Probably the biggest event in our neck of the woods is the Oktoberfest in Munich, which started September 18th.
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This is probably the reason it has been like a ghost house around here. EVERYONE is in Munich which is about a 3 hour drive from our town. Thank goodness it only goes until the first Saturday of October. Hopefully, though the daze of their hangovers, backpackers will remember where we are and come here to recouperate.
Being a ghost house at the moment isn’t such a bad thing though. It helps us get in the mood for the next big event….. HALLOWEEN! Yes, we celebrate that favorite American holiday here in Gruenau.
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I’ve impressed upon the locals here the importance of getting dressed in costumes and trying to scare the holy hee haw out of each other (Not to mention “smashing pumpkins” and “trick or treating” and consuming large quantities of alcohol).
Halloween is on October 31st, which is very practical here in Austria since November 1st is a public holiday. In other words, it doesn’t matter which day Halloween falls on, Austrians have All Saint’s Day,
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the day they are supposed to visit the local cemetery and pay their respects to long gone family members in the latest Austrian fashions, and to nurse their hangovers.
So, if you are looking for a Halloween party to experience, get yourself to the TreeHouse Backpacker Hotel in Gruenau.
Other than Halloween, October is the time of year that our lush green
mountain sides change to brilliant shades of orange, red and yellow. The leaves are falling (why most Americans call autumn, “fall”) and the colors are fabulous. This is a time of year I never had a chance to really experience and enjoy, coming from LA. I have found though, that raking up millions of leaves is almost as much fun as shovelling snow….NOT!!!
Where?
Gruenau (map) is located in Upper Austria and is in the heart of the famous
Salzkammergut. Our lake is called the Almsee. We are about 100km NE of Salzburg & 20km SE of Gmunden and the Traunsee. Gruenau is hard to find on a map sometimes.
Language?
Austrians speak German, but the dialect here would be like listening to someone from Northern Scotland, or let’s say Alabama, speak English. It’s different.
Money?
In Austria we still use Schillings, but since we are now part of the EU we will be using the Euro.
1US$ = 13.5AS (the dollar is quite strong at the moment)
Geography
Austria is a land locked country bordered by Germany, Czech
Republic, Slovenia, Italy, Liechtenstein, Hungary and Switzerland.
The countryside is a mix of dark forests, lush green pastures, snow-capped mountains and crystal clear lakes and rivers.
Good Links
My Hostel
Austrian Tourism. Look for the button to change the text to English.
www.gruenau.at. Sorry, it’s only in German.
Good Austrian Beers
Stiegl, Eggenberger, Gösser, Edelweiss Weissbier, Zipfer & Kaiser
Tasty Foods
Wienerschnitzel, Sweinebraten (Pork Roast), Forellen (fresh trout), Tafelspitz (Beef meat) & Gemusestrudel (Vegetable Strudel)
For Dessert:
Topfennocken (cream cheese dumplings served with mixed forest
berries) or the more famous Apfelstrudel (Apple Strudel).
