Exploring the Austrian Alps wasn’t a goal that ever made my bucket list. Neither was traveling through Europe, for that matter.
No, my wanderlust has always been inspired by indigenous cultures; reflected in my home and office decor are distant peoples and places, like Cherokee, N.C., Southwest U.S., Andes Mountains, Amazon Basin, and Western Africa.
While Europe didn’t make the list, neither did it appear on my never list [not that such a compilation ever existed]. My ancestry traces to 16th Century Europe and, if given an opportunity or a reason, I would obviously jump at the chance,
Well, the opportunity and an irresistible reason to rearrange my travel priorities appeared in Spring 2023, when my Colombian friends Estela, Luz, and Patricia, whom I hadn’t seen since 1976, contacted me on social media. They now live in Austria and Spain and invited me to visit.
By October, Europe had simultaneously appeared and been summarily checked off my bucket list, as I spent three weeks with my old friends there.
Villach, Lake Worthersee, Pyramidenkogel Tower
First stop on what I’m now calling my Retirement Travel Trifecta was Villach, Austria, where Estela and her husband Thomas live.
With a population of 65,600, Villach ranks as the Austria’s seventh largest city and lies a mere six miles north of the Italian border, 20 miles west of Klagenfurt, and 52 miles west of Slovenia.
The sparkling city center is bisected by the scenic Drava River, Drau River in German, a right bank tributary of the Danube River, whose blue-green waters flow east through Slovenia, Croatia, and Hungary.
My introduction to Villach included a delightful stroll with English professor Estela along the quiet multi-use path that parallels the river and offers stunning views of the river valley, in particular abundance on a perfect fall afternoon in the Alps.
Estela’s husband Thomas is an engineer and master photographer, who not only led me through some of the most magnificent natural scenery Southern Austria boasts, he did the same through Slovenia’s Soca River Valley and the Italian Alps and Adriatic Coast, from Trieste to Venice.
Among the destinations we explored in Austria was the magnificent Lake Worthersee and nearby Pyramidenkogel Tower, just outside of Klagenfurt.
The world’s highest observation tower, an elliptical structure that towers 177 feet from a mountaintop and includes a nearly 400-foot adventure slides, offers panoramic views of the Austrian Alps from an altitude of nearly 3,000 feet.
Project: Retirement Travel Trifecta
