Since I was a kid, I always wanted to go to Minimundus. Its a model-garden, with a lot of beautiful buildings... a hundred or so.
The plan was, to catch a train in the morning to Klagenfurt, since both me and my friend had a network-ticket.  Well, we managed that alright. In the station they announced, that the train was going to be split for going to Klagenfurt and the other part to Zagreb. So, we got on to a wagon that had Klagenfurt written on it and searched for a seat, but found non. So, being with lighter lugguage than others, we went through a couple of wagons and found a seat in a nice wagon finally. When the conducter came, we found that were sitting in first-class, but he let us, because the seats were empty anyhow.
The landscape on the way was amazing, going through Gastein Valley. When we reached Villach, there was some long announcement, but of course, while chatting away, we couldnt be bothered with listening. Then the train pulled out of the station again and guess what, it was going into the wrong directions. At first we thought, it was like Munich, were they change directions again... nah, it wasn't. We were going towards Slovenia, what else. I wouldn't have minded going there, but we wanted to go to Minimundus AND it would cost extra past the border. Besides, we didn't carry a passport with us. So, getting nervous, we prayed for the train to stop somewhere before crossing the border.  And it did. In Rosenbach. Last stop. Phew.
Rosenbach is a tiny village, consisting of not more than twenty houses, a restaurant and the trainstation. And a path to Maria Elend, which is a pilgrimage-church.  We walked around for a bit, because the train back was leaving an hour later.
When we got on that, we were more careful and asked, if we needed to change trains somewhere and indeed we did. We joked about our woes and the conducter heard us, obviously. Because in Villach, he told us specifically which train to take and told us to listen to all announcements. I guess, he thought we were really silly and unable to survive on our own. Nice of him, anyhow.
Well, we caught the right train and went to Klagenfurt. On the way, we saw Faakersee and Worthersee, which are stunningly blue and beautiful... I'll return to those someday.
Finally in Klagenfurt, we found Minimundus without further trouble and it was amazing! So worth it... and inspirational... added a lot of places to my list. Felt like being really there at times.
 It was really hot though, and we had to rest a lot. Thank god, they had drinking-water wells and nice benches in the shadow.
And then the batteries in my friends camera gave up, so she was frustrated... I really need to get myself a digital-cam too. Now I only have one with film and I barely use it. Borrowing is such drag.  She really just wanted to take a picture of the Eiffel-Tower from all sides and she got really excited about that... I think going to the real Paris would just freak her out. lol
We also managed to have a Kärnter Nudel (Carinthian speciality) in the minimundus-restaurant, which is a noodle dough filled with cheese and spices, with melted butter. Not really my favourite, but it was okay. (And better at Grandmoms, I suppose.)

Well, we had to go back pretty early, with the last train to Salzburg... Good thing was, we found a bakery, that sold their bread and sweets for half the price, because it was past five. We don't have that in Salzburg, so we bought a LOT of stuff and felt sick by the time we came to Salzburg.
The only sad part was, that we didn't see a lot of the city itself, but we saw the legendary statue of the Lindwurm, Klagenfurts own Nessie. The other sights and sounds in the guide I got in the trainstation sounded skipable, but if I get back someday I will look at them still.

Minimundus is a model-park, containing a large number of the worlds most popular sights... speak buildings, but also boats and trains, that run between the models. Its amazing, to see the Taj Mahal and next thing the Gaudi-Buildings. And they are so detailed, that its like you are actually there, except for the paying entry-fee and seeing the inside-part of course. I know just how detailed they are, because I have seen some of the buildings in real life, like the Taj Mahal and its stunning. It can become a bit too much, because there are so many and I guess it needs some love to models, like mine, to really look at every model. I personally could spend the whole day there, but there were other people who just photographed all over the place and left. I had to keep myself from going "Aww, look at this! This must be the cutest little train..." "Can you imagine little people living..." and so on... And with 12 Euros for an adult, I think its alright. Its so well-kept, that its worth it... especially if you will barely get the chance to see every sight. Cheaper than making the Europe-in-two-weeks-tour anyways, and propably just as fruitful, photowise.

So I'm on my way to visit one of the places on my list, namely Klagenfurt, the Capital of the Carinthia (Karnten) Land in Austria. Contrary to what it might look like on Wikipedia, it's a rather small and bland place. It didn't help that the rain almost ruined my trip. The railway station is discouragingly positioned. It's not too far away from the city centre, but the surroundings (some nondescript blocks of flats and two main avenues without much traffic) don't make you think you've reached a big city. Not to be fooled, though, Klagenfurt is an important nodal point between Northern Italy and the rest of Austria, and is easily accessible from a multitude of places.

