Our visit to Austria began in a most auspicious way- we decided to cross the border from Italy, and therefore the Alps, in a final push that would mark the ending to a long, hot day and a well-traveled week through Italy and its charming countryside. What that meant for us was an evening ascent to and crossing over of the 4500’ Brenner’s Pass, the easiest we were told of the passes along our route that would allow us to the other side. Albania’s mind boggling ups and downs and northern Italy’s rising roads to the crossing prepared our legs well for the climb; and even as it was well into the evening along a road lit overhead only by the ambient glow of civilization, our descent was fast and very long and was one of many confirmations for us why touring on a bicycle is so simply rewarding. The endless ride down ended abruptly as we passed through two intersections at the bottom and suddenly found ourselves in the center of Innsbruck. A sizable city, it was even here that we did not have to pass through a myriad of suburban tract housing to reach its historic core. The smaller cousin to Vienna and Salzburg, Innsbruck is still a large and bohemian city with a thriving sidewalk culture. Its population is young and international due to its universities, its lunchtime crowds are thick with tourists from around the world and its location on the Inn River places it perfectly in the valley between two very high ridges that seem almost to lean out and over the city. It was the next day, after a night of urban guerilla camping- Oh the stares and looks of surprise in the morning!- and on our way out of the relaxed urbanity of Innsbruck, that we began to see the organization and efficiency of Austria and what we may find in its neighbor to the north. This is what we have expected to find in this part of Europe before our visit. We discovered in northern Italy, a most agricultural region of the country whose signage shares not only the Germanic language, but whose modernity, like Austria’s and Germany’s, is appropriately in tune with its natural surroundings, that the people enjoy lifestyles according to what they need, not what they want. There are the signs of consumerism that are to be expected, but it is not gratuitous by any means; and what is purchased as an eventual throw-away is appropriately disposed of in an ecologically responsible manner. It is the height of a modern society- one that enjoys the benefits of today’s advances but that also remembers that it has always been and always will be part of the land, the sky and the water upon which it depends. We stop often at grocery stores to save money, and it was at one particular store in a town east of Innsbruck that George walked out of with our lunch and dinner exclaiming “This is it, I’ve fallen in love with this place and would rather not leave!” A simple commentary on not just the beautiful women and the rich and advanced culture that we have been riding through, but in this case the simplicity with which they shop for groceries. For example, the insertion of a 1 Euro coin into a mechanism on the handle of a shopping cart will allow you use that cart. A return of the cart and reinsertion of the key attached to the chain, which in turn is attached to the cart in front, will return your 1 Euro coin. A simple process that eliminates the kid at the grocery store who has to take time to retrieve the carts scattered about the parking lot. Efficiency is simply the elimination of the middle man and the clutter. In the store itself, there is not the unnecessary restocking of the goods in an orderly manner along the shelves. In this case, the boxes with their goods in them are simply stocked along the shelves as they are loaded off of the truck. Shopping along these simplified aisles is made pleasant by the building that is not placed in a big-box “put it anywhere is OK” manner, but that is actually designed. I can imagine for George it was more of a pleasant, physiological connection among building, customer and task at hand than just a mind numbing stroll along aisles lit high overhead by the clinical glow of high pressure lighting. Even the occasional bird caught unwarily in our own big box stores does not make the experience any better. We shared a beer outside in the café area, which always solicits a remark from one of us about how it can be so easy here and so taboo in the States. Ah, the residual effects of our country’s puritanical origins. We reach Kufstein that day, from which we will reach Munich the next, and on this day we pass again through more countryside.
Day20, 1100km: Innsbruck, Austria.
Our visit to Austria began in a most auspicious way- we decided to cross the border from Italy, and therefore the Alps, in a final push that would mark the ending to a long, hot day and a well-traveled week through Italy and its charming countryside. What that meant for us was an evening ascent to and crossing over of the 4500’ Brenner’s Pass, the easiest we were told of the passes along our route that would allow us to the other side. Albania’s mind boggling ups and downs and northern Italy’s rising roads to the crossing prepared our legs well for the climb; and even as it was well into the evening along a road lit overhead only by the ambient glow of civilization, our descent was fast and very long and was one of many confirmations for us why touring on a bicycle is so simply rewarding. The endless ride down ended abruptly as we passed through two intersections at the bottom and suddenly found ourselves in the center of Innsbruck. A sizable city, it was even here that we did not have to pass through a myriad of suburban tract housing to reach its historic core. The smaller cousin to Vienna and Salzburg, Innsbruck is still a large and bohemian city with a thriving sidewalk culture. Its population is young and international due to its universities, its lunchtime crowds are thick with tourists from around the world and its location on the Inn River places it perfectly in the valley between two very high ridges that seem almost to lean out and over the city. It was the next day, after a night of urban guerilla camping- Oh the stares and looks of surprise in the morning!- and on our way out of the relaxed urbanity of Innsbruck, that we began to see the organization and efficiency of Austria and what we may find in its neighbor to the north. This is what we have expected to find in this part of Europe before our visit. We discovered in northern Italy, a most agricultural region of the country whose signage shares not only the Germanic language, but whose modernity, like Austria’s and Germany’s, is appropriately in tune with its natural surroundings, that the people enjoy lifestyles according to what they need, not what they want. There are the signs of consumerism that are to be expected, but it is not gratuitous by any means; and what is purchased as an eventual throw-away is appropriately disposed of in an ecologically responsible manner. It is the height of a modern society- one that enjoys the benefits of today’s advances but that also remembers that it has always been and always will be part of the land, the sky and the water upon which it depends. We stop often at grocery stores to save money, and it was at one particular store in a town east of Innsbruck that George walked out of with our lunch and dinner exclaiming “This is it, I’ve fallen in love with this place and would rather not leave!” A simple commentary on not just the beautiful women and the rich and advanced culture that we have been riding through, but in this case the simplicity with which they shop for groceries. For example, the insertion of a 1 Euro coin into a mechanism on the handle of a shopping cart will allow you use that cart. A return of the cart and reinsertion of the key attached to the chain, which in turn is attached to the cart in front, will return your 1 Euro coin. A simple process that eliminates the kid at the grocery store who has to take time to retrieve the carts scattered about the parking lot. Efficiency is simply the elimination of the middle man and the clutter. In the store itself, there is not the unnecessary restocking of the goods in an orderly manner along the shelves. In this case, the boxes with their goods in them are simply stocked along the shelves as they are loaded off of the truck. Shopping along these simplified aisles is made pleasant by the building that is not placed in a big-box “put it anywhere is OK” manner, but that is actually designed. I can imagine for George it was more of a pleasant, physiological connection among building, customer and task at hand than just a mind numbing stroll along aisles lit high overhead by the clinical glow of high pressure lighting. Even the occasional bird caught unwarily in our own big box stores does not make the experience any better. We shared a beer outside in the café area, which always solicits a remark from one of us about how it can be so easy here and so taboo in the States. Ah, the residual effects of our country’s puritanical origins. We reach Kufstein that day, from which we will reach Munich the next, and on this day we pass again through more countryside.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Great description of Innsbruck! I spent a summer there and absolutely loved it! I only wish you could have spent more time there.
ReplyDelete