Day 18 - Beauty of Carinthia - Oct. 31

We had set the clock for 6:30, but were up before then. We managed to have the car packed and leave by our 8 AM target.

Autobahn breakfast - salami, cheese roll

We stopped to buy a "vignette", the sticker you must display on your windshield to show that you are authorized to use the tolls roads (autobahns) in Austria. You purchase a ticket for a minimum of 10-days for about $11. While we were at the rest stop we purchased our "breakfast".

We drove south through fog. Our destination was the spa, ski-resort of Bad Kleinkirchheim in the province of Carinthia (Kaernten) - about a four-hour drive. Years ago we had planned a trip to Bad Kleinkirchheim with a group of friends in Jakarta, but had to cancel. I have always wanted to visit, and my interest was piqued even more when I happened to discover that the lovely Hotel Pulverer had a top-rated restaurant called the "Loy Stub'n". As Loy is the family name of my oldest friends, I thought it would be fun to try the restaurant. The hotel had no vacancies, but we were able to make a lunch reservation.

Shortly after we left the autobahn and started along a 21-mile stetch of winding, mountain road, the sun came out, and the scenery was glorious. We drove along the River Mur past golden trees and a sprinkling of snow on the peaks of the Nockberge mountains. At one point we passed by pasture land that was so manicured and pretty we initialy thought it was a golf course. The highest elevation of the drive was 5,889-feet at the Turracherhoehe pass. The village of Turracherhoehe was situated on a beautiful mountain lake, Schwarzee. From there the road descended at a sharp 23-degree angle.

The entire area is part of the UNESCO Biosphere, approximately 4,800 acres, which is devoted to preserving the landscape, flora and fauna for future generations to enjoy.

Loy Stub'n - Hotel Pulverer - Bad Kleinkirchheim

Exterior Loy Stub'n - 400-year old building

The restaurant lived up to its reputation. What a totally different experience than our meal at the Park Hotel the previous day. The dining room was beautiful, the waitress was a lovely young lady, dressed in traditional clothing. She spoke beautiful English, but humored us when we spoke German. She said no one knew the origin of the Loy Stub'n name. The building had oiginally been a type of barn. She said for hundreds of years people would say, "We're going to the Loy."

Essecke bei kachelofen in Loy Stub'n
(Eating "corner" by ceramic stove)

Paprika cream spread with pumpkin seeds, Unsalted Butter

Ron ordered a clear soup with leberknodel, followed by Wienerschnitzel, hoping it would be better than the one he had on the "fruhschoppen" day. It was wonderful - the breading was light and crispy, and the meat tender and flavorful. It was served with lingonberries (small red berries related to cranberies). I chose the special local ravioli stuffed with onion, potato and quark (a dairy product made from sour milk - similar to cottage cheese). It was served in brown butter sauce. Everything was delicious.

Veal Schnitzel

Another dining room with kachelofen

After lunch we checked into the Eschenhof Hotel. We can't seem to escape stairs! There was an elevator in the building, but you had to climb 15-stairs to reach it. A least the stairs were wide and not steep. The lady at the front desk was helpful in bringing our luggage to the room.

The room was attractive with light wood walls and furniture. There was a small "solarium" nook for sitting in the Sun. The only peculiarity was that the door to both the shower/vanity area of the bath and the door separating the bedroom from the entry foyer (where bath was located) both had glass panels, so if you weren't alone in the room, privacy in the shower was not possible.

Ron enjoying view from solarium in our room

Ron went off to the store, and I went down to reception to get the password for the Internet. Got the computer up and running, but could not get on-line in the room. When Ron returned he had the same issue, so went down to reception again. They said the modem repeater was very near our room, and that no one had reported problems previously. So, unfortunately, we had to go down to the lobby to use the Internet - a major hassle when we had lots we needed to do. It was especially annoying because we discovered the hotel catered to families, and there were constantly children running around, shrieking and misbehaving. We were sorry we couldn't enjoy our pleasant room and peace and quiet!

That evening we drove around looking for a "gemutlich" place for a light bite. We were surprised that there seemed to be no "dorf" (village) - the town is comprised primarily of hotels which are not grouped together. In other words, no area with shops, cafes, bars that you would expect to find for "apres-ski". After stopping at several spots we didn't care for, we went into the very large 5-star Hotel Ronacherhof. The staff were very friendly and allowed us to come into their dining room which was meant for their hotel guests. I wasn't hungry, but Ron made a selection from the buffet area - California rolls, salads, etc. It was interesting that this hotel also had a lot of children. But, their behavior was like day and night to the kids in our hotel. The children in this dining room were polite and quiet. There was an Italian girl about 10-years old at the next table. She had ordered a whole trout and asked to have it taken to the kitchen to have the head removed. She was then having trouble removing the skin, and the mother was quietly giving her a lesson.

Good night from Hotel Ronacherhof