11th August 2010

Austria and Switzerland are so incredibly green and there is one good reason for this. RAIN!! Especially in their summer, June-August. So we decided to stay at the apartment at Forstau because it was central and we could then travel every day to the area where the weather was best. So today it was back to the Salzkammergut, only to a different part, for another hike. A gentle hike along one side of the Hallstattersee. 10km and level all the way. Hallelujah!! Those steep bits really got to me yesterday.

Hallstatt is a small town on the other side of the lake from our hike and we caught the ferry across. It is a magical place with the houses built up the side of the mountain. All very quaint.

Instead of hiking another 10km back to the car, we caught the bus. Lazy, I know, but our legs were still feeling it from yesterday. So overall, a nice relaxed day.

For those of us that ride motorbikes, this area is motorbike heaven. Every road is in near-perfect condition, and a riders paradise. Mountain vistas wherever you go and the twists and turns that a bike rider can only dream about. And they are everywhere. Thousands of them!! (The roads and the riders) The road on which our apartment sits is only a very minor road, but we have motorbikes

 whizzing past all the time. And that is no exaggeration.

We have also had a bit of trouble getting used to the way they drive over here. Not only are we getting used to driving on the other side of the road to Australia, we have a manual gear-shift which is also on the wrong side. But the most difficult to get used to is the lack of single or double lines over here. If they want to pass, they just do. Even as a sharp corner is coming up and they can't see around it, they just go for it. It is amazing to see. But it does make us realise that in Australia we have too many rules and regulations. Everything over here is very easy-going and it is a nice way to live.