We spent Saturday in Innsbruck seeing some of the wonderful sites, thanks to our gracious hosts and tour guides, the Sillabers. We were joined by Christian, who we kept in our home a couple of years ago. This was our favorite stop on our trip. The scenery is indescribable, but we'll let our photos do as much describing as is possible. The weather was almost perfect for sightseeing. A little cool on top of the mountain, but generally comfortable. Plenty of sun. In the morning, we toured Ambras Castle, then we went for a ride up the mountain on the cable car. We did a little mountain climibing on top to get to the summit. Then we came down for late lunch and spent some more time touring Innsbruck, touring the Imperial Church with its black statues and Maximillian I's tomb.

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At Ambras Castle outside Innsbruck. The Castle was built by Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria (1529-1595), Count of Tirol, in the 16th century. It´s divided into a lower and an upper castle set in the remains of a medieval fortress. This was Ferdinand´s favorite residence and the center of his court´s cultural life. The lower castle was planned and constructed by the Archduke as a museum for his various collections, including arms and armor, art, and books, all of which can be seen today. The Wunderkammer (Gallery of Wonders) contains a display of exotic objects like coral, ivory, a rhinoceros´ horn and other artifacts brought back to Europe by the early explorers. The upper part of the palace houses the Habsburg´s Portrait Gallery, an awe-inspiring collection of works by the likes of Lukas Cranach, Anton Mor, Tizian, Van Dyck and Diego Velásquez. The Castle´s most striking and precious feature is the George´s Altar of Emperor Maximilian I

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Display of armor

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Black armor typical of Germanic forces

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Turkish armor

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Gardens at castle

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Innsbruck: Alps over the Castle

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Innsbruck: Gardens

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Part of the castle is now a restaurant

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Peacock at castle

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Built for Ferndinand II. This is where some of the family spent the summer.

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Hunting was a big thing here

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Paintings of the Emperors and Dukes of Austria

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Paintings of the Emperors and Dukes of Austria

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Spanish room. The kids really liked the room to run.

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More royalty

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Ornate wooden ceilings

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Wine storage, I was told

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Covered staircase

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This was painted on

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Paint, not actual stone work

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Explanation of the hot water heater for the bath

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Hot water

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Bath

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Porcelain heater. Entrance to bath to the right

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Chapel in the castle

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Peggy with Alps in background

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One of many ornate room heaters. Fire was fed from room to the back. Chimney in wall

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Nice view of Alps and Innsbruck from castle

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Another view of gardens from on high

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Nice clock tower

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Ornate gates of iron

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Looking through the trees to the Alps on the other side of the Inn river valley

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Mr. Peacock.

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Alfons, Peggy, and Christian Sillaber

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The four of us with Alps in background

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Ornate chimney

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Another peacock

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Looking across at Alps. Note cable car. We took this later in the day and went up on the mountain.

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New terminal for cable car/underground connection from downtown.

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View of Innsbruck

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And we weren't even high yet

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This was the ski jump for the Olympics

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Austrialn email (hot air) see next

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Close up of label. (This is actually a brand name that probably means enamel).

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View down from cable car

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View up to second cable car run to top of mountain

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Peggy encounters snow

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View of Innsbruck

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Down the ski slope

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View southward along the Alps

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Proof we were there.

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Now to the very top

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Taking in the scenery

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Brown sheep grazing on the mountaintop

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Mountaintop scenery 1

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Mountaintop scenery 2

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Mountaintop scenery

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Peggy on top of the world

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Christian Sillaber

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Innsbruck Airport

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Peggy waiting for us to come back down

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On top of the mountain

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There's Peggy down there (This is zoomed substantially)

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Hang glider over the mountain. Good thermals

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Japanese kids made this snowman. Note the slanted eyes

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Hang glider above the Alps

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Sheep grazing on the ski slope. They know exactly which path to go on.

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Road for sevice vehicles.

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Note jetliner taking off just to the right of the ski jump

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Bicycling up the mountain

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Going down is easier

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Another Alpine portrait

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Snow hikers

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Heading back down

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Peggy getting brave and sitting in front on the way back down.

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Imperial Palace in town in Innsbruck. The Hapsburgs had a bunch of palaces. Once the center of government for Tyrol.

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Old sleighs

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This is where the driver sat

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The Imperial Church (Hofkirche) in Innsbruck is famous for the black statues and the tomb of Maximillian.

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More black statues

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Maximillian's tomb

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Maximillian himself on top of the tomb

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Ornate furnishings in the church

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Main altar of the church

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There was a statue to Arthur, King of England. Christian said it was a bit of a joke. Arthur would have lived many centuries before.

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Stonework and statuettes in the church

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Silver Mary

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Maximillian II's tomb

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Beautiful view from downtown Innsbruck

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St. James Cathedral in Innsbruck

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Gold altar in St James Cathedral

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Gold work in St James Cathedral

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Ceiling is painted to look like a dome, but is flat

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More artwork in the cathedral

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Various dignitaries buried in the Cathedral

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Close up of gold altar

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The Golden roof -- famous landmark in Innsbruck

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A silver lady (one of several we saw)

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Street scene in Innsbruck

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Monument to Tyrolian freedom fighters in Innsbruck

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Christian and Peggy overlooking the River Inn

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This is the new bridge for the underground from the city center to halfway up the mountain where it meets the cable car. This is for conventions held downtown.

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Christmas in Innsbruck

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Hungarian house in Innsbruck by the arch

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Arch build to commemorate the wedding of Leopold of Austria and Anna of Italy. Yes that is real gold