Video Impressions from Europe, May 2008

Here is a video that highlights just a few of the week's many events.

Vienna, Austria and Riva del Garda, Italy... and a review of the Skoda Roomster

Stunning Alpine Scenery

On the road in Bavaria

Not all of the trip was about sobering 20th century history. We did spend a pleasant couple of days in Salzburg in the beautiful Salzkammergut area of Austria. I almost consider this part of Europe to be a second home (in addition to the Netherlands) as each time I return I grow more fond of the area. The culture and natural beauty is simply spectacular. After the all too brief stay in Salzburg it was on to Vienna for my biannual law school international reunion. An event I always look forward to, this year's reunion was quite simply the best yet. Good friends and accomplished professionals in their home countries, it is always a pleasure to meet and network and enjoy an interesting European city. We had a great time enjoying the Viennese nightlife. Two of the hip clubs we went to: Bar Italia and The White Line. Bar Italia had a nice lounge feel and the White Line had pretty people and great dance vibes. Check out Bar Italia and click on the video link to get an impression of this fashionable lounge.

Welcoming new Austrian graduates into the extended law school family at the opening dinner at the Vienna Radisson Hotel

Bar Italia, central Vienna after the reception/graduation dinner. The middle point of a very long night!

The party continues back at the hotel as the sun rises... almost time for breakfast!

Reception later in the day (after very little sleep!) at a Viennese law firm overlooking the Danube River and the city of Vienna

At the law firm reception

Entrance of a Viennese Heurigen (vineyard), site of the second evening's dinner and wine tasting. Turned out to be the first stop and then it was on to the nightclubs of Vienna... and another morning watching the sun rise before calling it quits! Don't believe anyone who says that attorneys don't know how to party!

From Vienna it was time to head across Austria to the Dolomites of Northern Italy and Riva del Garda for a business conference. Instead of driving the quicker route back west to Salzburg and over the Brenner Pass into Italy, I decided to travel south on the A2 via Graz (my home state of California Governor Schwarzenegger's hometown), Klagenfurt, Villach, and over the border to Udine, Verona and on to Riva del Garda. The drive was beautiful, especially near Villach and the Slovenian border. Northeast Italy is very industrial especially the region surrounding Venice and the traffic on the roads reflected this. Lots of freight on the move! After the hard weekend of VERY late nights in Vienna I needed to take a couple of breaks to get some seriously needed rest on the approximately 8 hour drive.

Beautiful scenery on the way to Italy

On the shores of Lake Garda in Northern Italy. Spectacular location to do business!

Business discussion at Riva del Garda

Several days of serious business talks followed in the supremely beautiful setting of Garda lake in the Trentino area of the Dolomites Mountains. Then it was back up through the Brenner Pass and Innsbruck Austria and then on to Munich for the return home.

Skoda Update:


So how did the Skoda fare over the 10 days of travel? I was pretty unimpressed during my initial encounter with the car. Rubbery shift feeling, long throws and a long reach to the shifter, a lack of steering feel, a top heavy feeling, all of the foregoing did not bode well for the Roomster. However, the 1.9 liter twin turbo diesel proved to be a fairly peppy motor and allowed me to pass a fair amount of traffic with gusto. I adjusted to the steering and though not a precision tool, enough feel exists to give confidence within the car's performance limits. The small tires and top heavy feel made me refrain from making quick maneuvers in favor of smooth inputs, especially at speed. The center armrest was a pain when in the down position since my elbow would always hit when I wanted to shift.

I attained approximately 180 kmh (111 mph) at about 4000 rpms (max approx 4500 rpm) on a derestricted portion of the German autobahn. Pretty good for a fairly high profile vehicle. Sure, I had to move over quickly for the true performance vehicles but torque and decent speed allowed for fairly easy overtaking.

Final verdict: After well over a one-thousand miles behind the wheel I found the Skoda Roomster to be a competent vehicle with decent space for luggage, roomy rear seats given the vehicle's size with good visibility and lots of glass, good fit and finish with quality VW feel, awkward styling, decent power, smoothness, and good fuel economy with highest spec diesel motor. Definitely not an enthusiast car, but it is a competent European travel companion.

Final Note

Before I sign off on this post I have to thank Jennifer for taking most of the photos and video. She joined me on this trip and also reconnected with several of my friends she got to know back in my post-grad study days and also helped with the business conference. Without her camera I'd have a lot less to post about!

Berchtesgaden, Germany

The Skoda Roomster chased by an angry classic Mini on the road from Salzburg to Berchtesgaden

Remains of the driveway leading to Hitler's Berghof

The Berghof seen in a period photo. I stood in the area roughly shown as the driveway to the left.

All that remains above ground of Hitler's alpine mountain retreat

Blasted area of the tunnel complex which ran underneath the Berghof. German writing on the wall stated that this machine gun position was taken out by a "panzerfaust" or better known to us in the USA: a bazooka.

