Leogang Day 3

Today miserable, cold and continuous rain/drizzle. Went to the track to watch the boys practice. They loved the track. Very happy to watch and no involvement with washing.
Tonight went to fantastic local restaurant, thin slices of pork &beef cooked on cast iron hot placed above burners. There is a little moat with stock & veggies that the meat juices drip into, followed by coffee schnapps and local desert. By end of meal the rain had stopped, fingers crossed for some good weather.




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Location:Leogang

Leogang Day 3

Weather perfect. We did a walk around the town of Leogang. We have a tourist card that gives free or discounted entry to local spots. We ventured into the Gothic Museum, however it was a short tour as there was no English translation. The village was an older part with buildings dating back to the 1400's. The enter noon was spent at the track. Rocks and roots, for me the walk was enough for me. A well deserved Austrian beer was much appreciated at the bottom of the track. If you go to downhilll247 you will get a good race coverage with brilliant pics.



Caught up with fellow Aussie mum Kerry Crimmins for dinner. Forecast for tomorrow is 100% chance of rain and 12*.

In Austria you have to buy your gastro.


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Location:Sonnrain,Austria

Leogang Day 2

So why the heck are the Fearons going to Leogang, you may be pondering. The reason is that Leogang is hosting the 2012 Mountain Bike (MTB) World Champs and our son Connor is racing in the Downhill Junior category. MTB racing actually covers a number of disciplines comprising downhill, cross country (an Olympic event), four cross (like bmx but on bike bikes and big tracks) and trials which is similar to motorbike trials, but on special seat-less bicycles. MTB is big in Europe which hosts a World Cup Series each year, criss-crossing Europe and Nth America with seven events. In the world cup series, riders race for a professional team or as a privateer. The one off annual world champs are an opportunity for the world's best riders, as selected by their respective national MTB federations, to represent their country. This pic shows where all the downhill finish action will be on Sunday......disappointment or glory awaits.




The event hasn't quite got up and going yet so today we took the opportunity to drive 100 km or so to Grossglockner which is the highest peak in Austria. The closest vantage point to this peak is called Kaiser Franz Josefs Hohe (named after a 19th century Austrian autocrat who hiked up to this point) and overlooks a massive glacier. The alpine road leading to this location was originally built in the 1930s and is a wonder to behold. I only wish I could ride it on a motorbike. Here's a couple of pictures to try and convey some sense of the glacier and other scenery.















Tomorrow is day 1 of the champs with practice only for the downhillers.


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Location:Leogang & Grossglockner

Leogang Day 1

Up early and did the bus tour around Munich then on to Leogang by car. It feels weird driving on the right hand side. Thank God for for GPS or else we who knows where we would be sleeping tonight. Also lucky that Charlie drove all the way.
The countryside is so beautiful, lush green paddocks in the valleys with clear tracts on the hillside interspersed between conifer forests. As I write this we are sitting out on the balcony enjoying a glass of very drinkable white, nibbling on nachos and listening to the running water in the stream. It is so quiet and relaxing after the three hour drive.
We will cook our own meal tonight. Interesting shopping when you can't read labels and just go by the pictures.
I will just leave you with the view we are looking at and enjoy the serenity.


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Location:Leogang Austria

Monday in Bavaria

After breakfast we decided to go our separate ways. We are really close to the market square, so I spent the morning exploring the stalls. Town square is also close, arrived in time to watch the Carillon display in the Town Hall then to the Imperial Palace. Fresco ceilings are beautiful but one tends to get a sore neck from looking up.
So much to see in Munich have only scratched the surface. Here is a taste.

Market scenes



My new bling


Lots of fountains


Talk tomorrow.

Palaces aren't my scene so it was off to the nearby Deutsches Museum for me for a mega dose of science and technology. This vast 100 year old institution is like utopia for your typical engineer and needs more than one day to fully explore. There's too much to describe so I'll focus just on the mining section. Forget about a few models behind glass screens, old photos and tacky dioramas. Think full size reproductions of underground mining scenes with real equipment and incredible attention to detail. There were still part scale models which were numerous, large and built with painstaking detail. This place is a kick arse playground for technology geeks!

Finished off the day with pleasant meaty meal (there's no other type in Munich), a wheat beer and a stroll around Marienplatz.

Location:Munich

Travel to Munich

Let's face it, long haul flights suck when you're stuck in cattle class and it's not helped when you have four chatterboxes seated behind you banging their gums loudly for seven hours straight. Our itinerary comprised a short leg from Adelaide to Melbourne and then onto Munich via Singapore and Dubai. Our chatty quartet kept us wide awake to Singapore. Here's Mary-Ann in Melbourne airport, smiling and oblivious to the immense discomfort about to be visited upon us.



At Dubai, we were fortunate to get upgraded to Business Class for the final leg to Munich so much joy was had on the upper level of an A380 in one of those fancy pants cubicle seats with great technical wizardry and the ability to recline into a bed. Bliss. There could have been riots below in economy, for all we knew. Here's photographic proof that good things come to the humble.



Arrival in Munich allowed us a short reunion with middle son Connor who was typically nonplussed about the occasion. The rest of the Junior Australian Downhill team flew in on the same flight as us so after packing bike boxes, bags and boys into two vans, the team set off for Leogang in Austria. Meanwhile we headed for Munich by train for a couple of days sightseeing. Here's the downhill team and support staff at Munich airport.



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Location:Sardine can in the sky

Set Up Blog Test

This is a test post and photo upload to see whether this fan dangled app actually works.



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Location:Home