The center is not too big, with an interesting fountain of a dragon attacking a standing character (the Lindwurm). Around it there are some nice small roads, with several shops, as well as local cafeterias and bistros. The more important sights are the Old and the New Town Hall, connected of course by these small alleys. If you're catching better weather, do visit the Baroque Cathedral. You can then go on to take a bath in the Worthersee, which is the warmest lake in Europe.

I, however, wasn't so amused by the weather, and after seeing a bit of the city, decided to retreat and return some other time.

Doug phoned me at 5am to head out to the starting point for the Ironman competition.  I was really sleeping soundly, so it took me a minute to get my bearings.  I threw on some clothes and a hat and met him for coffee.  I had a sneezing fit in the restaurant that had most of the patrons looking at me like I must have had SARS!  I did not eat anything, as it was just too early and the coffee was not that good here either.

We had to drive the backroads to the Worther See, as the main roads were all blocked for the races.  I had to pay close attention, as I would be taking the car back to the hotel later and did not want to get lost.  We got to the Worther See starting point at about 6am and it was already crazy.  Everyone was putting on wetsuits and greasing various parts of their bodies with vaseline and chamois butter.  I saw a little bit of everything -- 1800 people in various states of undress -- several even got completely naked to start their routine! 

The lake was still and had a deep aquamarine color to it -- so it was quite beautiful.  As the athletes waited for the starting gun, many got into the lake to acclimate themselves to the water temperature, as it was quite cold.  There were hot air balloons all around the starting area giving it a very festive feel.  The first leg of the Ironman is a 2.5 mile swim (about 3.9 kilometers).  It started promptly at 7:00am, and it was chaotic!  Imagine 1800 people in wetsuits looking like seals trying to get ahead of one another.  The water went from being calm and serene to being whipped to a froth.  I have always heard about how crazy this part of the Ironman is -- and now I saw it first hand.  The swimmers are literally on top of each other as they try to get ahead.  Arms swinging, legs kicking -- it has to be a very strenous experience out there!  I got some photos of the swimmers heading out, and then ran ahead to the canal they swim up on the way to the bike transition.  The canal part is quite narrow and has to be harrowing if you are packed in there like sardines headed to the cannery!  Most of the first wave of swimmers came out of the water at about the 50 minute mark, so were making good time.  I looked for Doug in the transition to biking, but did not see him.  I did meet a guy who had gone to the University of Wyoming (my undergrad school).  He was a chemical engineer living in Chicago now and was here to cheer his sister on in the event.  He had seen my Vail, Colorado hat and asked me if I was from around there.  We watched some of the transition to bikes there and then split up to head into the area where the bike course headed.

I found a spot near the car and waited for Doug to cruise by on his bike.  He shot by me around 10am on one of his loops and I did my best to get some photos.  The bike course is 112 miles, or 180 kilometers, so he was out there a little over 4 hours on the bike.  That gave me time to get back into town, grab a real shower and have something to eat.  Once I figured out how to get the rental car into reverse, I had no trouble getting back into town and finding the hotel.  After I cleaned up, I grabbed lunch there (another bratwurst, tomato salad and white wine), and then walked into the main part of town to watch the runners go by the main square.  The run portion of the race is 26.2 miles or 42 kilometers.  I really cannot imagine biking 112 miles and then running a full marathon in one day, let alone  add on the swim!

I got some pictures of Doug as he ran by the square.  Also got a couple of photos of this one guy who had dyed his hair bright orange and did a green Ironman symbol on the back of his head.  He was one you could not miss in the event!  I hung out for a bit by Klagenfurt's most famous monument, St. George and the Dragon.  It was a great spot to watch the runners.

I headed back to the finish line and set up to watch Doug come across.  I got a picture of him just as he was crossing and he looked triumphant!  It's a little blurry, as I could not get too close.  He finished in 11 hours, 2 minutes.  He was whipped, but in good spirits.  The fastest male racer completed the course in a little over 8 hours!

Doug had a few blisters on his feet; other than that, he was in pretty good shape.  He waded down into the lake to cool off his legs and called his mother to let her know he had survived yet another Ironman. 

