Hiking holiday in Tyrol: This hut is a real insider tip

Hiking excursion of the Schorndorf section of the German Alpine Club (DAV), a small town 25 kilometers east of Stuttgart: Almost 50 members climbed into a coach early in the morning and drove four hours to Westendorf in Tyrol, where “their” section house at 1555 meters above sea level , the “Alpenrosenhütte”, is enthroned.

For Swabians who like to travel according to the motto “We can do anything but expensive”, this is a paradise: The night in a four-bed room including half board costs 37 euros, half a liter of ski water costs 1.50 euros. From the hut terrace you can enjoy the one million euro view of the surrounding peaks. Well, spaetzle with sauce are not always on the menu, but that’s just how it is in the diaspora outside Swabia. Instead, “exotic” dishes such as Tyrolean Gröstl and cheese dumplings are served.

Kaiserschmarrn to kneel down

An even bigger exotic is hut keeper Kemal Akcay. The native Turk with an Austrian passport is the boss up here. Before that, he was a waiter at the hut for many years until his predecessor retired in 2010. Back then, the section would have preferred to hire a local tenant again, but he refused.

The position was advertised, 24 applied, and Kemal won the race. “It never played a role that Kemal has Turkish roots,” emphasizes Harald Graß, who heads the ski department in the section: “He’s good with the guests and is hardworking. That alone counts. He continues what is Predecessor Sepp built. ” In addition, his Kaiserschmarrn simply tastes good to kneel down.

Nevertheless, Kemal in the DAV with its 323 publicly accessible shelters is an exception, probably even the only host of Turkish origin. In general, mountain sports do not seem to be the Turks’ favorite pastime, at least not in the Alps, because there is a very lively scene in Asia Minor itself.

Hüttenwirt Kemal is a rarity

Kemal seems to be as rare a specimen as Lilium martagon. The wildflower is popularly simply called the Turk’s Union, alluding to the Turkish word for turban, which is unquestionably reminiscent of the folded back petals. According to the Nature Conservation Ordinance, the Turkish lily is completely protected in Tyrol, and picking is prohibited.

Kemal laughs when you ask him about it. Yes, it is also a rarity. He knows that. He likes to join in when he is presented in the limelight as a prime example of successful integration. When the new hut, which was built for 1.5 million euros, was inaugurated in 2016, the Schorndorfer local newspaper reported in great detail. In the photo in front of the new shelter, Kemal, son Atakan, his wife Selma and the two twin daughters Aleyna and Alara are posing in lederhosen and dirndls.

One would think that even the right-wing party FPÖ, which is strong in Austria, would have to open the heart. Of course it doesn’t. Thousands of Austrian immigrants currently have to fear losing their passports because they had not properly “deregistered” from their Turkish citizenship in the past. Some probably knowingly. Others because they signed documents at the Turkish consulates without understanding exactly what they were doing. The fact is: The one-two is not allowed under red-white-red law. Anyone who still has two passports risks expulsion.

Schnitzel instead of Turkish specialties

All five of the Akcays have a passport of the Alpine republic. Kemal and son Atakan wear red-and-white checked shirts on duty, and they talk Tyrolean with the locals who are now snowing into the hut this morning. They don’t want to offer Turkish specialties, it doesn’t go with a mountain hut. He even drinks a fruit brandy himself, which Kemal often serves to regular guests on the house. And yet he says: “We are not viewed as Austrians by Austrians and not as Turks by Turks.” Sociologists call them “the torn ones”.

Kemal is not a typical third generation guest worker child. His family comes from the Black Sea province of Ordu, but he moved to Istanbul early on, where he worked as a bricklayer and met his wife Selma, who worked in the same company. In 1988 he followed his brother to Austria.

Selma followed later, and in 1993 they married. All three children were born in Tyrol. The family lives in their own in Kufstein apartment, at the weekend everyone meets at the hut, including Angel, a four-year-old Chihuahua picked up by son Atakan. At home, everyone speaks Turkish, the daughters go to high school, and son Atakan has also passed the Matura and later completed an apprenticeship as an office clerk. He still wants to study and does not see his future as a hut keeper.

“I am Muslim, but religion is not the top priority”

Kemal serves breaded pork schnitzel to the Schorndorfern in the evening and also eats it himself, although his religion is Islam. He is not so strict about that, but regrets a little that Friday is not a day of rest and that the hut is usually very busy: “That’s the way it is. We can’t fast on Ramadan up here either.”

There is seldom time to visit a mosque in Wörgl, Kufstein or Kitzbühel. Speaking of which: the government in Vienna wants to expel numerous imams and also close mosques. The basis for the decision is the Islamic Law of 2015, which requires Muslims to have a positive attitude towards the state and society. Kemal says: “I am a Muslim, but religion is not the top priority. What matters is how a person behaves, regardless of belief, isn’t it?” And further: “My president is not Mr. Erdogan, but Mr. Van der Bellen.”

Home is Turkey, but half is also Tyrol

Of course, the Akcays also ski in winter, as befits proper Austrians. Mother Selma tells the following story: “I and Kemal were out over in Kitzbühel once. The day ski pass cost 50 euros. At some point I got tired, but Kemal didn’t give me a break. He just said: We have to use the lift ticket to make it worth it . ” It is very German, very Swabian. He has to smile himself. Kemal, the integration nerd. This is what the Swiss call German “guest workers” who presume to speak Schwyzerdütsch as a sign of their willingness to adapt – according to the motto: How to do it is wrong.

Yes, the Akcays are “fully integrated”, as a Schorndorf DAV member says, even if that is a term that appears on Google primarily in connection with washing machines. Nevertheless, Kemal admits: “Homeland is a difficult topic. That is still Turkey. Well, half of it is also Tyrol.”

90 percent of the dishes are freshly prepared

Usually everyday life is much too hectic to think about it intensively. “I am the boss of twelve employees,” explains Kemal. “We manage 3,500 overnight stays a year. Our working day has 16 hours and more.” There is little time to ponder. Especially not if, like him, you have the right to freshly prepare 90 percent of the dishes.

Only after a long discussion did he let Selma and the children persuade him to offer hamburgers. And only then when it was certain that he could make the meatballs from regional beef himself. There he is his own. Goulash soup from a can is also taboo for him. Despite all the stress, Kemal’s aim is always to remain friendly. He is the opposite of the typical grumbler, which unfortunately you meet far too often in Austria’s huts.

One of the few episodes on the subject of “Austrians and Turks on the Mountain” is a drawing by the German cartoonist duo Achim Greser and Heribert Lenz. It is entitled: “50 years of Turks in Germany, a success story.”

You can see a mountain hut called “Üzrüms Alpenglück”, next to it the Islamic crescent moon. A sign announces: “Today: hut magic with belly dancing”, in the dog house minder “Erdogan” bares his teeth. Two locals in traditional costumes sit on the bench in front of the shelter. One smokes shisha, the other coughs with a red head. The landlord with a mustache and dark hair scolds: “Himmiherrgottsakramentwasguckstdu? Have you ordered a snack with spicy?” – In the background you can see a goat that is tending another beard with a mustache … but that would lead too far now.