace here and in the cool courtyard, we can appreciate how much other might have also enjoyed the respite. In the outside burners for remembering the dead, we light three candle to the memories of our dads and Michael's mum. 


Man, its hot. Its now almost 2 in the afternoon and we need somewhere to sit and have a cold drink. There are a number of cafes on the streets, but one in particular seems to draw us. Caru' cu Bere was truly buzzing and the interior was one of stained glass opulence, but we couldn't get near inside for the tour groups - so we happily joined the 'plebs' sitting under the outside covered awning. We were lucky to spy a couple leaving, so made a dash for their table - I think we were meant to wait to be seated, but there was the quick and the thirsty today!

A waitress soon materialized and asked if we wanted a drink to start, when handing us the huge menus.  Yes, "limonade please" - "with mint and honey" she asked, "mmm yes please, and sparkling water." You have no idea how refreshing this is - straight lemon juice, a handful of mint leaves and about a tablespoon of honey to which is added enough sparkling water to make it up to 1 litre.  My new favourite summer drink.
We then order cooked cheese balls for me and Peasant's Pie (with cheese and yoghurt) for Michael, served with some lovely nutty brown bread and a fresh salad. 96 Lei ($32).

Lunch done and it is back on our feet.
We have walked from one side of the Old Town to the other and have managed to come out just beside the National Museum of the History of Romania (the former Postal Palace). And we find it shut on Mondays and Tuesdays - the story of our day today :(

So its back on the bus to continue the loop to our starting point. As we look out from the balcony of our apartment, we can see the Biserica Sfântul Gheorghe Nou down below us. A service is in progress, so we don't go in but in the 
frescoes painted on the outside, this more modern church highlights hell - much to Michael's amusement.  And in the grounds there is a huge astrolabe with the degree representations for many of the cities we have visited!



We are hoping to catch up with Diana and Lorena who we met in France for dinner tonight and I wait by
the phone for a call.

In a place out of time?

Ah yes, that glass walled shower on view for all the room to see was interesting to say the least! Breakfast at the motel was expensive to say the least so Michael took a walk to the train station and came back with great coffees and pastries. Graz like many other cities is having road works done so we dodge them to get across the river and closer to the old city that we want to see.

Parking is not too much of a problem here - while there is no street parking nearby, there are plenty of parking stations that have been located underground. And these parking stations are like none others we have come across - spotlessly clean, very well lit, plenty of space with the spots marked by a sensored pad on the ground, piped music etc etc etc! And affordable!

They are all located at the peripheries of the main tourist areas, which makes it easy to get to things to have a look. The city sits in a valley and up the slopes of a steep hill that is crowned by the Schlossberg (castle hill). We will finish our time here with a trip up to there. But we start down in the main square, which is just around the corner from the car park. The tourist office here has put out an excellent brochure that is divided into three walks through the old city allowing you to tailor your time.

We begin our stroll in the Hauptplatz (main square) near the town hall with its domes, statues and clock. In the Square in front of the town hall there is a market place with permanent stalls selling souvenirs, food, flowers and newspapers. They are set all close together so that along with the modern settings, you still get the atmosphere of the markets places of old. There is the Archduke Johann fountain just outside the town hall. All around the sqaure (on the outer sides of the tram lines) there are a number of buildings with amazing facades of stucco or sgraffito high on their walls (including the amazing 'Painted House') and with arcades from the streets into inner courtyards. Many of the facades date back to the early 1700s!

Around behind the town hall lies the Landhaus - a masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance that looks like it should be sited in Venice. Turns out that it was designed by a northern Italian architect so no wonder it looks like it does. Not only is the facade beautiful, the inner courtyard with its lamps and wells and its arched porticos is just as stunning. The Styrian parliament (the State that Graz is capital of) sits here.

From here we head up. The streets are not too steep, but the cobblestones are painful - how I hate them. And no, even after almost a year, my feet have not grown accustomed to them! And to add insult to my injury, we enter into a medieval courtyard where the cobbles are made from river stones that are laid on their edges - ouch ouch ouch! We see the Glockenspiel and buildings that have operated as various enterprises for hundreds of years, including a bakery with an amazing carved and inlaid timber store front.

I pass the shop of a tailoress who is selling traditional clothes. There are hand knitted jumpers and cardigans on a rack out the front and I can't resist buying a special little girl a special little one. It will come in very handy - no not in Darwin, in Kapooka! We heard from Antony this morning that he has been promoted to the rank of Bombadier and is being transferred to Kapooka near Wagga Wagga on the New South Wales / Victoria border as of early January as a Cadet Instructor! Anyway, back to Graz - this seamstress must be pretty good, there are three couples in there buying clothes - all Austrians!

