Gmunden

Gmunden has around 15.000 inhabitants (Not a lot I admit, but a choice of only 3 pubs for going out? Come ON!
It is incredibly old, first mentioned in a docutment in 909 (!!) and officially a town since 1278.

The picturesque mountain, the *Traunstein* is about 1800m high (not quite sure tho) and the lake you can see in the pictures is the *Traunsee* We also have a river called *Traun* around here!

Gmunden is well-known for *Schlo� Orth* a former monastery, now used for filming. It also hosts a caf� and its old chapel is a very popular place for weddings!

Gmunden's most important source of income is Gmundner Keramik (=pottery). The typical green stripes are known all over Austria and Germany and we also export to Japan and yes, even the UK! Find out more!
www.gmundner-keramik.at

For all those who did not know what a*Dirndl* is I found an exclusive picture of the *Original Gmundner Dirndl*! Dresses like this are typical for Austria, Switzerland and Bayern (South Germany) but this one is *Gmundner Tracht*!!
(Tracht= Austrian traditional clothing).
Yes, I do own a Dirndl myself but it is black and dark green and you can also wear it in winter whereas the dress in this pic is for summer use only.
If you find either the dress or the girl wearing it or both of them charming enough to feel an urgent need to find out more about *Trachten* the various search enginges will find plenty of matches with the word *Dirndl* for you! ;o)

People not living in Gmunden (i.e. foreigners lol) tend to like it very much because it is so picturesque and such a friendly and nice town. The truth is: it is absolutely boring, especially compared to any bigger city around here (take Salzburg or Linz for example). If you are young and full of energy this town seems to pull you down; not because it is depressive but because you hardly have possibilities to go out or even watch a decent film at the local cinema. Your only link to the *outer world* is the telly or the internet! The majority of Austria's smaller towns is like this so don't blame me for wanting to get away from here!