Capital of the Alps

Photo: Panoramic view of colorful houses by the river Inn.

This was the city I chose for my Erasmus program whilst I was studying at the university. And I can't be happier with that decision! Innsbruck has everything: a nice old town, parks, cinemas, parks, pubs, restaurants, historical buildings, museums... And all reachable by foot. A valley city, surrounded by three Alpine mountain chains, crossed by a river and full of history. During winter the slopes are only a stone's throw away from the city, meanwhile dozen of walking and hiking trails can be found everywhere in summertime.

The most famous street is maybe Maria-Theresien-Strasse in the heart of the old town. It is a peatonal avenue full of cozy spots but also two big shopping malls - the Rathaus Gallerien, located in the same building as the city hall, and Kaufhaus Tyrol. I was quite impressed by having two malls facing each other. 

I lived in Innsbruck for half a year so I had a bunch of free time to explore new spots - specially on my way home after school. I always took different ways to go to my place and that's how I discovered the following. One of my favorite places is located nearby both malls, the Irish pub "Limerick Bill's". Not to mention Segabar, an small but cheap place to have lots of fun! Another nice place nearby is Theresienbräu, a restaurant-brewery with amazing typical food. But our place-to-eat on great occasions always was Stiftskeller with its large terrace and its Tyrolean meals. For cheese lovers, my favorite one is Käsespätzle - a sort of pasta mixed with grated cheese and ham. Lecker!

Top of Tyrol

Photo: Summit cross at Hafelekarspitze.

If nature and outdoor activities is what you like, I highly recommend you to climb up to this point: the incredible views over all the surrounding mountains and the city of Innsbruck will be a great gift. I'm talking about Nordkette, a mountain chain included into Karwendel Nature Park that will take you literally to the limit: it is the geographical border between Austria and Germany. From its highest reachable peak, called Hafelekarspitze, you will see both countries at the same time: Austrian Tyrol on your left side and German Bavaria on your right.

It is quite easy for everyone to get up there since the stations are connected: first station is Hungerburg and can be reached taking the funicular in Innsbruck's downtown. By the way, this line has four stations in total and all were designed by Zaha Hadid in her typical modern style. Another cable car will take you from Hungerburg to next station Seegrube (1.905m), a station in the middle of an ski area with a good-looking restaurant and amazing views. During winter, the area is full of skiers on the steepest slopes in Europe, while in summer many hikers try their hardest trails. The last station is Hafelekar (2.269m), which has to be reached with the last cable car. Don't miss taking a 10min-walk to Hafelekarspitze (2.334m) and you will enjoy views such as in the picture above!

PS. Have you ever been inside an igloo? Check "Cloud 9" out at Seegrube station and don't miss laying on the hammocks at daylight or enjoying the party at night. It is only open from December to April though!

Look out: fragile!

This museum is seriously an artwork for those who love weird structures made out of a material you barely thought it would be used for that. Optical illusions, reflection games, interactive surfaces... and all that dangerously fragile! I'm talking about Swarovski Kristallwelten and their world-famous tiny crystals. 

Photo: The Giant and its two underground entrances to the Chambers of Wonder.

I would say the complex is divided in three parts. The picture above is what the visitor sees at a first moment. It is the entrance to the underground part of the museum, called "Chambers of Wonder" and includes the most of the artworks of the complex - some of them are from the very same Salvador Dalí and Andy Warhol. Right behind the hill, there is a playground for people at all ages and a hand-shaped labyrinth. The last piece of the puzzle is the Crystal Cloud & Mirror Pond, a majestic structure made with 800.000 hand-mounted Swarovski crystals.

Before arriving to Austria, I didn't even know that Swarovski was an Austrian based company. I first saw their store in Innsbruck's downtown - quite an amazing store by the way, much bigger than any other I've ever seen, made in such a modern or even futuristic design, decorated with several crystal artworks, in one of the most luxurious and beautiful streets of the centre. The store offers not only jewelry but also optical products out of their intern brand "Swarovski Optik" and it even has a bar inside!

Photo: Crystal artwork.