View from inside the bunker complex near the ruins of the Berghof. Here machine gun and observation slits can be clearly seen in the hallway. To the left: a kennel for protection dogs.

At a Berchtesgadener specialty brewery. Much lighter atmosphere after visiting the foreboding ruins of a brutal regime.

I'm spending my final night near Munich's international airport and I thought I'd put up a small update. This trip has been very busy so I haven't had much time to get online but the beginning of the trip was actually quite relaxed. Immediately after touching down in Munich we drove to Salzburg with the plan to visit famous sights from Mozart and the musical "The Sound of Music" but jet lag and feeling a little bit under the weather meant a LOT of rest.

Before departing for Vienna we did manage to get over to Berchtesgaden, Germany while driving in a steady rain. Although always a beautiful place, the alpine setting was obscured by the rainy and overcast weather. History buff that I am I made sure to visit the area of the Berghof (Hitler's mountain home), or what little is left of it, and explored the remaining passageways of the underground complex that protected and connected different sections of a vast complex. I was alone for quite awhile down in the tunnels. It actually felt very eerie to be alone and facing machine gun slits meant to protect the Nazi dictator. It really is hard to imagine that this beautiful and serene mountain setting was the focal point of so many decisions that had a ruinous impact on the modern world.

After the sobering visit to the Berghof it would have been nice to visit the Kehlsteinhaus "Eagle's Nest" at the top of Obersalzberg Mountain for more history and for the spectacular view but I thought it better to get on with the drive to Vienna because of the bad weather.

Before we left Berchtesgaden we made a stop at the Grassl Enzianbrennerei and tasted a few of the locally grown, brewed, and distilled root-based liquor products. Picked up a couple of bottles and hit the road to Vienna. For more visit: Enzianbrennerei Grassl.

More later as time allows!

Back to Europe in the Skoda Roomster

The Skoda "Roomster" at Franz Josef Strauss Airport, Munich, Germany. Roomy for a small car yes, decent turbodiesel power, but darn if I don't miss the power of my MINI from last summer's blasts down the autobahn!

I'm in Europe on business and to attend a class reunion. It's good to be back even if only for a short stay! I arrived in Munich and immediately picked up my Skoda "Roomster" TDI at Hertz and drove over the border via autobahn (I already miss the passing power of my MINI!) into Austria and on to my old stomping ground of historic Salzburg, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's birthplace and home of the von Trapps of "The Sound of Music". Mozart dominates the town as usual and I am always very happy to be in this wonderfully beautiful place. I hope to take a day out and head over to the magnificent vistas and intriguing WW2 history of nearby Berchtesgaden, Germany before getting back on the "schnellweg" to Vienna for a class reunion. After that it is over the border into Italy for a business conference.

If you are interested in the Czech Skoda (an offshoot of the VW Group) have a look at: Autoblog on the Roomster or on the official Skoda homepage at: Skoda Roomster. For a history of the Skoda car company which goes all the way back to 1894(!) visit Wikipedia at: Skoda Auto.

I hope to post more soon and add some more Roomster driving impressions!

Just before leaving the airport in Munich, Germany we came across this interesting BMW display. Given that Munich is the home of BMW finding this advert was not a huge surprise!

Salzburg to Munich

In the Mozartplatz by the statue to Mozart. I hope that the car meets with his approval!

Impression of Salzburg

We began the day by taking a morning drive around Salzburg. We then had Viennese coffee and apfelstrudel at the Cafe Tomaselli, a konditerei that was already open during Mozart's lifetime. A brief shopping expedition along the famous Getreidegasse street (Mozart's birthplace is located here) and then time for one more lunch at the Stiegl Keller.

View from the Stiegl Keller of old town Salzburg


"Mad" King Ludwig's Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps.
This castle is the inspiration for and was the basis of the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland

We left the Sheraton Salzburg and headed into Bavaria. Our checkpoint would be Neuschwanstein Castle, the model for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. From there and motoring through some pretty foul rain and hail we made our way to the metropolis of Munich, home of Oktoberfest and more importantly for this car guy: BMW.

Salzburg, Austria

An old student back at the Salzburg Law School again

Today I returned to a place where I spent time studying as a post-graduate student. Salzburg holds fond memories of good friends, high level coursework, and lots of time spent in beer gardens...

I retraced the pathways I used to navigate ten years ago and I find it very interesting to see that I'm ten years older yet the city of Salzburg is exactly as I remember it. I gave my sister a brief tour and pointed out notable locations such as Mozart's birth place, the Mirabell Gardens, and the resting place of Leopold Mozart (Mozart's father) and Constanze Mozart (Mozart's widow). I pointed out a few locations used in the filming of "The Sound of Music" and we also ate traditional Austrian cuisine at the Stiegl Keller which lies just beneath the fortress dominating the old town. It is always enjoyable to spend some time in this beautiful place.

Jennifer at Mozart's birthplace

Austrian treats at the Mozartplatz square