Hallstatt, Austria

Until we rounded yet another corner and spotted the quaint village nestled between the mountains across a serene mountain lake, we were not entirely sure that we were even on the right train. Along with the other three remaining passengers, we went straight from train to ferry, which provided a panoramic view of the lake and town.

view from the ferry

I was telling a regular customer of mine about my upcoming trip a couple of weeks before I left, and she raved about Hallstatt convincingly enough for me to check it out. I am so glad we did. We were especially struck by the kindness of the people we encountered. Everything seemed suspended in time, and the people seemed to have slowed their pace to fit their town. We missed heavy rains by a couple of weeks that caused a rock slide and severe flooding in the village. It seems that our hotel had been hit heaviest of all, with water and rocks rushing through the basement and first floor. The army had been stationed in town for three days to help clean up the aftermath, but they were obviously still trying to pick up the pieces. Despite this disaster and the fact that they did not yet have hot water or heat in the building, the owner was gracious and welcoming and our view was idyllic.

the view from our room

Hallstatt’s shops cater to the masses of Japanese tourists, and the town reminded us somewhat of Mackinac Island, except with a depth of history and quality of craftsmanship that the U.S. can’t compete with. We met Sharon, a British shop owner, on our first afternoon, who came to Hallstatt ten years ago on a film set and then decided to “become a hermit” and stay. Thanks to her, we got in on a fabulous 16-piece Big Band concert to benefit the victims of flooding that evening. She also told us about a tech school down the street where students learn to build furniture and musical instruments.

streets of Hallstatt

While exploring the next day, we found the school and wandered through their art exhibit. This fachwerkschule is actually a high school for about 400 students from all over the world who learn woodworking, furniture design, interior design, sculpture, and instrument fabrication. We were impressed by their work (these kids are 14-18 years old) and got to chat with one of the teachers for nearly an hour. He is actually a graphic designer and in his first three years at the school has redesigned their entire marketing identity: logo, publications, etc. His English was excellent, as was his design work.

a current senior's work

The weekend was completely relaxing: no phone, no internet, no schedule. I had forgotten what it felt like to get eight hours of sleep, but it was wonderful. We toured the salt mine (this involved a laser show and two wooden slides), soaked up the picturesque views, explored, took naps when we wanted, people-watched, and generally did whatever caught our fancy. It was just right.