Hi! I'm Elena! Welcome to my travel blog Creativelena.com.
For me, it is all about “life-seeing instead of sightseeing”: Join me as I create, eat & live my way around the world. Curious?
*Check out my book, “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook”, for learning more about what we mean by creative travel. Travelling means the world to me, makes me fit for everday life and sometimes, I trust, also calmer on the inside. Read this blog with a smile, share what you love and remember to check back regularly: After all, when was the last time you did something for the first time?
“And then, when each and everyone in my group realises the untamed power of the Alpine plants, this ‘medicine’ around us, I thank God for my gift and smile …”, says Christine Sperner, who is our hiking guide for the day and a sort of plant whisperer, too. You could also call her the translator […]
The landscape around me has changed. I can no longer see the “Romantic Road” stretch as far as the horizon, flat as it was before in Nördlingen, around Augsburg or Landsberg. Rugged mountain ranges have given way to straight lines. The gently rising Alpine foothills bring a smile to my face. Mountains always make an […]
Würzburg, Wertheim, Weikersheim. The names of the first towns on the Romantic Road in Southern Germany are catchy. The Tauber Valley, which connects them, deserves to be called the “Lovely Tauber Valley” thanks to its beautiful river meanders. It is also well signposted, the “Romantic Road”: From Würzburg to the Allgäu, it is one of the […]
“Würzburg is sooo beautiful … Enjoy Würzburg and the wines of Franconia”, my travel friends advise about my short stay in Würzburg. As part of the “Romantic Road“, the Franconian town is surrounded by countless romantic vineyards on the Main river. I take to visiting “Vinothek Wohlsein Weine” with their goal to introduce younger, smaller […]
“Am Brunnen vor dem Tore, da steht ein Lindenbaum …” Gently, I recall the famous melody to this traditional Austrian folk song written by Franz Schubert, Austria’s famous 18th century composer. We follow in the footsteps of our host, Irene Moser, who leads us around the historical Höldrichsmühle hotel. A property close to Vienna, yet still […]
Linz. I do believe, that the third-largest town of Austria is truly underrated. Years ago already, when we had our Austrian travel bloggers’ meeting in Linz, I have been impressed with what you can do in the city of Linz. Getting creative, that is, baking your own famous Linzer cake for instance. Visiting the internationally acclaimed Ars […]
She is of beautiful growth, smells absolutely wonderful, and has the power to turn people’s heads. She wants to be conquered, doesn’t just “stand around”, but likes to command entire mountainsides underneath her. She likes it when you approach her cautiously, respectfully at first, then visibly moved by her beauty. Wood artists love her, connoisseurs […]
Imagine yourself time-travelling. Travelling to a distant century, in a different rhythm, on a journey before our time. When I stood in the midst of all these ancient books in the “secret library” of Heiligenkreuz Abbey, I suddenly felt like I was somewhere else. Someone else. And completely … one with the book worlds that […]
Lilienfeld Abbey. You may easily find this gem of a medieval Austrian Abbey (the largest in all of Austria!) only about half an hour’s drive from St. Pölten, or a good hour’s drive from the capital city, Vienna. Coming into the small town of Lilienfeld, you can’t miss the abbey against the backdrop of the […]
You know what? In Murau-Kreischberg even snow cannons can be sustainable! Really?! I can’t quite believe what they say: Aren’t artificial snowmaking systems in the mountains considered one of the most environmentally unsustainable forms of development? “Not if you draw the water from your own reservoir lakes, and add nothing to the pure mountain water during […]
