Wednesday morning, we awoke in lovely Wels, Austria, and headed down to the restaurant for breakfast. Breakfast is supposedly very highly rated at Hotel Ploberger. Many reviewers commented on how extensive the buffet is, and the varied and expensive items that can be found there. They did have breads, cheeses, cold cuts, vegetables, fruits, smoked salmon, cheeses, and even a machine that would squeeze marginally ripe oranges into juice. I will agree that the buffet was extensive, but it wasn’t particularly well-stocked when we visited. I got the sense that like all good food and beverage managers, the manager at the hotel instructed the employees to put out only a little bit, as I don’t think the hotel was particularly well populated during our visit.
I noticed that the buffet appeared to be a bit picked over both mornings of our stay. I understand that it was probably a cost or labor cutting method, but to be honest, it wasn’t a great look. The breakfast lady brought us coffee with a no nonsense attitude. It was strong and fresh, and that definitely perked up my ex Mormon husband.
It was pretty foggy and chilly the morning of our one full day in Wels. We decided to walk around the town and take more pictures. Here are some shots from our walk.
Scenes from the breakfast buffet… 
The power company offers water to the public. 
This place wasn’t open, but it gave me a chuckle. 
Another business that didn’t appear open. 
Another lovely church of the protestant persuasion. 
We walked in for a moment… 
I was all about the pipe organ. 
Pictures of babies who were baptized. 
A World War II memorial. 
And a World War I memorial. 
Self explanatory…
Right next to the church is Der Weinphilosoph, a bookstore owned by a genius… Or maybe not. I saw a similar concept in Rostock, Germany, where one can buy wine and books in the same place. I wouldn’t have minded going in there for a few minutes, if only to pick up a few new jigsaw for the probable tighter COVID-19 restrictions that will be in store as the weather gets colder and more folks stay inside with other people.
Genius! 
I got a kick out of the “Denglisch” books. 
You must wear a FFP2 mask IF YOU ARE NOT VACCINATED or recovered. If you are vaccinated, pretend it’s 2019 again. 
Shame on us for not going in when we had the chance. 
Me too!
We continued walking until we reached an “Energy Park”, which offered lots of activities for children. Right next to the park was a kiosk and a WC, where one could get a coffee and take a piss. And there were vending machines dispensing smokes, playing cards, and other items for committing sins. 😉
Keep in shape! Stay healthy! Eat vegan! 
Probably a lovely street when there’s no fog. 
Nice sentiment… 
It kind of saddens me that people feel entitled to paint in public places… 
Particularly when what they paint is mostly profanity. I like profanity, but not in a park for kids. 
This wasn’t working. 
You can get your vices attended to… 
It’s interesting how the labels are supposed to deter smoking. It obviously doesn’t work. 
A handy little hut for while your kids play…
Bill and I kept walking and noticing what was available in Wels. We could have visited the science museum. I probably would have enjoyed that. There was an art museum, and a spa, which I would have been all for attending. Bill is less enthusiastic about spas than I am.
This was an interesting concept. Looked like you could get a photo shoot while having a party. 
Lovely ee 
And wedding gowns… 
The wine bar next to the hotel. It was obviously affiliated, since that was where we had our free round… and a few more rounds that we paid for. 
An impressive looking museum. I like museums, but not during the COVID era. 
The Ledererturm in the background. 
A place to save lives by donating plasma.
For lunch, we decided to go to a well regarded Greek restaurant called Zum Kleinen Grieschen. It had been too long since our last Greek fix, and this turned out to be a good place to stop for lunch. We were the first ones there for lunch, and we were warmly welcomed. The food was excellent! I had my usual pork gyros with flatbread and t’zatziki. Bill had souvlaki. We both had large draft Gössers, a beer I used to drink in Armenia, when I had the drams to spare.
Goofy Bill in his favorite shirt. I probably should buy him new ones. 
Austrian beer! 
A surprisingly tasty salad. 
Bill’s excellent souvlaki with rice. 
These gyros were the bomb, but I couldn’t finish them all. I loved the flatbread with them. 
The outside… 
By the time we finished lunch, the sun was out! 
We took our time walking back from the Greek restaurant, as there’s a small park area nearby that has some interesting memorials to people who died in the Holocaust.
We decided to stop by Vom Fass, an awesome chain store that sells liqueurs, oils, vinegars, and other gourmet goodies. An English speaking associate quickly realized we were easy sells. By the time she was finished with us, we’d dropped some major euros on new items for the home bar. And by that time, of course, I figured it was time to redeem our free drinks at the wine bar… which we proceeded to do.
That’s my motto. 
I could go crazy in Vom Fass. 
We found our way to the wine bar, 
God, I hope not… 
They had lots of nice Austrian wines and an English speaking waiter with deadpan humor.
We weren’t hungry again after our huge Greek lunch. I wasn’t really wanting to hang out in the hotel room after dark. We thought maybe we’d go look for a place with small plates or something… but before we could venture out, I got a phone call from USAA. They wanted to talk to me about my complaint about their tendency to block my credit card at the drop of a hat. I wasn’t really in the mood to talk to them, and they had already called and missed me the night before. So I talked to the poor lady who had the misfortune of calling me.
Sundown from our room… 
It might have been a lovely night…
In all seriousness, I wasn’t as pissed off on Wednesday as I had been the previous Saturday. Still, I was pretty stern as I let her know in no uncertain terms that the way they’ve changed their practices of fraud protection really suck. I don’t want to have to call the bank every time I use my money. And it IS my money, since they also block the debit card at the drop of a hat. SIGH…
After that conversation, we headed out… and ended up in a somewhat unauthentic Irish pub called Labi’s. It turned out to be an entertaining place, though, because a bunch of young Austrian guys came in and started playing darts. We sat in the dark for about an hour before they arrived, drinking Guinness, which turned out to be our dinner.
Wels 
at 
night! 
South Park in an Irish pub in Austria! 
The dart board helped provide light… and later entertainment. 
It’s a tiny place. The only food they have are candy bars. But the restroom was clean! 
The proprietor who checked our vaccine certs seemed to be trying to cater to our musical tastes. At first, they were playing Eminem and similar stuff. Then, “You Make My Dreams”, a song by Hall & Oates, came on. I mentioned that I liked it, and it was popular in 1981. Next thing I knew, “The Best That You Can Do (Arthur’s Theme)” by Christopher Cross, also from 1981, came on. Then, the proprietor wisely switched to more Irish music by The Pogues.
We were thinking about leaving when the Austrian college lads came in and started playing darts. It was interesting to watch them and their friendly competition as they swilled Austrian beers. One of the guys was clearly an outside. He wore casual clothes, while the others had on business attire. I got the sense that the casual guy was someone’s little brother or maybe a guy they knew from the village. He was the worst dart thrower, too. The other guys were pretty players, and I alternated between feeling really old and wondering where the time went, to seriously enjoying their game.
I also noticed the urgent walk of a person about to either hurl or piss themselves, as two young ladies charged to the bathroom with the heavy gait of people who have had way too much to drink. Trust me, I know. 😉
When we settled up with the bartender, he asked us where we were from. I think he knew damned well we’re Americans. What he really wanted to know was what the hell we were doing in Wels! So I helpfully volunteered that we live in Germany. That seemed to satisfy his curiosity. With that, we headed back to the hotel to sleep before our big journey to Croatia on Thursday, the 28th.
Stay tuned for part four.