I arrived in Innsbruck anxiously anticipating my paragliding adventure planned for the following day.  Tired from a long trip from Ljubljana and nursing a sick wife I almost did not go out that night, but my wife being the trooper that she is urged me to leave her at the hotel and explore the city on my own.

Knowing very little about Innsbruck I was pleasantly surprised.  I found that Innsbruck possesses a wealth of architectural masterpieces.

Even at night past and future meet in the heart of the Alps, where Innsbruck’s world-famous sights, which testify to the Tirol province’s great past, stand alongside post-modern international architecture to create a fascinating blend.

Innsbruck is much more than a ski hub, with futuristic architecture, imperial history, and cozy cafes.

 The capital of the Austrian state of Tirol neatly combines an impressive mountain setting with a storied and historic past.

You can stroll through the city’s old town and you’ll feel like you’ve gatecrashed the set of a medieval movie; look up, and you’re surrounded by the peaks of the Nordkette mountains.

In Innsbruck not all roads lead to Rome but most of them take you directly to streets full of history and culture.  Streets like Hofgasse, Maria Teresa, or Herzog Friedrich have rich pasts and great symbolic architecture some of which I will in a future posts.  We will dive into the history of the Goldenes Dachl (Golden Roof) located in the Gothic neighborhood and the ancient palace of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor.  Stay tuned for more of this enchanting capital city of Tyrol.