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FEBRUARY 4, 2021 | The Jewish Home
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FEBRUARY 4, 2021 | The Jewish Home
The Wandering
Jew
From Vienna to Arosa Part II By Hershel Lieber
The palace of the Prince of Liechtenstein
W
e took our time on this Wednesday morning in July; we just didn’t rush. The weather was rainy, and there was a light fog in the air as we headed out from Innsbruck, Austria. We started our climb to the higher elevations of the Alps on curving roads with over a dozen tunnels carved into the formidable mountains. The fog started to dissipate, and we were able to see the ice peaked mountain tips. As the sun started to appear, every exit from a tunnel brought another stunning vista of Hashem’s handicraft. We made an hour stop in Feldkirch near the Austrian border. The town was picturesque, and we took a self-guid-
ed tour of the castle and museum. From there, it was only a short drive to Triesenberg across the border in Liechtenstein. Liechtenstein is not a well-known country. In fact, it is one of the smallest countries in the world. You can cross the width of this country in less than two hours. The population of this German-speaking nation is small, yet it is one of the richest countries of the world. It is known for its Alpine landscapes and medieval castles, and, by stamp collectors, for the beautiful postage stamps it regularly issues. We took a walk in the tiny capital Vaduz, a city with under five thousand residents. We visited the city museum
and, of course, the post office. We ate our dinner of food we brought along from Vienna sitting on the veranda of our hotel. There, we were able to view the calming waters of the Rhine River as it snaked through the valley dotted with cottages, against a background of the magnificent Alps. The next morning, we toured the grounds of the Prince’s palace. The palace is open to the public only once a year on the Prince’s birthday when many well-wishers come by to wish him a long healthy life. From there, we headed into neighboring Switzerland. The scenes we passed were beckoning our camera, and we obliged by making many photo stops. We had our sandwich lunches at a
waterfall overlooking the lush valleys and small villages below. As we were heading to our destination, we spoke by phone to all our children. Our daughter, Chavi, told us that her in-laws, Volvi’s parents, Shloma and Hindy Feldman, would be in the same hotel as us that Shabbos. We arrived in Arosa at three in the afternoon and checked into the Metropol Hotel. We were pleasantly surprised when we saw the beautiful fruit basket that our mechutanim sent to our room. The hotel itself had probably seen better days and, despite our tiny room, we were complacent. After dinner, we went out to the lake where we were treated to a concert by the players of the Alpenhorn. The music
