Olympic fairytale

25-08-07

When the train glides into the Innsbruck station, the stunning Alpine scenery dominates the landscape with mountains surrounding the area.

The first thing I strived to do after checking into my hotel was to go up to the peak of the Alps and get a stunning view. I had a hard time finding the bus that takes you to Nordpark, but I did discover the Congress Innsbruck which was build around 1629-1632 by Archduke Leopold V. It became the first self-supporting opera house north of the Alps. It was transformed into a toll-house in the 19^th century, but was destroyed during World War II. In 1973, it was rebuilt and enlarged as a contemporary center.

I took a trip to Nordpark in the northern part of the area to get a panoramic of Innsbruck and its surrounding holiday villages in the Tyrol as this part of the Alps is called, and I could see over 400 Alpine peaks which included the Stubaital, Otztal, Zillertal, Karwendel, and the Grossglockner at a height of 2260 meters. In the Grossglockner, I could see the highest bridge in Europe. The view was surreal and some of the mountains had snow at their summit. The green summer alpine scenery reminded me of Johanna Spry’s novel Heidi especially with the sheep gnawing on grass and the cows languidly lying on their bellies with their brass bells ringing whenever they moved around. Three of the sheep must have taken a liking to my camera because they started pursuing me.

Innsbruck with its beautiful mountains hosted the Winter Olympics twice in 1964 and 1976. In 1964, they didn’t have enough snow in the Alps, so they imported gigantic blocks of ice and the Austrian Military packed the mountains with them. The games were a success unless you were an American fan as the United States won just one gold medal. Thus, when Denver had to cancel as host of the 1976 Winter games because they ran into enormous debt, Innsbruck was slated to host the Olympics for a second time. The 1976 Winter Olympics will always be identified with Austria’s native son Franz Klammer’s daring and dangerous run down the Alps to capture a gold medal in the men’s downhill. Klammer was skidding on the edge of his skis seemingly destined to lose his balance and crash as he sought make up a time deficit, but he cruised to glory. Not surprisingly, Klammer became a national hero in ski-mad Austria.

I stopped at the Olympia Eisstadion where the Tivoli Stadium sits - this is where the opening and closing ceremonies took place and now it is a soccer stadium. The arena nearby is where the figure skating and speed skating took place. In 1976, American figure skater Dorothy Hamill won the gold medal here, but her wedge hairstyle may be more famous. For the United States, Hamill’s victory signified that the American figure skating team was back. In 1961, the entire figure skating team was killed in an airplane crash en route to the World Championships in Prague. Peggy Fleming won gold in Grenoble while Hamill’s victory ensured that American figure skating was strong.

I went to the historic old town and went to the Stadtturm to climb the tower which has a 16^th-century spherical cupola. The view from the tower was surreal as it allowed me to peer over the roofs of the city and see the Alps.

At the Goldenes Dachl, there was an Emperor Maximilian festival with dancing which occurs nightly. The dancers were wearing traditional Alpine clothing with wool dresses and wooden buttons; they were indeed a delight to watch. The Goldenes Dachl was constructed by Friedrich IV in 1420 and it became the dwelling of the sovereigns in Tyrol. Emperor Maximilian added to the building in 1500 by placing a lanai with 2738 copper tiles over a window. There are also frescos as well as coat-in-arms and reliefs.