However, there is still one thing I can’t get used to – the mountains, mountains everywhere. Living in the mountains was always my biggest dream and now I am living that dream. It still feels unreal to me. Whenever someone asked me, “Why Liechtenstein?” my first response was always, “The mountains”, followed by other reasons. The mountains hold a special place in my heart and had been an important aspect while choosing the university. It’s where I feel the most free and alive.
I am the type of person who prefers a calm life close to the nature rather than the hustle and bustle of a city with lots of people. I love spending most of my free time outdoors, with hiking in summer and skiing in winter being my favourite activities. At the beginning of September, before the university officially started, I had the opportunity to embark on one of the most beautiful hikes of my life.
The first place I visited was in Switzerland, the Seealpsee. This trip still resonates in my mind. It was a beautiful warm and sunny day, so warm that I even ended up swimming in the freezing cold lake. When I got used to the temperature, I overcame my fear and jumped to the water from a rope swing, for the first time in my life. But before that, while hiking up to the lake I experienced something I’d never encountered before - the Almabtrieb. Dozens of cows passed by us, mere centimetres away, as they descended from the mountains to the valleys for the winter. Just when I thought the day couldn't get any more interesting, I saw cows being transported by a helicopter, just hanging from a rope and flying in the air. Intrigued, I spoke to a local man who explained that they transport the cows this way because the meadows are too high in the mountains for the cows to reach on foot through the narrow paths. So, they rent a helicopter twice a year to transport the cows up and down the mountains. If someone had told me this a month ago, I wouldn't have believed it.
My exploration of the mountains didn’t end there. A few days later I went for another hike to the Lünersee in Austria. I didn't have high expectations, as large water dams are not typically my favourite places to visit. However, it turned out to be absolutely spectacular. The water had a unique shade of colour I had never seen before, and the surrounding mountains appeared like a painting. Anyway, the hike didn’t end with that, and I decided to go higher to the Totalphütte. The scenery gradually transformed from an idyllic place into rugged rocky mountains. But the reward was waiting for me at the top in the form of Topfenlasagne - a curd cheese lasagne with vanilla sauce and stewed plums. I had never heard of it before, but since I'm here to explore and try new things, I went for it, and it exceeded my expectations.
Anyway, after that the semester started in a full speed and there was no more time for hiking and exploration. But now as the weather got colder, and you can see first signs of snow up on the peaks I can’t wait for the skiing season to begin and spend some more time in the mountains in a different way!