Golf Week in Austria (Carinthia)
On the 5th of June 2011 a group consisting of 22 people from Kirov Section of International Police Association went on a Golf week organized by Austrian Section IPA. For the third time members of Kirov regional IPA had a unique opportunity to attend 5-day training golf course with receiving certificates and to take part in entertainment and tour programs.
Carinthia - is a real Paradise for people of all ages. Carinthia (German: Kärnten, Slovene: Koroška) is the southernmost Austrian state or Land. The capital and biggest city is Klagenfurt. The total area of Carinthia - 9, 536 km² (it occupies the 5th place among Austrian states). In the north Carinthia borders with Salzburg and Styria, in the east - with Styria and Slovenia, in the south - with Slovenia and Italy, in the west – with Tyrol.
Water is a national treasure of Carinthia. The total length of all rivers with cool, crystal-clear mountain water is 8000 km. Here there are over 1200 lakes, with drinking water quality, according to international experts. Water in the lakes of Carinthia is well warmed in summer, temperature is about 25-28° C. There are hot springs with medicinal water, which contributes to health improvement. Carinthia is not only the region of lakes and rivers, but also high-alpine region. That’s why, a special climate was formed here, it resembles the Mediterranean, but there is no sweltering heat, and the mountain air is mixed with the warmed air in the valleys. Here is the largest number of sunny days a year in Austria. Ecological air and water cleanliness, exceptionally beautiful landscapes will take your chronic fatigue and stress away, and will give you state of rest and peace.
Mainly Carinthia is a mountainous country. Since its borders are the highest mountain chain, the inner part of the country forms a beautiful mountain valley, consisting of high hills and Drava’s valley (on the river Drava).
For the nature beauty Carinthia is often called “Austrian Riviera”. There are countless mountains and valleys, over a thousand scenic lakes, small resort towns with hotels, beaches and a complete tourist infrastructure are spread along their banks. Ancient castles, palaces and chirches are added to the full “set”.
The small town of Hermagor, where the group had to get from Ljubljana airport (Slovenia), lies in the very south of Carinthia, in the valley of the river Gail. Despite its flat position,it is the center of a young ski area Naturarena Karnten (Carinthian Skiing and Natural Arena), uniting Nassfeld slopes, Gailtal valleys, Gitshtal and Lesachtal, as well as the slopes around Lake Weissensee.
Cosy hotel Radnighof 3*, which windows offer beautiful views of the Alps, warmly welcomed the guests from Russia. This hotel has a good standard of accommodation, comfortable rooms, impeccable service, excellent cuisine. Karl Steinwender - the hotel owner, is known as a gourmet and somile, there is an excellent wine collection and other alcohol drinks at his restaurant.
Everybody was amazed by a variety of Austrian cuisine, prepared with products of impeccable quality and, of course, a bunch of Austrian wines - all these pleasures did not leave anyone indifferent! Also, the hotel owners arranged a luxurious Italian night with Italian cuisine, wine, music for its guests. The group was impressed with a special cosy, homelike atmosphere with traditional hospitality.
Carinthia vocations turned out to be very active, varied and not boring. The program of Kirov group was very busy. In the morning while one part of the group was playing golf, the rest of the group was visiting an amusement park Presseger See. In the afternoon the whole group was travelling all together in a cortege of several cars.
Sightseeing tour began with a 2 hour boat trip along Lake Weissen See in Carinthia. The water is so pure that there are crayfish. In the lake there are 22 fish species - from trout and walleye to pike and carp. The view is amazing here: thick forest approaces to the water, where resort villages - Oberdorf, Gachah, Techendorf are conveniently located. Lake Weissen See area is 6.5 square km. It differs with the purest turquoise water, small built-up coast and the lack of roads around the perimeter. To keep the lake clean it is prohibited to go by motor boats. There is only one exception - steamboats, which organize trips or water skiing.
Weissen See is the biggest lake in Europe, which always freezes in winter. It is covered with ice in mid-December and remains under 40 centimeters ice till the beginning of March. In winter's day people go horse riding, skating or skate sailing, play hockey or just walk along the ice field, enjoying the magnificent view.
