Styria

I have been to Styria more than once. This region has a very interesting history, inseparably linked with the whole of Western Europe. At first Celtic tribes lived in these parts, creating their own extensive state. Then the Romans came and included the territory in the Roman Empire. Then Germanic tribes seized Styria, and when they went off to Italy, the Slavs arrived here...

And so on!

History is remembered in Austria, and so practically every museum has knights' halls literally crammed with all sorts of paraphernalia, including knights' armour and weapons. And it is no accident that a knight's castle stands on almost every mountain. This fertile and beautiful land was fought over quite fiercely. Well, never mind, that is a matter of the past; I wanted to talk about the present.

My acquaintance with Austria began precisely with Styria, where there was lots of sun, grapes, smiles. I met many good-natured people and felt great hospitality.

Let me put it this way: the cordiality was flowing over the brim.

I remember thinking then: "Well, well... They live like this all their lives. Their fathers lived like this, and their grandfathers. And they know no troubles."

On this first trip of mine to Austria

we dined in small village restaurants called Heurigen. With superb country food. Coarse, simple, but so tasty! With a dozen spreads (egg, meat, cheese and others) that Austrians spread on bread.

Moreover, each Heuriger has its own menu and wine. They make the wine themselves. Winemaking is a cult. I remember those little restaurants simply won me over.

In short, I fell in love with Styria at once, with its well-tended vineyard hills and its endlessly sunny weather. And for good.

The next few days we spent in Styria, moving from one village to another, passed for me like a single day.

And by that time I had seen quite a few places and travelled across a significant part of the Soviet Union: I had been to Chukotka, Kazakhstan, Sakhalin, the Caucasus, the Baltics.... But I had never encountered such a triumph of cordiality, climate and nature.

Maybe I made it all up, maybe I only imagined it? But when I returned to Styria, exactly the same cordiality greeted me. And a glass of white wine, offered as a sign of respect to every guest.

To be continued

The little house where we stayed was small but very comfortable. It was meant for four people, but there were two of us. The cost of a night is usually between 25 and 35 euros. Breakfast, of course, is included, and it is quite copious. The table mostly holds all sorts of sliced meats. A large choice of natural 100% juices. Separately, on a tray, lies fruit that nobody touches, as well as various smoothies. I always prefer the potatoes, which they know how to cook wonderfully, adding all kinds of gravies. And special varieties of potato are used for frying.

In general, this culture of hospitality in Austria has deep roots. It goes back to the times when pilgrims passed through these lands on their way to the Holy Land. Later the tradition took the form of private guesthouses. There are hundreds of family guesthouses in Austria's federal states. They are not empty. There are plenty of guests. Usually the towns die out at the weekend, and all of Austria heads for just such family guesthouses. This too is part of Austrian culture.

To be continued

Driving along the narrow mountain roads of Styria, some of whose peaks reach 3,000 m, I saw an old grape press. The press stands right at a crossroads under a canopy as a kind of monument. Majestic. Enormous. The press is partly mechanised, and several people worked at it at once. Right next to it stands an equally old barrel into which the local wine was poured.

The press is at least two hundred years old.

Styria also has special windmills used to scare birds away from the grapes. The windmills are so popular and so old that they have even been included in the coat of arms of Styria.

Right on the roads there are little houses where you can buy local wine. One such house was shaped like a barrel. Too bad they don't sell coffee there. But they said that instead of coffee they could pour me some sweet white wine for free. They assured me it quenches thirst. I declined.

And of course hops grow everywhere.