Innsbruck, Austria: 6-9 June 2014

Hands down, the most beautiful train ride I have had in my life was when I was on my way to Innsbruck. We took the train from Zurich, Switzerland to Innsbruck, Austria. Deep blue rivers and lakes surrounded by the Alps. The train going in, out, and along the mountains overlooking such great valleys.  I cannot recommend enough this train journey. Taking the trains through Europe is always fun as there are always great views, but Zurich to Innsbruck was particularly incredible. Where else are you going to take a train ride through the Swiss Alps? We didn't leave on our train journey until almost 7pm, but as it is is summer and light outside until 9:30pm or so, we got to watch the sun set over the Alps. Incredible!

doesn't do it justice, but the view from our train ride to Innsbruck

Innsbruck is definitely a town for the outdoor adventurer. In the winter, there is an abundance of ski slopes and snow activities. In the summer, I also was surprised at how much there was to do. The “old town” is very small and quite possible to do all the sites and best museums within one day. The next day can be spent heading up to the mountain for great views of the mountains and the city. Once at the top of the mountains, there are A TON of mountain bike trails, hiking trails, and tons of people paragliding. We opted for a small hike and to watch the outdoor extremists take on the mountain. 

singing in the mountains !

our little hike above Innsbruck

Innsbruck itself is a tiny & adorable city. There are lots of interesting museums to go to. We opted for one that held exhibits on the cultural history of the Austrians. This may be one of the creepiest museums I have been to. Not that Austrian history is scary, but the artifacts and background music was so eery! There was an exhibition on masks, some of the scariest masks I have ever seen! There also was a section on the dress and fashion of Austrians, which would have been interesting if they were not displayed on creepy wooden life sized dolls. The museum was full of interesting items, but I couldn't help but being completely and entirely creeped out! It didn't help that my husband and I were the only ones in the museum.

creepy museum

My husbands favorite site was going to the Olympic Ski Jump; The Bergisel. It was interesting, but I enjoyed the views from it more as no one was actually practicing. However, it was SO STEEP and gave you an entirely new appreciation of the ski jump as a winter activity. It always was one of my favorite winter events, but actually seeing it, the athletes have to have some huge cajones to actually go through with it!!!

the Bergisel

Also, while in Austria, you cannot leave without having a huge giant glass of beer with sauerkraut & pretzels. Summer time in Austria is absolutely stunning. Sipping on large pints (mugs called a mabkrug) of beer and eating traditional food under the sun, surrounded by mountains, was just phenomenal. I actually was surprised by how hot it was. When in the Alps I always think of the snow, but it was 31 degrees Celsius or so every day! About 88 degrees Fahrenheit.

me and my mabkrug !

Innsbruck is an awesome town, like in Zurich, we enjoyed going to the grocery stores for picnic lunches and dinners and enjoying the sites of the town. Innsbruck in the summer is great, but I also would love to come back in winter as I can just imagine how adorable it would be with Christmas markets and instead of having beer I would be sipping on mulled wine. I am thoroughly enjoying my time in Austria and enjoying the laid back culture.

Interesting, Beautiful, Peaceful.... Laos

overlooking Luang Prabang

the pools at Kuang Si Falls

 Laos, Laos, Laos, we've had our ups and we've had our downs. Unfortunately, almost the entire 10 days I've spent here I have been ill one way or the other. Whether it was a stomach bug, bad reactions to the malaria tablets, or a fever, I still absolutely loved it here. The reason is because less tourists come to Laos. I do not know if it is the fact that Laos is one of the poorest countries in the world, or as it’s a strict Buddhist country and it’s not appropriate to party here, but there were just less tourists here; that was great.

monastery in Luang Prabang

We started in Luang Prabang and traveled by bus from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng, then finally to the capital of Vientiane. My favorite town was definitely Luang Prabang, but I had the most fun in Vientiane. We made friends on the bust to Vang Vieng and ended up travelling with them all the way to Vientiane. We all explored Vientiane together and it made the experience that much better and the city seem fun.

