Visiting Austria’s upside down house

Recently, I heard for the first time of an upside down house in Terfens, Austria. This was stunning news, and all those who were listening when the information was passed, could not hide their surprise. Soon I was taken to see the house one quiet evening .It is some fifteen minutes drive from the Grail […]

Recently, I heard for the first time of an upside down house in Terfens, Austria. This was stunning news, and all those who were listening when the information was passed, could not hide their surprise. Soon I was taken to see the house one quiet evening .It is some fifteen minutes drive from the Grail Settlement, Vomperberg, where I was residing in the last week of May. There are very good roads here, just  as it is throughout Austria, and there is an  effective rail network too. The surrounding landscape is simply majestic, with a vast mountain range that  rolls on and on and on. Very soon we were parked in front of  the upside down house, which is truly upside down,and was consciously built in this  fashion.
A  fee of 6 euros has to be paid before you are allowed in, and you don’t really mind, as the house itself is a huge story for anyone to explore. The building  reverses established concepts of what a house looks like, or should look like. It is  a fully furnished upside down house  with a roof upon which it rests. The reader would easily understand that the foundation for the house, now faces the skies. You expect a table to be on the floor, but in this reversed world, the tables are  on the ceiling.

The toilet is not on the floor, instead it is attached to the ceiling. The cooker  as well as the bed for the children, are  also fixed to  the ceiling, rather than  the floor, and all of these  points would  upset any parent, if there were any real occupants of the house. The car in the garage is attached to  the ceiling too, making it a driver’s nightmare. Every single item of furniture is put in  a place, where, ordinarily, it shouldn’t  be found, and all these  combine  to fascinate  and stun the visitor, whether young or old.

There is a lot of humour here given the impossible rearrangements relating to the furniture, which have been made in the house. For instance, the toilet is upside down. This is a world where every concept that relates to a dwelling place, is reversed, and this may hint at the  increasingly complex, decadent and odd world in which man finds himself today. The house certainly succeeds in making the visitor to reflect on  modern life. The upside down house of Terfens was  built by Irek Glowacki and Marek Rozhanski, two Polish architects who spent eight months  building the structure, which is simply conceived as a tourist attraction  for  the area. Later, I met a fellow Nigerian and happily told him about the house. He  cringed and said that the project is a sign that the architects have  a lot of money to waste. I didn’t share his  view, because  I see the house as  a work of genius, a festival occurring in architecture which mirrors  the disordered and impossible world in which modern man lives.

Let the reader consider whether  the house is a  splendid mirror of the modern time, a  physical  Ode to madness, and therefore deserves the highest praise, or whether it is simply a waste of money. If you visit Austria’s upside down house, be prepared for  the  dizzy spell which sometimes comes upon visitors as they navigate this  witty upside down world, which a Bat would have no problems with.
Post Script: When I had concluded my visit to the remarkable house, my world turned upside down. This was because I was having a difficulty getting a taxi to return to the Grail Settlement. I stood by the road,and gently rebuked my inquisitive nature  which got me to the house in the first place. I was a bit troubled because I cannot speak much German. Would I meet someone who understood English? It was then I came across Mr Hannes Niederlechner who, fortunately, speaks English. After  listening to me, he immediately offered to drive  me  at no cost all the way to the settlement, since it was difficult getting a taxi from the point where we were. He mentioned this to his wife, who then  waved a friendly greeting to me.

So off we went with his happy son sitting at the back of the car. I was so glad that I had come across such a nice, friendly soul in a country I was visiting for the first time. With such kindness extended to me, why won’t I develop  a good  impression of Austrians? I look forward to my next visit to Austria, when I will go over to greet the friendly Niederlechner’s.