We continue to walk up and come to the Cathedral built in 1438 - 1464 and the close by Mausoleum. Neither are open so all we can so is admire them from outside. In the architectural gems of the surrounding areas there is a Jesuit College and the 'Old' university that was founded in 1585. There are more squares with statues and more churches including the Parish Church that is a nice mix of old and new. We are now winding our way back down to the main square through narrow pedestrian streets filled with narrow shops selling all many of goods from sporting equipment to jewellery, from confectionary to eye glasses. People walk or ride pushbikes here - though not too many of them are riding uphill, just a couple of very fit young men - most people get off and push their bikes!

Now its time for lunch. Well, I'm not sure what you call the meal that covers both lunch and dinner - lunner? Kind of like brunch at the other end of the day. Anyway, whatever it is, we are having it now. We walk away from the main square looking for somewhere that takes our fancy and we find the Keller Restaurant through an alleyway and a courtyard. We are hungry, but boy, these meals are huge!
Entrees:
Champignon gebacken mit Sauce Tartare (Deep fried champignons with Tartare sauce) Michael
Emmentaler gebacken mit Preiselbeeren (Deep fried Emmentaler cheese with Cranberries) Maria
Mains:
Gemischter Grillteller mit Reis, Bratkartoffeln und feinem Gemüse (Mixed grill with rice, pan-fried potatoes and vegetables) Michael
Fiakergulasch mit Ei, Gurkerl, Würstl, Servietterknödel (Beef goulash Fiacre style with egg, gherkin, sausage, white bread dumplings) MariaWe had been eyeing off the breaded apple slices for dessert, but the meals are so big that we can't finish either of them, so there is definitely no room for desserts! Our hunger pangs put away, we head back out into the afternoon sun to head towards the Schlossberg high on the hill overlooking the city. There are three ways you can get up there - on foot up the hundreds of steps, using the funicular or via a lift that goes up through the centre of the mountain - our preferred choice today. For the tiny sum of €2.80 we both get return tickets!

Now this has been my eagerly awaited highlight of the day. The clocktower that sits high above the city and is visible from almost every part of it is the best known symbol of Graz. Trouble is that the clock's hands are back to front with the small hand showing the minutes and the large hand, the hour! And while we don't have time to climb all the way to the castle, we do spend some time at the clocktower, admiring the scene over the rooftops of Graz and the Mur River. The hoarding around the top of the tower was erected as a lookout for the fire brigade. And then there is the bell tower just a little further up the hill that Michael dashes up to see.

But dont think for a minute that Graz is trapped in some time warp. Just as the old city shines, there are a number of very futuristic buildings that have been commissioned. Most notable are the Kunsthaus Graz built in 2003 to host exhibitions, and the Mursinel - a floating structure in the Mur River connected to the banks by two weaving footbridges. It houses a restaurant and an amphitheatre. They sit shoulder to shoulder with the architecture of times long past, complementing rather than competing with them. And their wierd shapes seem very much at home amongst the myriad of towers that were there long before them.

And so our time has come to leave Graz and head for Munich. We have a four hour drive ahead of us which means that we won't get there until after 8 pm. As we are leaving the city, the afternoon light is fading fast. Gosh, it wasn't all that many weeks ago that it was light until the late hours of the night!

As we travel across Austria we are heading back into the land of the high snow capped mountains (and yes, they have already had snowfalls high on the peaks)! For quite some time we are actually travelling throug the mountains in a series of tunnels - the longest being 8.3 kms long is the longest we have travelled on our trip. When we see the last breath of the sun gently washing the wispy clouds with a soft rosy hue, and the mountain tops gleaming in that last light of the day, with small villages burrowing down for the cool night in the valleys below (it is now 4°C), I understand why my Dad loved this part of the world so much and kept coming back.

We are travelling the motorways and as soon as we reach Germany, just past the city of Salzburg, the speed limit free Autobahn sees the traffic take off in a frenzy of fast paced racing. Honestly, some of the cars are travelling well in excess of 200 kph - in the dark. Not us though. We keep to a much more sedate 120 kph! We make good time and hit Motel One in Putzbrunn just outside the main centre of Munich about 8:20 pm. Oh for a bed. On checking in, the receptionist Consuela, remembers us from our last stay here in July - now THAT is what you call great customer relations! She does say however that friendly guests make it easy to remember them!! Ain't she sweet.