I focused on Vienna and its Christmas markets on my recent trip to Austria, but also took day-trips to explore Graz and Semmering Railway. I also spent a day in Linz, which was probably a bit of an overkill for the overall trip.
Don’t get me wrong – Linz is a pretty and pleasant town, with many attractive buildings and picturesque corners to delight an explorer of my persuasion. But giving yourself six or so hours on a cold December day to explore even the most attractive of towns leaves a good chance of leaving underwhelmed. And Linz, as it happens, comes a bit short on the “wow” factor. Spending the day punctuated by many coffee breaks in Vienna may have been less ambitious but more prudent.
Nonetheless, here are a few impressions of Linz.
Starting with elevated views from Pöstlingberg, the high hill above the left bank of the Danube. On a clear-sky day, the town was nonetheless covered in haze, so I had to process the shots to give them somewhat of a vintage look to make them passable.
A denizen of Pöstlingberg slyly suggest where to go to see good things.
Unfortunately, I did not find many. Practically everything in the vicinity was closed for the winter season. The church was the only place to take a look at and to warm up a bit in between taking a few pictures of the surrounding architecture.
The Danube splits town in half. Two bridges connect the banks. Here I am standing on the centrally located Nibelungenbrücke looking westward towards Donaubrücke that carries an autobahn over the river.
Playful-looking angels did their part in the town’s seasonal decorations.
That’s Pöstlingberg up there in the distance.
A corner of the left bank, including the church of the Urfahr parish, the riverside parkland and a wing of Ars Electronica Center, the popular science and technology museum (thoughts of warm interiors aside, I did not have time to visit the exhibitions).
At the water edge by the bridge, I stumbled upon this picnic setup.
I allow that this might be the local homeless warming spot, but there were no people around in midday.
A corner of Hauptplatz, the main square of the Old Town.
Here are a few fragments of the streets of the Old Town of Linz. They offer an idea of the colorful architecture found around every corner.
I did check out one standout landmark – the New Cathedral, formally known as Linzer Mariendom.
As evening approached and the lights of the market on Hauptplatz became more prominent, it stopped playing a disfiguring role on the face of the wide square.
Lively Landstraße, the mostly pedestrian main drag.
And that’s all that is worth including in this post. Nonetheless, other pictures of Linz in addition to these can be found in my Flickr gallery.