Enjoying Innsbruck

Innsbruck was great!  We used Airbnb to find a place that was a 5-10 minute walk from the downtown area.  The architecture in and around the city was incredible!  We spent the first night eating some delicious pizza at Die Pizzeria and then had a few beers at Stiegl.  Saturday was the first day after I got a full nights sleep so I was ready to go!  Thank goodness for getting over jet lag.

We bought a pass that granted us entry to most city museums/attractions called the Innsbruck Card.  The pass was good for 24 hours so we quickly began hunting down activities that interested us.  First we headed to the Kaiserliche Hofburg (Imperial Palace).  There, we quickly toured the Alpenverein-Museum (Alpine Club Museum) and part of the 25 imperial rooms.  The Alpine Club Museum was really cool to me.  They combined artifacts from climbing history with a brief history of alpinism in the Tyrolean Alps.  We didn't have time to tour all of the 25 imperial rooms as we were to catch a walking tour of the historic old town.  It was raining on us for most of the walking tour, which proved quite nice since it cleared out some of the tourists who couldn't handle the inclement weather.  I didn't do a very good job of taking pictures of the tour, but this one is from inside St. James Cathedral.

After the walking tour we strolled to the Museum Im Zeughaus (Zeughaus Arsenal Museum).  I was expecting a museum about the arsenal of Innsbruck, but was surprised to find a mix of geological, natural, and cultural history... all in German with no English translation.  This museum was cool, but a little harder to fully comprehend because... we don't speak much German.  However, I guarantee you, we know enough so we can always order beer.

Ein bier, bitte!

By this time we were getting tired (and thirsty) and began a search for food.  We walked through the city center and decided to look for food on the outskirts that were less touristy.  We found a place called UFO that served Mediterranean food.  It was good but a bit salty.  Then we headed to Stadtturm (City Tower) for a 360 degree view of the city.  After another beer it was time to call it a day.

Sunday we had tentatively planned on visiting the Schloss Ambras Innsbruck (Ambras Castle) and to take the Innsbrucker Nordkettenbahnen (Cable Car) to the top of the mountain.  We slept in a little and decided to cut out the castle.  Walking around the top of the mountain was quite touristy.  However, I have never summited a peak with such ease. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and eventually made our way to an Indian restaurant called Madhuban.  This was the BEST food I have ever had!  I ordered the Rogan Josh and loved every bite.  There was no way that any of my dish would be taken home for leftovers.

Monday we packed up and used the rainy day to travel to a little town in Switzerland called Sachseln.

And now it's time for pictures with no explanation!!!

- Dan