July 2019 - Innsbruck

Until now I only knew Innsbruck from winter sports and somehow assumed that it must be a smaller mountain village. How wrong I was! The city of Innsbruck has over 300,000 inhabitants (!) and also has a magnificent location. You can see the Alps from everywhere, and you can even reach the mountains in just a few minutes. While the city is still at 574 m, you can easily reach 2,256 m with the Nordkette cable car! By the way, Nordkette refers to the mountains of the Alps above Innsbruck. So if you, like us, want to escape the summer heat, you just need a ticket to go up. In winter, of course, skiing is done up here.

On the way to the mountain, you can also admire the futuristic stations of the mountain railway. They were designed by Zaha Hadid, just like the world-famous ski jump in Innsbruck.

It is called Bergisel Ski Jump and is very close to the city. Visually, however, it seems like the ski jumper is jumping directly into the Alps. Just take a look at my corresponding photo for a reminder. This misunderstanding surely arose because of that, thinking that Innsbruck must be a small mountain village. Because on television broadcasts, it looks like that in my image.

That's a photo from close range of a ski jump. By the way, anyone can take such a photo. The athletes train here daily in the summer, so you have the opportunity to watch them. You can also ride the inclined elevator to the ski jump together with them. And some fans even ask for autographs or a selfie. We didn't do the latter, we're just too shy!

In any case, it was an exciting experience and a noisy one. Although 'noisy' might not be the right word. But when a ski jumper races down the ramp, it's definitely loud. The jumpers are fast anyway. You have to set the continuous shooting function on the camera, otherwise you'll miss the takeoff and have no photo.

As you already know, we were up in the mountains of the Nordkette and also at the ski jump. But we did much more during our stay here. For those who are as active as we are, I can only recommend the Innsbruck Card. It costs €50 per person for two days, but it includes everything (such as the mountain railways and admission to the ski jump).

Another inclusion in the card is the Sightseer Bus. We took it on the first day to get an overview, and because it was raining anyway. It runs every 40 minutes and you can get on and off whenever you want.

Schloss Ambras was our first stop (admission included with the Innsbruck Card). You can spend a nice time here, even in bad weather. And there is a lot to see. We were particularly impressed by the Art Chamber and Cabinet of Wonders. Although 'cabinet' is not really the right term. In large rooms, various things collected by Archduke Ferdinand II are exhibited here.

In the Renaissance era, it was considered desirable to acquire a kind of encyclopedia of the extraordinary. This one at Schloss Ambras was already considered very significant in the 16th century. Of course, art objects of all kinds were collected, but also strange things were added. There was no television to show the wonders of the world. And since there were no cameras either, perishable things were reproduced or painted. So there are pictures of the so-called 'hairy man' and his children. These were people who were completely covered with hair, even on their faces. This thick fur brought the father dubious fame, as he lived at the French court, but probably only for general amusement. A portrait of him was then passed from court to court and finally ended up at Schloss Ambras. By the way, the hereditary disease is now also called 'Ambras Syndrome'.

You can also see a knight who had a stake driven into his head during a battle or tournament and survived with it for several months. It couldn't have been pleasant, even though he only lost his eye, but not any vital brain matter.

I took a photo for you of the court giant Bartlmä Bon. He was not only painted, but even recreated in life size. The 2.40 m tall man did not actually live in Schloss Ambras. Probably only a picture of him was commissioned and added to the collection as a natural wonder.

Fortunately, the sky over Innsbruck cleared up after all these wonders, so we could also enjoy the surrounding park and the view.

In such weather, it was also worth exploring the city center of Innsbruck. For example, we climbed the Stadtturm tower with its 148 steps and then enjoyed the wonderful view (admission included with the Innsbruck Card). From up here, you can also see the famous Golden Roof of Innsbruck. But to be honest, you can see the roof well from below too.

Another worthwhile attraction, also included with the Innsbruck Card, is the visit to the Swarovski Crystal Worlds. There is an indoor part to admire and an outdoor part with a lake and crystal clouds in the air. In addition, during our visit, artists from Circus Roncalli were performing their tricks in the Crystal Worlds, for example on the tightrope.

And because we still hadn't had enough afterwards, we also visited the Alpenzoo. However, it did not impress us as much as we had hoped, so I mention it at the end.

Nevertheless, I can say that our trip to Innsbruck was really worth it and we still have a lot to see. Innsbruck was formerly a residence city and still has a lot to offer from that time.

So we will definitely come back. See you soon, Innsbruck!