Middle Easterners descend on this idyllic Alpine town to escape the scorching summer heat

When the temperatures on the Persian Gulf reach into the hundreds, there is one spot localsprefer to escape the heat and it's not the beach.The sparkling lake of Zell am See in Austria has become an increasingly popular tourist destination for those seeking to avoidthescorching weather in the Middle East.In the summer, visitors from Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq, and Oman allflock to this idyllic land of clear mountain lakes,towering icy peaks, and authenticschnitzel.Each year, nearly 70,000 tourists from the Gulf States visit the Austrian Alps, bringingan appreciated economic boost to the region.Workers and residents of Zell am See happily welcome the yearly influx of Arabic travelersand are eager to share local customs and traditionsand learn a few themselves.Dutch photographer Marieke van der Velden recently teamed up with journalist Saskia Adriaens to document a summer inthis alpine wonderlandtouted as "the paradise" by travel agencies in the Middle East.She has shared these stunning images from her series "Das Paradies"with usbelow, along with captions by Adriaens.SEE ALSO:Stunning pictures expose the clash between modern life and native culture in GreenlandThis family comes from Saudi Arabia where it is now 122 Fahrenheit, which is why the family searches for cooler temperatures here. The youngest child does not like the cold.Khaled (policeman) and his wife Mariam (housewife) come from Dubai. Along with their four children Sumayah, Hamda, Abaid and Rashed, they have come for a ten-day holiday in Zell am See and following that a four-day holiday in Vienna. 'The children keep crying that their hands are cold,' Mariam says laughing.Mariam is not bothered by the cold and proudly shows her arms which have been beautifully decorated with henna.See the rest of the story at Business Insider NOW WATCH: People were baffled by 50 sharks circling in shallow waters off the English coast
Click here to read full news..