Innsbruck's Mega-Mountains...

THERE’S something about mountains that just does it for me.

Now I’m guessing that’s not the same for everyone. Some people like rainforests, others tropical reefs; a very select few really have a thing for industrial parks. These people are generally industrialists and should probably be avoided at parties.

But I digress.

So given the above information, you can imagine my delight upon arrival in Innsbruck to find the whole city is encircled by snow-capped mountains – as well as rain-bringing clouds.

The weather though was strangely appealing. I’d spent the night before in Munich, doing as the locals do: visiting the Augustiner Biergarten, eating a delicious pork knuckle (a half-shank of roasted pork covered with crackling), and drinking the world’s best beer. Several litres of it in fact, before heading back to Wombats and drinking in the Wombar with a friend there.

All this meant that a rainy day gave me the perfect excuse to chill out for most of the day. When the rain eased later in the afternoon I ducked into Innsbruck’s pretty town centre, wandering the streets and hoping like hell the next day would be better.

The next day dawned with the weather indeed a lot better: nothing for it then but to head up the hills to the Alpine Zoo. Not only would I be able to find out the answer to that age-old question of whether a bear defecated in the woods, but it would probably be the only time I’d get to see European wildlife outside of nightclubs.

The zoo itself was more than bears going potty, with vultures, wolves, lynx, warthogs, farmyard animals and a mummy elk looking happy as Larry with her baby elk. Fish were boring though.

Afterwards I jumped on the funicular back into town before heading up the other hills to a ski jump. This wasn’t just any ski jump though – this one was used in the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics, and besides, we don’t have any ski jumps in Queensland. While I didn’t go in on account of cost and dark, threatening clouds appearing stage left, you can head in for about €8.50, which includes a trip up to a café at the top.

The clouds held off long enough for me to head back home and have a wander through a festival that had sprouted outside my hotel – a nice way to finish off my sojourn in this picturesque Tyrolean town.

Love those mountains.