We stayed in Fügen, a small village in Austria’s Zillertal.
I think I might have seen more cows than people this week.
 Our first night we gave ourselves a little spa treatment when we applied clay facemask and enjoyed a beer on our balcony.
The tall mountain in the background of the title image is the Ahorn peak. We knew we wouldn’t have enough time to make it to the top, so we hiked to the hut and then made our way back.
The mountains are always so beautiful.
The weather was perfect for a hike. When the weather changes, I’ll miss being able to hike in a T-shirt and shorts.
This little spot of respite was near the upper cable car station. We spent a small break lying in the sun and dipping our feet in the water after the upper part of our hike.
This station had all sorts of activities for hikers: water path to cool off, a raft, a water pump, recliner benches. Here you can see me walking the balance beams.
I’m not sure if I am more impressed by the jagged mountains or the crevices carved by the streams.
Part of our hike took us through this tunnel.
The color of the alpine water is so unique.
We were happy since we knew the lodge, more specifically beer, was just around the corner.
On our hike down, we stopped at the Stilluptal, a reservoir lake.
Wednesday was a relaxing day. We spent most of it at a pool complex, which you can see off to the right. You can also see a huge logging plant in the distance.
After swimming we went to a local restaurant for a hearty traditional meal.

With Kacper finally done with exams, we planned on doing some traveling before the next semester starts. This week the two of us spent time in the Zillertal, or Ziller (river) Valley, which is a small alpine region in Austria known for its beautiful scenery and outdoor activities. Monday came and we made our way to catch our train. After a few transfers we arrived and checked-in to our hotel, got settled, got lunch, and walked around the town. That night we relaxed in the hotel by eating snacks and drinking local beer while watching a movie. 

Tuesday was our hiking day. We took the train a few towns south. Since these mountains are taller than any in Germany, we rode a cable car up to an intermediate height. From there numerous trails broke off in every direction. Although we knew we didn’t have time to make it to the top, we took the trail that went up to the tallest peak connected by this network and decided when we reached the hut, we would take a break and turn around. Once we made it back to our starting point, we followed another trail down the mountain to a lake reservoir where there was a lodge. In addition to the view, we rewarded ourselves with a Radler, a summery drink that is a combination of beer and a carbonated lemonade (like Sprite). From there we continued our hike back to the city in order to catch the train back to our town and buy some snacks and drinks to enjoy while we watched Bayern München play Barcelona in the Champions League.

We decided to be a little lazy and slept in on Wednesday. After getting up and eating breakfast, we went to a fun, semi-indoor swimming pool complex. There were pools of different temperatures, water slides, jets, a wave pool, a saltwater pool, a sauna, a man-made grotto, and more! It was a relaxing recovery day from our approximately 11-mile hike the previous day. After swimming we went to eat dinner and then Kacper humored me by watching Miracle on Ice.  

The weather was pretty ugly on Thursday so after packing up, checking out, and eating  breakfast, we caught the train back to Munich. Once back I had emails to attend to and other tasks to arrange, but in the evening the two of us cooked dinner and relaxed before going to bed. 

On Friday I was able to squeeze in a trip to the State Archive to do some research work before taking off on Saturday for our next trip!

This site is not an official site of the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State. The views expressed on this site are entirely those of its author, Stephanie Kubus, and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State, or any of its partner organizations.