Further trips took place in the cities of Carinthia, Italy and Slovenia. During the second day kirovchane visited the small town Bled in the northwestern part of Slovenia, near the border of Italy and Austria and Bled castle. Bled is situated on the banks of the uploads/imagesque Bled lake in the Julian Alps to the east of the Triglav National Park. Bled is a popular tourist destination. Bled is located in 45 km north-west of capital Ljubljana. Approximately in 8 kilometers to the north there is Austrian border, in 40 kilometers to the west - Italian.
Bled Lake is a uploads/imagesque mountain lake with clear water. There is an island in the middle of the lake where there is the Assumption chapel. Bled Castle is a castle built on the top of the 130-meter high cliff above the lake. It was first mentioned in 1004, has been since repeatedly rebuilt and enlarged. At the moment,it is a museum. Also, the group visited the former summer residence of the Vindish-Grez princes and later of Josip Broz Tito, and now it is a luxury hotel “Villa Bled”. Villa is situated in a beautyful park, which goes down to the lake. On the return way kirovchane visited Italian town Tarvisio, which is located on the border with Austria. The mistress of a local cafe, a former Ukraine citizen, has welcomed the whole group for the performance of Russian folk songs.
The tour along Carinthia passed through such towns as Hermagor, Villach and Klagenfurt.
The main tourist sites of Carinthia are Klagenfurt, the capital of Carinthia, and the second largest city of the region - Villach, one of the oldest cities in the Carinthia, located on the banks of the Drava. In Villach the group went on traditional shopping in one of the biggest Carinthia shopping centers - Atrio. In the capital the group walked over the area of Neuer Platz, near the city hall, fountain Dragon, along Kramergasse Str. to Alter Platz and Pfarrplatts, Municipal Theatre, the Houses of Parliament of Carinthia - Landhaus.
After the route was into Hermagor. Hermagor-Pressegger See was named in honor of St. Germagor Aquileia, first bishop of Aquileia. It is known that during the period of Roman rule there was a settlement, but the first official mention of the settlement, which came to our days, dates only 1169. In the 13th century, it was promoted to Town Fair, and in 1930 Hermagor-Pressegger See officially became a town.
Despite of the rich ironstone deposits in the area, the dominant sector of the economy and the main way to replenish the city budget is tourism. Hermagor-Pressegger See is a year-round resort offering tourists a wide range of active rest: skiing and sledding in winter, golf, hiking, biking and horseback riding during the warmer months, swimming and fishing in warm lake Pressegger See (+28 ° C). Among local sights Moderndorf castle with a museum of Gailsk Valley, Church of the 15th century, with late-painted murals and adorned with a baroque altar mid-18 th century, the church Moderndorf of the 15th century with frescoes of St. . Christopher's 16th century, the ruins of the nearby medieval villages and a number of other parish churches drew our attention.
We also had a posh reception at the Steinwender family estate and at Hans’ hotel-castle, Carl’s elder brother. There was a mini tour of the lands for our group, we were introduced to the ancient traditions of agriculture, with the traditional tasting of schnapps, smoked meat and cheese of local production.
Also the group liked riding on the serpentine road which length is 35 km, the enchanting beauty of unspoiled nature with turquoise lakes and waterfalls, soft green of the forests and snow-capped peaks on the background. One can’t forget about visiting the ski resort Nassfeld. The ski area Nassfeld - Hermagor (Sonnalpe-Nassfeld, Nassfeld-Hermagor) is located near the Nassfeld Pass and is considered as one of the biggest ski areas of Carinthia.
In total, there are more than 110 kilometers of slopes (28% “blue” and “green”, 62% “red” and 10% of “black”), serviced by 30 modern lifts with the total capacity of getting up to 39, 000 people per hour. The resort itself lies at an altitude of about 1300 meters above the sea level and skating is led with heights of about 2050 meters, the longest “band” of tracks reaches 8 km. Most of the slopes is equipped with snow cannons, as a natural “white cover” is problematic here.
Also there were some official meetings. Nikolay Koshcheev, the president of Kirov Regional IPA, met Ewald Grollitsch, the vice-president of Austrian IPA, and Aleksander Brejc, the president of Slovenian IPA. They gladly agreed to visit Kirov in august this year.
The very name of the region was very symbolic - in translation from Old Celtic it means “Country of Friends”. Carinthia, and Austria in the whole, absolutely proves its name. Kirov group was received everywhere with such warmth, kindness and respect, that we leave did not want to this wonderful country.
