Welcome back to When Wine Calls “The Winter Grape Tour”.
In earlier blogs I outlined that our travels by train throughout Europe had been uneventful and highly enjoyable. That was all about to change as we arrived at Munich station to catch the train to Austria.
When we arrived the station was in chaos with people everywhere and no organisation about which platform each train was departing and at what time. You could sense that things were not normal, but it was difficult to put your finger on it. When our train finally arrived, and we started to board at our designated first-class carriage so did scores of others which was not what we have experienced on previous journeys.
We attempted to find our seats but all we saw ahead of us at the entrance was people standing around in the aisles, at the back of the carriage and sitting in some of our designated seats. It soon became apparent that the issue was that two first class carriages had been left off the train and everyone was just looking for the first seat available. We also discovered that people had bought unreserved seats, even in first class for cheaper pricing, with the hope they will find a spare seat on the train, and this combined with the absence of two carriages had resulted in absolute mayhem.
After removing those people occupying our designated seats we all managed to get seated but the first part of the journey ended up being like travelling in peak hour on a packed commuter train with people on the floor, standing in the aisles and congregating in every remaining inch of the carriage – what a trip it turned out to be although the crowd did progressively thin out during the journey as we reached stops along the way to Innsbruck.
On arriving in Innsbruck, I was disappointed as while I could see snow high up on the mountains overlooking the town there was nothing on the ground and I started to think that the planned white Christmas that we had flown halfway around the world to experience with all the family was not going to end up a reality. We changed platforms at Innsbruck and hopped on a local train heading up the mountains for Seefeld in Tyrol.The train ride to Seefeld is only around 30 minutes but what a difference this short timeframe makes in the Austrian Alps. As we came around a bend in the track, we first saw snow on the ground and then snow falling heavier and heavier as we approached Seefeld.
The excitement started to show on all our faces and as we stood on the platform after alighting, we tried to take in the landscape all around us – “wow” was the most common word being uttered by all of us in those first few minutes. Our hotel, Parkhotel Seefeld was located only a short distance from the station, so we headed off walking down the snow-covered road in that direction.
We were allotted rooms where all the family could stay on the same floor although I felt sorry for one family who, believe it or not had our surname, so had been allocated the remaining room on that floor and had to put up with the laughter and fun outside their room on multiple occasions. We only met them briefly during our stay but nevertheless we thank them again for their patience and understanding.
Jane, Dougal and Miranda had stayed at the Parkhotel on a previous occasion and had raved about their time there. It is run by the Familie Told (husband and wife, Andreas and Susanne with their 2 daughters Emely & Eleua) and they provided a wonderful welcoming atmosphere when we arrived. It turned out being the most fantastic week and we enjoyed every second of our stay.
On the first night, we were escorted to a table for dinner by our fantastic waiter, Tony that he had set up which would later be expanded to cater for all the family and remain our table for all meals in the dining room during our stay. It was so welcoming, and we had such memorable times at that table during our stay. The benefits of a half board rate when staying in Austria as well as other parts of Europe is that in having a table designated for the entire stay you really get to know the staff and they appreciate your tastes and requirements and provide wonderful banter with you each meal enquiring about your activities undertaken during the day.
After breakfast it was off to explore the village with heavy snow falling continuously throughout the day while we strolled around. Seefeld is the quaintest Austrian village imaginable and hosted the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics specialising in cross country skiing and ski jumping as well as the 2012 Youth Winter Olympics. It is located 1180 meters above sea level and on the outskirts of the village cross country skiers were traversing the terrain while the ski jumping structure was still present and apparently used for events. The village was full of boutique shops but more importantly outdoor restaurants and bars where you could have a drink and embrace the wonderful scenery in all directions, no matter if it was snowing. In the market square were Christmas markets that came alive at night as a meeting place to embrace people from all around the world and have a drink that we discovered was called Apfelwein with Happiness– more on that later.
Melinda, Darren, Trinity and Lincoln were arriving in the late afternoon following a 13 hours train trip across Europe so some of us planned to welcome them at the train station while others would lay in waiting in the bushes outside the hotel to ambush them with snow balls – it turned out being a tremendous introduction to Seefeld for them (just what you need after a trip of that duration) and then it was into the warmth of the hotel and a well-deserved drink followed by our first dinner all together. The family was now complete for our white Christmas. It had been a long journey via many different routes across the world but here we were, together in Seefeld, Austria, a truly magical location with heeps of snow and high majestic mountains all around us. Pauline and I both felt enormously blessed.
The next day we were a bit slow getting started, but the first task was to build a snowman outside the entrance to the hotel not to mention another round of snowball throwing – a lot of fun.
We all then headed to the village to explore the shops and walk in the snow out to the cross-country and ski jumping areas.
We then met up for drinks at one of the many outdoor bars we had discovered where, of course, we enjoyed Apfelwein with Happiness. For those of you not in the know, Apfelwein with Happiness is hot fermented apple juicec with rum added and does an excellent job of warming you inside while tasting dangerously delicious. If you travel to this part of the world in winter, ensure you try this local drink.
Later in the day we got back to the hotel and checked out the indoor pool and outdoor spa.
Pauline and I were very excited as we had arranged a wonderful surprise for the family in the afternoon that we had managed to keep from them for months – a horse and cart ride through the village and out into the snow covered woods where we had organised for a stop as the sun was setting to open a bottle of bubbles to celebrate our wonderful Christmas gathering. The horses arrived outside the front of the hotel and the look on the faces of the others was certainly worth the effort we had gone through in arranging. The sunset turned out to be absolutely glorious with an amazing deep red glow all across the sky backdropped by the snow-covered landscape
The horses took us back to the village where we walked around the lit-up market huts and through the magical park all illuminated on the way back to the hotel for the important happy hour…
and then another wonderful but for me a very emotional dinner with the family – it was so good having everybody here and spending such precious time with them.
As we awoke the next day it was with much excitement as it was Christmas Eve and in Austria this is the day the locals celebrate Christmas. First up on the agenda was ice skating in the outdoor rink and what a fun time it was as many family members tried to impress with their skating skills while others showed pure will and determination in just attempting to stand upright. For Jane and I the safest option was to take on the official photography roles from the sidelines and enjoy the spectacle.
After all that exhausting work it was time for a warming drink, so we chose an outside restaurant overlooking the white covered slopes and the famous Chapel Seekirchl which dates to 1666 and the most famous landmark in Seefeld – what a great view to enjoy as a local watering hole.
Some of us stayed on to embrace the atmosphere (and a few more warming drinks) while the others chose to attempt tobogganing on the nearby slopes.
We arrived back at the hotel intime to freshen up and prepare for the nightly Christmas activities which commenced with celebration drinks in the lounge area with all the hotel guests and staff, including singing of Christmas carols and spiritual readings followed by the Told Family presenting all guests with a wonderful gift.
It was then the enjoyment of a traditional Austrian Christmas dinner with all the trimmings.
We then headed off to the midnight church service at the Parish Church of St Oswold. This church is in the centre of the village square and dates to 1263. It is one of the most important gothic buildings in the Tyrol and was fully occupied for the service. The whole day had simply been perfect.
We still had two days remaining in Seefeld and it was difficult to see how we would equal or better the days we had already experienced since arriving, but we were determined to give it a good shot – join us next time in Part 2 as we continue our wonderful Christmas week in Seefeld
Bruce & Pauline
When Wine Calls 
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