When I said that Gmunden was rather touristy and commercialized, filled mainly with local tourists and self funded Austrian retirees, I had yet to cycle into St Wolfgang!

Try to visualize a syrupy, sweet combination of “The Sound of Music”, “Hansel & Gretel” and “The Wizard of Oz” – all on steroids, the place marketed by Walt Disney – that is St Wolfgang.

The buildings are gingerbread and chocolate boxes all rolled into one. The town is squeaky clean and obviously on the international tourist map. It’s claim to fame is that the operetta “The White Horse Inn” is set in St Wolfgang. Here is an edited transcript of the Wiki page:

Sometimes classified as an operetta, the show enjoyed huge successes both on Broadway and in the West End (651 performances at the Coliseum starting 8 April 1931) and was filmed several times. In a way similar to The Sound of Music the play and its film versions have contributed to the saccharine image of Austria as an alpine idyll.

I could not have put it better myself.

Cycling today was around Lake Mondsee, cool and overcast with misty rain for the last 2 hours.

The White Horse!!! I have no idea if its the original.

I have no idea why, but the place was over run with Fiats. Like so many Christmas beetles noisily scampering about!

Several pics of the moist ride of the circle around Mondsee, with a ride of a few kilometres through this tunnel. It was obviously previously a single lane thoroughfare for motorized traffic.

The awesome panorama of the alps from the top of the mountains above St Gilgen. One can trek there or catch the cable car.