Jaime in Hallstatt, Austria (part 3 of 3)

We spent our last day in a little, one road town called Hallstatt. Not only was it cheaper and less crowded because of the "off peak" time we were there, but we had absolutely amazing weather.

Our entire drive from Salzburg to Hallstatt, Eric kept saying, "You can't make this stuff up," referring to the scenery. I had to correct him by pointing out that, "Actually, you can make this stuff up, and someone did." Hallstatt itself is an old (as in BC) salt mining community that is in the mountains but is also set on a lake. Think of a small, remote, Austrian Alps Lake Tahoe.

The view from our room at the Pension Sarstein

This stream ran from the top of the mountain all the way through town and into the lake.

Our place had these diving boards right outside. Unfortunately, we didn't think to bring our swimsuits.

Morning view.

The town across the lake.

Again.

Just to the right is the South end of Hallstatt.

The constant waterfall from snow melt - made me miss home.

Our hike up the mountain consisted mostly of stairs. My legs were on fire.

I would like to thank erosion for this picture.

The hills are alive with the sound of music ♪

Finally at the top of our hike!

There was a "guided tour" with these mirrors representing the past and future of Hallstatt.

Interesting ditties about Hallstatt's ancient salt mining inhabitants were on each mirror.

Waterfall.

Old salt mine entrance.

OoOooooo. Creepy.

No entrance to the salt mines.

One of Eric's favorite parts of the trip. Our rental car was a VW Scirocco TDI. It came in handy on the Autobahn where we reached the top speed of 200km/hr (124 mph).

Overall, it was a five star, two thumbs up, amazing wunderschön vacation - I would totally do it again.