We picked Austria as the location for our honeymoon as Paul was a fan of Mozart. Never did we know that would lead us on an adventure to the ICE Q restaurant in the midst of the Otztal Alps in Solden.
We usually have a rough idea where we want to go before we set off for our holidays, but this time, we were too swamped with the wedding preparations that we decided to go where the heart beckons and the wind blows.
We arrived at Innsbruck late evening as we wanted to see the capital of Tyrol in Western Austria. I was sitting by the window looking at the train station below us when ICE Q restaurant popped up in my search for dinner places. Hence I casually told Paul about the restaurant and discovered to my amazement this was the exclusive filming location of Spectre, just 90 km from where we were!
My husband is a man of swift action, spontaneity and decisiveness. Hence in a few quick moments, armed with the online information that ICE Q is going to be opened for lunch till 2.30pm the next day, we booked a car and decided to set off for it early tomorrow morning. Since it was quite late in the day, we could not call the restaurant to check if it could accommodate us as the restaurant closes at 4pm and everyone needs to get on the mountain gondolas back to ground level.
We set off to collect the car and were on our way by midmorning. By sheer luck, the restaurant was able to accommodate us for the 2pm lunch. I thought it would take us a little over 2 hours to get there but it took us way longer than we expected as we did not want to exceed the speed limit and the scenery was breathtaking.
The restaurant is not visible from ground level as ICE Q is located 3048 meters above sea level. It is perched atop the summit of Gaislachkogl peak, the area’s number one ski mountain so you can literally have a digestif, pick up your skis and ski all the way down the black slope.
Hence, following the footsteps of James Bond, we arrived high up in the Austrian Alps at ICE Q after 2 gondolas ride and stood face to face with the spectacular glass restaurant ready for our haute Alpine cuisine. It felt surreal to dine in a futuristic glass cube with its open suspension bridge surrounded by a blanket of white powdery snow.
It was hard to resist the urge to say “Martini, please. Shaken, not stirred” when ordering our aperitifs. Sipping wine while watching sunset at the terrace was the highlight of our honeymoon. Since it was winter, the sun set especially early in this part of the world. This literally felt like celebrating our marriage at the top of the world.
Immersed in this awe-inspiring scenery, all we need are some villains now.
