Friday, August 27, 2010

Austria, Germany & Czech Republic

Well, I've just come back from a super holiday touring Austria, Bavaria and the southern Czech Republic. The weather was terrible, but we managed a few sunny days, so time to post a few of my own photos. Even in the rain the mountains are beautiful, and I like the light just after the rain as the sun begins to appear. The first photo is just at that moment, when the cloud is lifting from the valley, and a ray of sunshine just catches the church spire. This is the Kaunertal valley (a tautology, as 'tal' is a valley), in the Tyrol, which runs southwards almost to the Italian border. It's a popular area for skiing, but then, so is most of Austria.
Kaunertal before the sun, but with some lovely fluffy alpine cows.
Several days later, and missing out Kitzbühl, which I haven't uploaded yet, we had the sunshine again. Up in the Salzburg area is equally stunning scenery - it's just a pity you can't print the sound of cow bells! This is Hochkönig, the highest peak in that area though the top of it is in the clouds.
Then we went on to Český Krumlov in the Czech Republic. This is a Unesco world heritage site and is probably the best known town next to Prague. I had been there once before but wanted to go back as I knew it was photogenic. Sadly the weather didn't agree, but we had a few sunny moments.
Leaving Český Krumlov, we passed through the Šumava National Park. The river Vltava which runs through Prague, has it's source in the Šumava, and here it is just beginning to form Lake Lipno, to the west of Český Krumlov.
After stopping at Linz overnight, we had an unplanned stop at Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Germany after the car broke down. Well worth a stop though. It's better known as a ski resort, but has a beautiful old town. More rain, but we managed to catch a few brief moments of evening sunshine.
I've managed to make a calendar from the Český Krumlov photos, and another one will be on the way soon for Austria. Edit: Latest version of this and other calendars available here.
There, I bet that's the quickest trip you've ever had through anyone's holiday snaps!