Christmas and New Year without Snow in Tennengau

After two wonderful concept hotels we went to a destination again: Tennengau in Salzburg Land. Like many other destinations in Salzburg Land winter is all about holidays in the snow, which refuses to come somehow this year. But there are other things to do…

Moving in three days before Christmas means there is only one subject: Christmas market! We already had been to the mountain advent in Großarl and the very day we arrived in Abtenau the local christmas market took place there. So we directly went there. There you could get really nice things, a lot of handicraft and of course culinary arts. At one booth a woman was spinning and we ate the best frensh toast from Salzburg Land. Unfortunately the market is only open for a couple of days.

Doesn't matter. There are other christmas markets. For example some in down town Salzburg. The Christkindl Market at the Domplatz was our next destination combined with some views over Salzburg at the blue hour. Wonderful! We tried Christmas Kaiserschmarrn and Mozart Potion. Both were really yummy. You should give it a try!

And there is the market at Hellbrunn Palace. There we could watch two artisans while working. Very nice. A glass engraver and a glas bead maker.

And! Just in case! If you can't get enough of all these markets. There is one which is open even after christmas. The Star Advent in Salzburg. It lasts until January 6… Also here you can marvel at old handicraft. And again you can eat delicious food.

Talking about food… Of course we got engaged into culinary arts again and again it was about cheese. But… This time I made the cheese myself. There is a cheese workshop where you can actually make cheese. Including a certificate! There! Funny enough that you have to treat the cheese afterwards in your hotel room. Ha ha! I would love to know what the local hotel owners think about that. Anyway. The cheese tasted very good. I would do it again any time!

Have a look a the article about making your own cheese here.

We have discovered other funny things. Like: Würschtlsuppe – Sausage Soup. Years ago it was only served at christmas but nowadays you can get it also in restaurants or huts. Bread is chunked into the soup and the sausage you eat while holding it in your hand. It also is very yummy!

To get rid of all these calories we could not swing on the slopes but we could hike. After having received a private show around Abtenau the other day we wanted to discover the area on our own and tried some loop roads. Important information: Sometimes they are not loops. But you cannot really get lost.

We visited the Postalm and walked at the end of the year the alpine flower path. We did find some blooming flowers though. A wonderful special was Holy Night. Literally. We went after the concert at the grave of Gruber to the Roßfeld Panorama Route and could not only enjoy a wonderful view over Salzburg but also a stunning full moon and incredible silence. A very special moment.

Another highlight has been the winter wonder land at Au. A small place where ice turned everything into a white dream. Here we enjoyed as well magic moments.

And once again we had to look over the roofs of Salzburg. There are some viewing points which are genious.

Apart from all these nice things we had a photo shooting at an alpine hut and visited the Perchten Run at Russbach. We had to change the batterie of our car because it was too old for the cool temperatures. We went by gondola lift up to the Donnerskogel and went to the cinema where we got a private presentation of Star Wars – The Force Awakens. We only have been four persons in the room. We spent both our birthdays there – one we nearly missed – the other one we celebrated. We casted lead on our smart phone app and watched the firework over Abtenau despite the icy rain from the balcony of our hotel.

So many experiences…