Exploring our routes in Graz, Austria

An absolute rollercoaster.

Our bus journey from Venice to Graz was going to be 7 hours long. Starting at 12pm, we had organised for Skye's Grandfather's brother Herbert and his wife Ingrid to pick us up. A grand mistake was made though...

We had left Camp Serenissima close to 11am to get the bus into town knowing it was a 30 minute journey and a 20 minute walk to the bus station that was taking us to Graz.

Our 11am bus into Venice didn't take 30 minutes though. Getting off at Venice Bus Station 11:40, knowing that we had a 20 minute walk I knew that I didn't have time to double-check any details. I had to get the directions to the station and Skye and I had to rush there.

A big mistake was made then. I clicked the address to the bus company's reception, and not the bus company's station where it would pick us up to take us to Graz. So Skye and I ran - literally ran with our suitcases - past the bus station where the bus was going to take us from and to the bus company's building. When we arrived and found no bus, I found the nearest man to ask for help who then pointed us back in the direction we'd just run past 5 minutes ago.

So, we proceeded to spend the following 10 hours waiting for the next bus to Graz - luckily Flixbus granted us an exchange ticket for that 10:00pm overnight bus for no extra fee. Skye didn't talk to me for a couple of hours...

We didn't move far from that bus station and were lucky that a local café let us stay for the day until our bus and we arrived in Graz at 5am the next morning.

I highly recommend taking the bus during the day and not the overnight bus! Even as a good sleeper I struggled to get any sleep on this bus as it makes multiple stops throughout the night.

Herbert and Ingrid picked us up and took us straight to Ilz where we got to meet Dante Siglinde, who we would be staying with for our duration in Ilz. She fed us breakfast as soon as we arrived at 5:30am, and then we went upstairs to sleep the remainder of the morning.

Our instructions were that we could sleep up until the afternoon as we were meeting family for lunch at a traditional Buschenschank called 'Buschenschank Maier'. The food here is hearty, and the portions are very giving. You seriously will not be disappointed here.

I could not help but feel a little like a child again though. Skye's family were speaking German 99% of the time and there were no English menus so we had to get Ingrid to try and translate. Skye and I just chose at random so we didn't know what to expect, but I can confirm that both of us were not disapppointed - nor were any of Skye's family.

We finished the day by visiting a friend of Ingrid's to get a birthday present for one of her friends. It had been a massive day but after being around new family in a beautiful setting (Ilz is surrounded by mountains, big acres of farms, and nature) I was filled with a great sense of gratitude.

Dante Siglinde had organised to have a traditional Austrian barbeque with all of the family to come and meet Skye.

I could not recommend highly enough just sitting in and being with people that do not speak your native language. Some of Skye's younger family members (in their 20's and 30's) spoke English fluently because of their work or schooling, so we were still able to fully connect with them and they would help translate conversations we were sitting in.

But, I must admit that I found it incredibly calming just sitting in with Skye's family and just listening and being with them. They would laugh, and I would laugh with them despite not having any clue what was said. But it's like a meditation. And, your mind will pick up patterns of their communication too. You will begin to understand a lot of the premise of each conversation without fully understanding what is being said.

As the barbeque began to wrap up and family members were drifting home, Skye's cousin Dina and her partner Fabian offered to take us out nightclubbing in Graz. Skye was KEEN. I was reluctant, not particularly enjoying the nightclub scene, but agreed because there is very little chance we would ever be able to go nightclubbing in Graz ever again in our lives.

We began our night at Dina and Fabian's and were joined by one of Fabian's friends Dominic. They then took us out on the Graz night scene bar hopping, trying multiple different cocktails and traditional Austrian shots and traditional Austrian beers.

I cannot lie - it was an incredible night. Made even more so by the fact Dina and Fabian paid for all of our drinks. We finished our night with a Kebab, and tried to maximise our sleep knowing we would have a big day tomorrow.

It felt like an early start, but I think the night out before just made a 10am trip to a castle feel a lot worse than it actually was. A highlight though was Skye vomiting in Herbert and Ingrid's new car upon arrival to the carpark of Riegersburg Castle.

A hell of an impression on family who you've known for 3 days!

Herbert and Ingrid took it well though, they were laughing and ensuring Skye was okay.

Riegersburg Castle is no ordinary castle. It was built on top of a dorment volcano and featured a mountain climb to scale parts of the castle, a witch museum and bird of prey exhibition.

We were sceptical on the bird of prey exhibition being animal conscious. But the birds were free roaming, and were often found in town when they weren't about the castle's aviary. Obviously the exhibition was completely in German so we were lucky to have Herbert, Ingrid and Siglinde share with us what was going on in the exhibition.

At 2:00pm we made tracks but stopped at a pub for lunch. Skye and I are still debating whether they were actually the best Chicken Schnitzels we have ever eaten before, or it was just the fact we were hungover and hadn't eaten all day.