The finish line was pandemonium.  There were tons of people there to watch the end, they were playing Euro pop music on the loud speakers (and I never want to hear that song "Put Your Hands up in the Air" again, as it played about every 5 minutes!).  We left a little after 7, and went back to the hotel so Doug could shower and relax.  We had dinner on the main square at a place called the Landhaushof.  Doug had goulash soup and ravioli like pasta.  I had tafelspitz again, and it was good, just not as good as the one in Vienna.

Around 10, we went back out to the finish line and watched the last of the racers continue to come in to finish.  It is a tradition among the athletes to be at the finish line as the last competitors cross -- to offer them support.  The crowd went wild when each straggler came across the finish line.  It was definitely a tremendous welcome back to the finishers.  You could see how it energized the competitors!  The music was much better at night -- at least more variety.  They had some Cher songs, some Queen and even the Village People doing YMCA.  The crowd loved it.  The last runner in arrived at about midnight and she looked very relieved to be done.   At midnight, they had a great fireworks show.  At least I finally got to see fireworks, even though it was two days after the US Independence Day celebration of July 4th!

We got back to the hotel around 1:30am.  What a long day -- especially for Doug! 

I got up far too early this morning for my body.  I did not have a headache, but dear lord was I tired (that happens with 2 hours of sleep)!  I had one last thing to do in Vienna this morning -- I had not yet had a Sacher Torte.  It is the most famous pastry from Vienna and is found at the Hotel Sacher just down the street from my hotel.  A Sacher Torte tastes a little like gingerbread, soaked in apricot liqueur, coated with a hard dark chocolate shell.  It was delicious with my Viennese coffee, but a bit rich for breakfast.  Nevertheless, I was able to check it off my list of things to do!

My flight to Klagenfurt was on Tyrolean Airlines.  The Vienna airport was a madhouse that morning -- tons of rude people [well maybe not rude -- maybe they were all hungover like me.  :)] .  The plane was a small propeller driven plane, but I somehow got bumped up to Business Class, so I had plenty of room.  I had a glass of champagne thinking it would make me feel better -- and it worked for a bit.  I was very happy to see that my bags had made it to Klagenfurt and did not have to live with airline donated t-shirts again.

Doug met me at the airport in Klagenfurt.  He was barefoot, wearing his bike shorts and a sleeveless bike jersey -- totally ready for his Ironman competition the next day.  It was pretty funny to see him like that at the airport and I am sure it raised an eyebrow or two among the crowd there.

Klagenfurt is in Southern Austria near the Italian border in Carinthia province, or Karnster in German.  The southern end of the Alps are nearby, so it is quite beautiful and scenic.   We had to run down to the Ironman registration desk so Doug could turn in his bike and complete his registration process.  There were over 1800 competitors registered, so it was very crowded and busy.  It was amazing to see all these competitive athletes in one place!

Doug wanted to show me around the course, so we took off in the rental car to check out the lake for the open water swim part of the course.  They will swim in the Worther See.  It is glacier fed, so it's a milky green color and very very cold.  We found a nice place for lunch and sat outside.  I had Austrian wine, bratwurst, sauerkraut and fried potatoes.  After lunch, we drove around the Worther See so we could check out the bike course.  At some point I fell asleep while Doug was talking -- he started laughing so hard at me and asked me if I had had a hard night.

When we got back to the hotel (the Sandwirth), I checked in and promptly took a two hour nap.  Doug called and woke me around 6:30, so I jumped up, showered and met him for a stroll around the town and dinner.  As we were walking along, we crossed paths with an elderly Austrian man who asked me about my T-Shirt (I was wearing a tee from a rafting company on the Chattooga River in Northern Georgia/South Carolina back in the states).  He was trying to pronounce "Chattooga" so I helped him out.  I thought he was a nice man at first.  Although he was asking me questions in English, he started yelling at me to speak German in response.  I told him that I did not speak German.  He went off on me then saying that "German was the number one language" and that American's were stupid to only know one language.  I told him I would be happy to converse with him in Spanish or French -- but thought that he was doing pretty well with English!  That really set him off.  He went into a tirade about Americans, Russians and Israelites.  He hated them all.  Rather than continue our lively discussion, Doug and I elected to cross the street and get far away from him.

We did find a nice outdoor cafe (Zum Augustine) and had a good chuckle about our encounter.  I enjoyed a beef goulash with big chunks of beef in a spicy thick red sauce.  It had plenty of fresh hungarian paprika!  It was really good with a glass of red wine and a side of parsley potatoes. 

We walked back to the hotel after our meal -- with an eye out for our 'friend' from the encounter earlier.  Thank goodness he had left and the rest of our night was quiet.  I was in bed and asleep shortly after 10:30 -- Doug was getting me up at 5am to head down to the Ironman competition the next day, so I needed some rest!

