an aussie in austria

Arnold Schwarzenegger is renowned as an international body builder, acclaimed actor and politician, but what you may not know is that he grew up in a very small village just outside Graz in Austria. So when I had a keen friend visiting from Australia, we decided to take a trip to the Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum.

Now if I’m completely honest, we went along mostly for a laugh, and ended up being pleasantly surprised. Arnie was clearly a guy who was going somewhere, that was evident even from the young age of 14 when he first decided to pursue a career in bodybuilding. He made his first million in real estate, not films, and later went onto study at University before embarking on his political career.

The house he grew up in is unremarkable in Austrian terms and has been cleared of most furniture, leaving a sparse, yet interesting view on his life. The photos adorning the wall are fascinating – seeing pictures of him not only as a movie star and bodybuilder, but also of a younger, normal-looking (I mean not outrageously muscled) guy, just hanging out with friends and family, as we all do.

Naturally, we wholeheartedly enjoyed the experience, took posed photos with ‘Arnie’ and pondered what to buy at the gift shop – Schwarzenegger condoms anyone? I guess you can be guaranteed of their strength!

At €6.50, entry to the Museum is reasonable, and the guy in charge on the day was more than happy to answer our questions, and direct us to see the local church (shell-adorned like something out of The Little Mermaid) and the lake where Arnie proposed to his now ex-wife.

So if you’re an Arnie fan, or even if you’re not, why not go and visit next time you’re in the area?.