Tuesday 23 March 2010

Viennese Escapes:
Going West Over The Mountains


Arlberg Pass
The Arlberg mountain range
divides the Austrian states of Tyrol and Vorarlberg,
and if you want to drive from Innsbruck to Switzerland,
you'll have to cross these mountains at some point.

The 14km long Arlberg Road Tunnel
is the way to go if you need to journey the fastest route,
while the slower old pass road -
with an elevation of 1,793 m (5,883 ft) -
offers the traveler gorgeous views
of valley and of mountain peaks.
It was late afternoon by the time I reached
the pass, the sun was obscured by dense fog.

I reached the small town
of Feldkirch in Vorarlberg -
close to the Swiss border -
as the sun was setting behind the mountains.
I took this picture at a gallery
around the corner from my hotel.
I liked how the reflections of treetops
played with the tree-lined road
in the painting, teasing the eye.

*

Photographed
at the Arlberg Pass
and Feldkirch
10 March 2010
© 2010 by Merisi

12 comments:

  1. After a looooong winter, you have somehow made a cold landscape appealing again. Your photo of the gallery is magical! Enjoy your wandering and thanks for sharing all the beautiful images you have captured.

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  2. That last one is wonderful!

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  3. i haven't stopped by in a few days because i wanted to save this visual treat for my most hectic day of waiting for the MITM's return home. always a treat for me to sit and slowly click away and get lost in the stunning beauty you capture, sugar! xoxoxox

    (i'll probably be back again today!)

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  4. Wow! What a wonderful alpine environment!

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  5. WOW! What a shot of the sun coming through the clouds. Pure poetry.

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  6. That first pic is awesome, Merisi! I don't think I ever was in that neighborhood -somehow we always entered Switserland from the side of France.

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  7. Thanks for the memories Merisi. The Austrian, swiss and German Alps are like home to me. We are not tunnel people and arwaus prefer the scenic routs which has led us into some memorable adventures like being snowed in the next morning in the St Bernhardt pass. It was like going back in time with a wash stand in our room and having to break the ice in the jug of water before we could wash! Cranberries and blueberries on the side of the Aletsch glacier so thick you just had to stretch out your for a feed alternating one handfull of cranberries with another of blueberries for sweetness and an eagle sittin just a little uphill from us for company. Life is full of wonders.

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  8. The picture with the reflection is amazing ... I just kept staring at it, even before reading your explanation.

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  9. Great photos, especially the last one which really made me look closely. I love mountains, which is good considering I live at an elevation of 7,500 feet (2,286 m).

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  10. Love that last photo--it really does tease the eye. Very cool!

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  11. Thank you all!

    Arija:
    I am so glad that my post touched those beautiful memories of yours! I was very close to S. Bernhard Pass, would have loved to take that detour, alas, that was not in the cards. Not this time.

    Did you see the list of places I saw on my trip? I put it in the comments section of my next post, "Dreaming of France" - just rambling on, no time for a better report.

    Al and Ds,
    I love that picture too!
    Even looking at the "real" painting and the relfection, it was hard to discern what was real and what was reflected. ;-)

    Savannah,
    I hope your MITM arrived safely!
    Always so good to see you (provokes so many beautiful memories of mine!).

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  12. That third shot is very cool. You have such a great eye.

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