Alpine Fräulein

Zell am See (Zell Lake)

I am closing in on the completion of my first month in Vienna. While it was harder to adjust to living here than I imagined, I have come to feel a sense of home here. I am not just a tourist here. I am one of the Viennese. And yes, I do get homesick at times and miss being able to talk to my friends. But I am trying to enjoy the present because this is my limited time here and (hopefully) I will still have a place back at home with my people.

Any who, enough reflection. Time to jump into my excursion into the Austrian Alps. One of my UW companions on the Trip, Mac Zellem, has ancestry in Austria so we went to the tiny village of his namesake, Zell am See. We honestly had no expectations of what Zell am See would be, we just wanted to go hiking.

We took a train from Vienna to Salzburg then to Zell am See. I have noticed that in the States, we always want to get from point A to point B in the fastest amount of time possible. We never stop to consider that getting to our location can be enjoyable as well. "Training" has become one of my favorite  ways to travel because I can be fully content just looking out the window as the landscape rolls by and be leisurely reading a book. The transportation part sometimes just feels like an added bonus.

Salzburg. I will be returning here in two weeks!

We arrived in Salzurg and had a layover for roughly two hours. We walked around the city that will be our weekend expedition in two weeks. The mountains, fresh air, and floral scents reminded me so much of the foothills of the Cascades. Men were wearing Lederhosen and the women wore Dirndls. At first I assumed that they were actors for tourists, but then I realized people near Bavaria actually dress stereotypically German. We had a nice snapshot of Salzburg and I am excited to return and explore more.

Took this shot right out the window of my train.

Back on the Train and into the alps we went. Almost immediately we were surrounded by breathtaking views and going through the pass. We arrived in Zell am See and there was no disappointment to be had. The city sits in a valley by a large beautiful lake underneath snow capped mountains. We explored the quaint city and on Sunday we hiked up a mountain that is a ski resort in winter. I don't have much more to say because most of my time was spent just admiring God's creation. Take a look for yourself, and trust me, the pictures do no justice.

I mean, I guess the view was alright (;

Sunshine. Alps. Hiking. Cat. Couldn't have been anymore content.

Yes, the "hills" are alive.