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Sports and Travel

12 Sinai
Just a stone’s throw from home, Egypt’s picturesque Sharm el-Sheikh provides a refreshing Red Sea respite for the whole family
01/12/2011

When the wind blows and the rain feels cold
With a head full of snow...

Where there are people, there is noise. And in Los Angeles, there are a lot of them
30/08/2011

In a sense, Los Angeles can be said to be a surprisingly quiet city. This is because it is so suburban – a patchwork of quiet neighborhoods with a shopping mall or a collection of restaurants and shops splashed every now and there.

The City of Angles sleeps a lot. It goes to sleep early and gets up late. Bars and restaurants will empty around nine or ten and so will the streets. The hum of an 18-million-person city will turn into mysterious peace just occasionally disturbed by a stranded helicopter. Nights are quiet and long – the hum will reappear long after the birds are awake, around eight.

But the reality is, Los Angeles is louder than life.

Visiting the botanic garden at Lauris, Provence | Photo: Stefanie Wolff
Taking off in an old Peugeot to discover France in Summer: le camping et les callanques
30/08/2011

Maybe it was not the brightest idea to choose the month of August for traveling. But I always feel a strong need to go on an adventure in the summertime. Dreams of swimming, walking and discovery filling my head, I find myself turning the pages of my old school atlas and imagining travel routes through Europe. I like the special atmosphere of August, when everybody is on holidays and a lot of the shops are closed – it’s like the silence of Sundays.

Imperial Train
Riding Through the Wachau on the Emperor’s Train: Rediscovering the Pleasures of (Affordable) Luxury Train Travel
12/07/2011

It was 15:40 at the Heiligenstadt Station on a Thursday afternoon in early summer. On the platform of Track 4, a scattering of well-dressed people mingled in threes and fours; one checked a watch; a cell phone rang. A young Austrian man in a well cut black suit came striding up the steps to be hailed by three others, in a hubbub of laughter, two-cheek greetings and hearty slaps on the back. Then three Japanese, two men and a woman, also in dark suits, stepped off the escalator, looking around inquiringly and consulting with each other in low tones.

The sun in your face and the sweat in your brow, bringing in the harvest in Sicily | Photo: Christian Cummins
Joining a group of WWOOFers in Sicily; these volunteer organic farmers trade their labor for an off-beat holiday
23/05/2011

The working day doesn’t start too early at La Casa delle Acque, a small organic orange farm at the foot of Mount Etna in Sicily.

A story of a failed attempt to run the Vienna City Marathon; or, mastering the fine art of avoiding any and all responsibility
23/05/2011

Of all the things that start a fire in my heart, running for a cause lies somewhere at the bottom of the list, just before ketchup and people who tell you things just so they know that you know they know…Why, then, did I do it? Why did I sign up for the Vienna City Marathon and, more importantly, did I ever really believe I would go through with it?

Marathon runners making their way over the Reichsbrücke just meters after the start each on a personal crusade | Photo: Daria Klimova
For 21 km, all legs, arms and arobic fatigue; we ran it our way
23/05/2011

Looking straight ahead, the bridge that had only moments ago been gray pavement, was now a sea of brightly clothed bodies, bobbing up and down in one teeming mass of humanity.People around us inched ahead, first with a slow walk, and then moving into a slow canter.But just as soon as we started, we stopped sudde

The colorful and historic city of Nice on the shores of the Mediterranean sea | Photo: Lisa Berger
Carnival and Sun: A short sojourn à deux on the French Riviera
13/04/2011

Minutes away from landing, my girlfriend and I glanced out of the oval window of the airplane and caught sight of the beach promenade at Nice, glowing yellow in the lamp light. Say what you will, this is Romance.

The south facing solar pannels, provide 50% of the towns energy needs and power the space-age looking street lamps | Photo: Werfenweng Tourismusbüro
The tiny resort of Wegenwerfen is now internationally known as one of the first to offer 'carbon neutral' holidays
13/04/2011

If you can’t win the game, why not make up a new game and play by your own rules.

The outside terrace of Cafe Nola close to the area Prezlauer Berg, Berlin | Photo: Andy McCormack
Alive and changing with the edginess of the former East and West
13/04/2011

It is 6 a.m. at the Vienna International Airport, and I can barely keep my eyes open. You would imagine that everything and everyone would still be fast asleep. The Air Berlin gate, however, is crowded with people caffeine-ed up and ready for action, talking so loudly, that I can't help but notice the Berlin dialect I enjoy so much – edgy and energetic.

Bringing in the Year of the Cat: Fireworks onVientam’s New Years Eve | Photo: Candy Fresacher
Like Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays and New Years all in one, the midwinter Feast of Tet is a celebration of family and a nation
29/03/2011

By rights, this should have been the Year of the Rabbit – that’s what the zodiac calendar says in China, anyway.But in VietNam, it’s the Year of the Cat.

