I finally got my train out of Selzthal. Things started to brighten up. I traveled on a strech of rail line running through northern Styria to Bischofshofen. While looking out of the window, it occured to me that the last time I was on this same line was 3 years and 13 days previously, as I traveled from Leoben to Munich on May 4th, 2004. I happened to be so sentimental due to the fact that it was my last train ride of my mission... A fact that remained unrealized by me until I was sitting at President Wirthlin's dinner table in Munich and his saying, "It looks like this is your last meal", and my awareness of an ending mission suddenly hit me like a bag of bricks. Up to that point I was trunky, but you don't really ever think it'll actually happen. I didn't eat dinner. I felt sick. It was that stark of an self-awakening!
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I remember that last train ride vividly, it cost me the rest of my M.S.F. (74 euro) I had a package of Keks and was reading the first "schwarz" purchase of my mission: Shiller's "Wilhelm Tell". It was a jump start on the returned missionary life. Funny enough it was rainy on that trip too, but as said, yesterday when leaving Selzthal, it cleared up, and I saw the Nieder Tauern mountains for my first time. Amazing. Every where you look you see only three colors: Green fields, trees and hills, White snow-capped peaks, and blue skies. I guess you could say that the clouds lifted and I remembered why it was I came to Austria in the first place. Simply spectac.
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I got home, wrote on the blog (see previous entry), ordered my usual at the local doener place (the turks now know me well, thank you kebap shop). Did some reading, went to bed.
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Let's see... if I'm following this correctly, that was Wednesday, and today is Friday. Check me on that, I could be wrong.
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Thursday, I did laundry and went on a hike. The rain had returned, and I got soaked, again. The hike was close to Bad Gastein, and probably would have been an adventure, had the clouds lifted. But, it was fun anyways. Bad Gastiein is located at the top of the Gasteiner Tal, or Gasteiner Valley, and branching off above the city is a canyon streching a few kilometers back towards Hohe Tauern National Park. It is called Koetschach Tal. It is similar to the hike that Jenny and I went on in the Berner Oberland in Switzerland a number of years ago, with the hanging waterfalls in a narrow canyon. Except the waterfalls weren't as cool. They don't "hang" enough to my taste.
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At the top of Koetschach I stopped at the inn to have some hot chocolate and apple struedel. It tasted funny, and I now think it had a liquored cream on it. It just had that "warm tingle" in it. But it's okay, ignorance is a valid defense, right? I would have asked the waiter, but he kinda scared me with his ultra-short lederhosen. Beware those types.
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I ended up back at my hostel just reading and watching Arrested Development on my Ipod. One of them was the episode where the family is supposed to show up in George Sr.'s court hearing and act like a loving family. Of course, only Job and Lucille show up. Buster comes in a little later with the mariachi band, which was originally intended to woo Job's Venezuelan girlfriend, but that didn't pan out and according to Buster, he had them for the whole evening. I just laughed and laughed and laughed. Then Judge Ping comes in, the lawyer says, "oh no! we've got Ping!", and the first thing Judge Ping says is, "I'd like to remind you that cameras are not allowed in the court room". At which point the camera that is filming the show pans down and hides behind the seats. I've really missed that show.
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Anyway. Friday. Good ol' Friday. I love Fridays. It looked bad this morning, the weather that is, and I didn't want a third hike in the rain, so I jumped on a train, and went to... Innsbruck! During which train ride, I finished "The Sun Also Rises", which was a bit hard to swallow while reading, but now that I've digested it and thought about it after, it is really a clever book. The way Hemingway writes is so simple yet enertaining. And you can't just superficially read through it like you could "The Agony and the Ecstasy", because you'll miss the funniest and most salient parts of the book.
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During the train ride, irony struck again. It cleared up right about the time I went through Saalfelden, Austria, which I might say, is spectacular. I got to Innsbruck, and as it were, it was the hotest and sunniest day I've had since being in Austria again. I ran through the city and saw the sights. Innsbruck is small without any significant buildings, but it has a very nice Baroque, Viennese look to it. I tried to go up one of the touristy but valuable ski lifts to a view point high above the city, but luck would have it, it was under maintenance. I went to the bookstore and bought some more books and maps, which have proved to be very valuable on this trip. Mom, I think I found something that you'd like. I'll show you when I get home. It is very Austrian.
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I got on the train to head back to Bad Gastein early. I needed to get back to get ready for tomorrow. The weather is forecasted to be hot and sunny. Fantastic. I'm renting a bike in Zell am See, and biking up to the top of Breiter Kopf at 1800 meters. It'll be rough, but I'm really excited for it. Finally I'm getting into the hills...
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I just ate Wiener Schitzel at a Mexican Restaurant here in town, and as you can guess, it is more Austrian than Mexican, despite the sombrero lamps. I hope to add to the blog tomorrow night, but don't plan on it. In which case, if I don't, I'll be on a train all sunday going to old areas, so don't expect anything until Monday. But I'll try what I can to send a simple email, perhaps.
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I love you all! If you are family. Don't get excited, Jeff.
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