Nonetheless, I ate the two Schnitzels they served up with a load of chips and massive side of salad... then ate Dante Siglinde's remaining Schnitzel she wasn't going to eat.

We kept that evening really quiet just to attempt to recover fully from the prior night's outing.

Our friendly tour guides Herbert and Ingrid once again had a great day planned for us. We were in a much better state this morning than yesterday though - even got up for some breakfast at Dante Siglinde's.

We were heading to Graz today.

Graz is a beautiful city to explore. A city in which has disguised the amount of people that actually live there. So different to the typical concrete jungles of today's typical cities.

Graz embraces its history, so much so the Old Town is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You get a brilliant view of the dense, uniform sea of red-tiled, steep roofs from Uhrturm - the clock tower that gets a 360 view of Graz. I highly encourage you to take the beautiful staircase that leads to the clock tower. There are plentiful of opportunities to get great photos with these roof's and Graz in the background.

Having come from Australia, where our cities that were built by the British Colonies in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, I found it so challenging to imagine what it would have been like up to 600 years ago living here.

This place is so rich in history!

There is so much to learn about how this city was developed during such pivotal times in history such as the Ottoman Empire and the Second World War.

The town itself is abundant with beautiful restaurants and bars to go and enjoy a traditional Austrian lunch and Austrian beer. We filled up after a big day of walking ad being out in the sun and finished the day helping Herbert and Ingrid do a bit of shopping before heading home for a quiet night in watching a movie.

Day 5 was a very quiet day around Ilz shopping. I won't lie to you to go and visit any of the shops or restaurants. None of them were must-do's. Ilz is very much more famous for its quiet lifestyle, country-side, nice walks and nature than its attractions.

Day 6 however, was stunning!

We visited the home-town of where Skye's grandfather was born and where his siblings (Herbert, Siglinde and Wolfe) grew up - Eisenerz.

Eisenerz - literally translated to 'Iron Ore' - is a small town just over an hour North West of Graz. You guessed it, the town was built to home the families who were working on the Iron Ore mountain. Skye's grandfather was literally born on the mountain, where his family lived and father worked at the time.

The bridge that you take into town shows a stunning view of Eisenerz.

After meeting Wolfe and his partner at their beautiful apartment, they took us to Leopoldsteiner See - a wonderful river with a stunning walking track surrounding it and mountains a plenty. Everywhere you look you are engulfed by a magical view. The water is crystal and so fresh. And, had Wolfe not been smoking the whole walk, I imagine the air would have smelt just as fresh.

We ate a delicious meal at the restaurant that sits on the edge of the lake and enjoyed the view and a chat.

Wolfe insisted on showing us their garden that they had been growing over the last couple of years, and it did not disappoint. To go along with a couple slices of cake, some candy and a Puntigamer (Austrian beer) there was no better way to finish the day - all whilst being surrounded by mountains.

Wolfe had created a wonderful and peaceful lifestyle. Something we treasured to be apart of for a day and have dreams of bringing home to us upon our return.

We said our goodbyes before the sun went down for an hour and a half drive back to Ilz where Herbert and Ingrid invited us into their home for a quiet bite to eat and a drink.

I'm surprised I had any room in me left.

Day 7

"Pack your passports, we are off to Hungary today"

Only in Europe could this be a normalised statement.

To two Australian travellers, we could not fully understand the ease of travelling to another country for some lunch.

But, nevertheless we travelled just down the road to meet up with Andy and Rebeka to see their beautiful home and meet their gorgeous White Sheppard. The time started to creep towards 11:00am and Skye and I were thinking that if we were going to get to Hungary for lunch surely we must be getting a move on.

We left at 11:30am.

Arrived at the restaurant in Hungary at 12:00pm.

I mean to cross the border to another state in Adelaide, Australia where we live takes at least 4-5 hours. Let alone another COUNTRY.

The most absurd thing about Hungary is that upon crossing the border from Austria, the language is wildly different. Hungarian is most closely compared to the Finish language. How cool is Europe!

We enjoyed two traditional Hungarian meals. So much colour and lots of vegetables. And the bread... oh the bread was to die for. Warm, crunchy on the outside but so deliciously soft and gooey on the inside.

The restaurant had a natural store and a coupe for some chickens and ducks for the children to go and watch. We spent some time browsing the shop and watching the birds before making tracks back to Andy and Rebeka's home. We stopped off at St Emmerichskirche Church right where the Austrian and Hungarian border meet before returning. At Andy and Rebeka's home we explored Andy's vast music collection, Rebeka's amazing back garden, chicken coupe of her own and enjoyed a coffee.

A truly wonderful Hungarian experience.

Day 8

To finish our trip we did our absolute best to see all of the wonderful family that looked after us so dearly all week. They truly took us in and made us feel like family instantly. Something we wish we can repay the same way if they visit us back home.

We visited Dina and Fabian at their stable close by, and had lunch with Siglinde, Herbert and Ingrid.

We shared sincere gratitude, and there were a few tears before departing for the bus to Vienna.