“We didn’t have enough rabbits,” a guide tells us. “But anyway, the characteristics are the same…”

The family owned hotel Shartner, an inviting resort in the beautiful Amadé ski region near Salzburg | Photo: Christian Shartner
In this picturesque Alpine village at the heart of Austrian ski culture, two guests from Vienna felt like friends of the family
29/03/2011

At its best, people say, Austrian hospitality is luxurious yet also familiar and with a friendliness that seems instinctive rather than trained.

Castor and Pollux on Capitaline Hill next to the Palazzo Senatorio | Photo: Grigory Borodavkin
Losing yourself in a kaleidoscope of antiquity and artistic splendor
29/03/2011

We land in Rome under a clear sky tinted with azure, a warm wind gently caresses the tops of the palm trees, which feels surreal after the damp Vienna cold, and the air smells of ageless stone and water. We hop on a bus taking us into town, glued to the windows as Fiats, Vespas, and three-wheeled Apes buzz by and the tiny buildings pass in a semi blur.

A view of the Prague Castle and the Charles Bridge on a cold and foggy day | Photo: Justin McCauley
Prague is a city that effortlessly meshes cultures, leaving the traveler with a constant sense of intrigue at every turn
29/03/2011

The drive from Vienna to Prague is simple enough: north to Brno and then west, three-and-a-half hours straight into the Czech capital.

In an age of technology and terrorism, wanderlust comes controlled and unadventurous, but connections can still happen
10/02/2011

When was the last time air travel was truly sexy? Not lately, that’s for sure. In fact, the last time probably predates most people’s memories; but that doesn’t mean the today’s frustrations of flying have to deflate your mood.

Time was when the family would dress in their Sunday best to climb aboard some long-vanished airline with stewardesses waiting in stylish, perky uniforms, in white smile and red lipstick to greet the passengers. These days are long gone, as passé as the cave paintings in Lascaux, with all those bulls and horses on an exhilarating romp across an eternal meadow – the same sense of freedom and wonder air travel once inspired.

Cyclists brave a muddy knoll in a rugged cycocross event:   Dominik Kiss dominik@eor.at
Cyclocross racing in wintertime is relentless, but on the sloppy track, the crashes are turn out to be mostly comedy
10/02/2011

 

It’s far too early on Sunday morning – the morning of my first cyclocross race – the RC Schnecke Wintercup Finale in Vienna. The rain, blown by a howling wind, is rattling against the bedroom windows as I wake up. I look out the window; it’s dark and gloomy and clumps of hardened snow are still lying on the pavement.

On the way to the pension after an exhausting but satisfying slopes Photo: Christian Cummins
With so many splendid runs, it’s almost impossible to plan a sensible day on the slopes above the Brixen valley
16/12/2010

 

The skiing in the Wilder Kaiser and Brixen valley area is so brilliant that it is utterly exhausting. With 279 kilometers of smoothly groomed runs and over 90 lifts stretched out between nine atmospheric Alpine villages, it’s almost impossible to restrain yourself and plan a sensible day’s skiing: you just can’t persuade yourself to stop.

 

Stockholm Water
Tales of sunken ships, dads with buggies, expensive meatballs and the Austrian influence on Swedish design
06/12/2010

During the 40 minute bus ride to the center of Stockholm I can’t stop humming “Dancing Queen, young and sweet only 17”, even the over-priced fare of 8 Euros can’t spoil my mood.

12 Bangkok‘s Chinatown
Welcome to lunchtime in Bangkok’s Chinatown - have some grasshopper if you dare but beware of the moving kitchen carts!
01/11/2010

In the midst of the rabbit warren of stall-lined streets you will find what is widely considered the best street food on the planet. The scent of frying shallots, garlic, lemongrass, ginger and boiling rice waft down streets that are so narrow that the scorching Thai sun has been almost completely blotted out even where there is no shade from overhead tarpaulins. After the blinding light of the traffic-choked main thoroughfare it’s a dark and mysterious network of secret tunnels.

12 Indian tiger cub
As ambassadors for their species these elegant cats help the non-profit zoo raise awareness for environmental protection
01/11/2010

“Look at its muscles! Look at the graceful way it moves! That’s why the tiger is so fascinating.” Dr. Harald Schwammer, the Vice Director of the Schönbrunn Tiergarten in Vienna’s 13th District is showing me the tiger enclosure at the world’s oldest zoo. It’s a warm, sunny afternoon and the resident tiger is lethargically slinking off through its green, leafy enclosure, past a murky pond to the shade.

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