Today was a travel day, but interesting all the same. I haven't run in a while and so it was nice to get out this morning and stretch my legs before the bus ride. I ran with a friend that I've met since I began the trip- it's nice to have people getting me up in the morning!

We left for Vienna, but the distance was just long enough to require a stayover in Klagenfurt, Austria. We stopped for a few hours during lunch at Verona, Italy- the Romeo and Juliet town. Basically, it's just one big, silly tourist trap without much to do without spending money. So unfortunately, most of the group was bored and ready to get back on the bus.

The rest of the drive to Klagenfurt was pretty interesting as we climbed through the Alps into Austria. My fourth country ever visited! But again, no passport stamp, unfortunately.

We soon got to Klagenfurt after crossing the border. It is a small town and it was definitely an immediate change in culture than from what we had experienced previously. All I know about Germanic culture is what I've seen in Octoberfests and places like Helen, GA, but it was interesting how much the town resembles a typical German town (even though we are Austria).

After checking into the hotel (a very nice one) we decided it was time for dinner. We walked into town and found an authentic and genuine Austrian restaurant. It looked like a German restaurant in America, but it was real and even better! I ordered what I thought would be a sausage (I was ready to dive into Austria) but it turned out be a flat pork chop! Still good though.

Being a stop in between cities, there wasn't much to do, but go back to the hotel and hang out. On to Vienna tomorrow!

The trip across Austria into the small city of Klagenfurt on Sunday was quick and relatively painless. We left Vienna right when we said we would and travelled for about 4 and half hours to get to Klagenfurt, which sits right on a big lake (the Woerthersee) near the border with Italy and Slovenia. We had our first stop at the ubiquitous chain of European roadside restaurants, the Autogrill and found out that bus tends to overheat when going up mountains, and this being the Alps, had a few. Lots of tunnels, castles, and amazing views. Sunday in Klagenfurt is nothing to write home about, even though, that is what I am doing. Everything was closed, not only was it a sunday, but the town was still on winter tourist hours, it is until June 1st, when I imagine, it will spring to life. We ate a Chinese buffet and then checked into our hotel, which was very nice and clean and friendly. You could buy air-conditioning for 3 Euros at the desk, so I was first in line for that. I went with a small group into the city and to see the lake. The lake was beautiful and surrounded by mountains -- it looks to be about 30 miles long on maps. There wasn't much going on there, so we headed back into town. Klagenfurt is very clean and has beautiful buildings and a pretty town square. Nothing was open though, so we headed back to the hotel. It then started to pour and thunder and lightning. On the way home, there was a beuatiful rainbow. We got back just in time for the welcome dinner -- a soup of ribbons of crepes in a broth and then pork. Everything in Austria is made out of pork, which the students are getting tired of, particularly the Jewish ones, I managed to get them turkey. After dinner, I set up the projector with my computer and watched the season finale of Lost with some students and one of the professor, it was really good. Then it was off to bed. I somehow managed to turn off my airconditioning, so when I woke up the next morning, sweating, I was pissed -- 3 Euros wasted.

Klagenfurt is not a good Sunday city to stop in.  Nothing is open, nothing is available to do...just mountains everywhere...oh yeah, those are kinda cool.  Just kinda out of it after that bus ride.  The rooms, however, I will talk about.  So, we're all supposed to be equal right?  Someone has a deluxe suite with a wrap-around balcony and a 'waiting room,' another has a balcony and sweet bathroom, and evern another has a room big enough to fit an elephant into.  And we're supposed to have the same rooms?  I have to walk out of the toilet room and into the shower room to wash my hands.  WTF?  There is a phone right next to me on the desk, one in the toilet room, and one in the shower room.  I mean, do that many Austrians talk to people in the shower?  Our welcome dinner was strangley familiar...same meal basically...pork, vegetables, potatoes.  These Austrians sure know the group meal of choice, haha.  There are also speakers in the bathroom for the TV or stereo...your preference.  The window is big enough to throw a small gorilla out of, the air conditioner costs 3 euros, and the internet (which I'm paying for right now), costs 18 euros for 24 hours.  Crazy!  Austria makes sure they get their money's worth when a traveler comes to town.  Nonetheless...this is the perfect setting for 'The Sound of Music.' 

Whether or not these hills are alive, I don't feel to alive anymore.  Goodnight...and thanks for reading.

Next stop:  Florence, Italy.    Bruschetta, here I come!  :)