Vientiane

Vientiane

 Vientiane as a whole (in my opinion) is actually quite a dull city. However, there are great places to eat at. One example is the restaurant of MakPhet. It also is a great cause as the funds help to take kids off the streets and train them as chefs. Also, due to the high French influences here, Luang Prabang and Vientiane had amazing cafés, croissants, and baguettes. The one must see would be to head to the Buddha Park. It is a small park filled with Hindu and Buddhist sculptures, but just plopped every which way. It is so strange, but interesting!

Buddha Park

My favorite city was Luang Prabang. It is set between two rivers on a peninsula and is actually a small town. It is filled with temples (Wats), Buddhist Monks, cafes, and amazing restaurants. It is so cute and a great place to just relax and eat. About 30 kilometers out of town, there are some amazing waterfalls. The water is so blue, it is truly amazing. It is called the Kuang Si Waterfall and not only does it have a huge waterfall and amazing blue pools, there is also a moon bear sanctuary. The rescued bears live quite a luxurious life in the spacious area as they no longer can be set back into the wild. Overall, Luang Prabang is a gorgeous place and a must see in Laos. It is so relaxing, peaceful, and simply beautiful.

Luang Prabang

Kuang Si Falls

The bus ride from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng is also an experience in itself! Windy mountainous roads through gorgeous green mountain ranges. It is hard to enjoy the beauty while constantly thinking you’re going to fall off the side of the road due to the small road vs. big bus comparison! Once you get to Vang Vieng, it is kind of a letdown. The landscape around Vang Vieng is phenomenal, probably some of the best I’ve seen whilst travelling. Just imagine breath taking backdrops of limestone mountains, green fields, and streams connecting the rivers. However, the town in itself is quite boring and frustrating.

Vang Vieng

Here is the only place young backpackers go and the only place that seemed touristy. The food here is awful. Young travelers 18 to early 20s come here to enjoy the tubing along the river and drinking in the river, but their sheer disrespect of the culture is an outrage. There are signs everywhere in Luang Prabang reminding people to cover their bodies. It’s like HELLO!!! You’re in a very strict Buddhist country with monks on every corner, so why the hell would you think it appropriate to get drunk and walk around half naked? COMPLETELY disrespectful. It made me sad that the people had to put up with young ignorant backpackers. It seemed that hardly any of these types come to Laos, but if they did they were are residing in Vang Vieng; such a shame. The landscape here was gorgeous, but the actual town was nothing to write home about I am afraid.

Ali & I on our bike ride in Vang Vieng

Laos is a beautiful country filled with amazing nature, landscape, historic towns and Wats. However, I found it quite interesting as the people just seemed so blasé. Everywhere else I've been in Asia, people definitely wanted my money and bartering is quite common. However, it was a struggle to find anyone to barter with! It was like, don’t you want my money? Or my business?

Vang Vieng

You would walk into a shop and no one would be there. Or you would want to buy something at a market and they would just look at you. Even walking on the street you would smile at a stranger and just get stared at. I read before coming here that the Lao people are very easy going, but this was just shocking. I mean, it was great because there was no heckling on the streets from vendors, but really different to the other countries! The customer service was fine, but a simple smile and a please and a thank you would go a long way. That didn't even happened.

the temples/Buddhas of Luang Prabang

I didn’t come across as many tourists as normal on the “SE Asia backpacker route”, but it did make me think if the little ones who do come are leaving a bad example to the locals. Not sure if it’s because now too many young, stupid, backpackers are ruining the reputation for all the other “foreigners” to them, but I did not get a laid back feeling. I just got a sense that no one wanted to help us out. I am not complaining, just notating the indifference as everywhere else we seemed to go there was so much (probably fake) friendliness we didn't get here. Although, I have to admit I did like the fact that I did not get hassled on the street, it made the country that more peaceful !

Jayda and I at Kuang Si Falls

Don’t let this deter you from coming though, we felt incredibly safe, had a ton of fun, and the country is so beautiful, relaxing, and peaceful. One of the best parts of our trip was that we made friends and got to experience the country together. Comparing notes of our travels, what we thought, and making conversation with strangers who become your friends is all part of the experience. Laos is absolutely beautiful and I was sad to go. 

my new friends and I at the Buddha Park !