Hiking: Day trip to Rax with the Eberts

With kids so close in age to our own, the Eberts have been great traveling companions. The kids entertain each other and the adults can actually talk.  

We decided to enjoy one of the last fall weekends by hiking the Rax mountain. The Rax is a mountain range in the Northern Alps about an hour from Vienna. Its highest peak is the 2,007 m. The Rax, together with the nearby Schneeberg, are a traditional mountaineering and mountain walking area, and are called the Wiener Hausberge (Vienna's local mountains). 

We took the Seilbahn up the mountain and decided on a 45 minute trail up to a restaurant for lunch. 

We all enjoyed the views along the way.

When we stopped for lunch, Ashton, Owens friend, announced it was 3:00 - which meant the 45 minute hike took us two hours.  We devoured lunch since the last train down left at 4:30.  As we headed back, we realized it was 2:00 not 3:00! So we took our time.

St Gilligen Day 2

I am so slow in getting things posted this time around!  The last day we took the car up the mountain.  Breathtaking views and vibrant colors.

St Giligen Day 1

Emily joined the cross country team at AIS.  I am impressed with her stamina as she trains in the hills of the Vienna Woods.  The races are with other international schools which all require overnight stays.  We decided to let her go to Munich with the team, but for her next trip to St. Gilgen, we traveled with her. (Needless to say, she prefered the Mercedes bus with her friends to the Honda CRV with her parents, but we loved her company.)




St. Gilgen was first mentioned in documents in 1376. Located on Lake Wolfgang, the small town is home to Amadeus' s sister.  In 1863, shipping on Lake Wolfgang started and brought attention to the little village.

Owen, Dave, and I stayed at a little Bed and Breakfast while Emily stayed in a hostel with her team.  On Saturday morning, we walked four miles with the group and helped facilitate the 5k race.

After the race, Emily and the Knights did a three hour hike while we enjoyed a relaxing lunch and explored the town.

Zotter Chocolate Factory

The Eberts and our family decided to pay homage to chocolate by traveling to the small village of Bergl to visit Zotter Schokoladen, a manufacturing company of organic and Fairtrade certified chocolates. The tour opened with an amazing movie on Josef Zotter, the zainy owner who went bankrupt as a cake maker and so returned to his hometown and started this company. Our 13 euro admission fee included 130 tastings of chocolate at every step of the process.

After the tour, we ran out our energy at the organic farm, because why not also start an organic farm.

We loved the graveyard to old chocolate combinations that didn't make it.

And kangaroos!!!