I love traveling and want to see as many places as I can. But there have been only two destinations that were 'musts' before I die. One was to go to Tahiti for my honeymoon. And the other was to visit the city from the Sound of Music. Now that I have done both, I can die a happy lady! And I am happy to say that both exceeded my expectations. And for those of you who don't know, The Sound of Music is my all-time favorite movie.
We took a one and a half hour flight to Salzburg on Friday night. We were staying in the center of town which was only three miles from the airport so we decided to take the bus to our hotel. We were congratulating ourselves the bus ride over for being such great travelers, not needing to take taxis, but doing as locals would do. Of course our bragging lead to our downfall. We got off the bus at the train station which, according to the map, was right near our hotel. The problem was it was late. And it was pouring. And there were no street signs. Twenty five minutes later, after several wrong turns, we arrived at our destination, soaking wet and a little grumpy. Our moods soon changed however when we realized that there was an authentic Austrian restaurant right in our hotel. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner (schnitzel for me, goulash for Dan) and really good Stiegl beers with a tasty apple strudel for dessert.
The next morning, much to my dismay, it was still raining (the weather report said it was supposed to be a sunny 70 degree day). This couldn't be happening! We were to go on the official Sound of Music tour that morning, and it would be ruined in the rain, especially since I only packed open shoes and no umbrella (I found out later from our tour guide that Salzburg is the 8th rainiest city in the world. I should have done more research). In the end though it was fine as the tour mostly involved driving to different places.
Honestly the tour was only OK. We did see a lot of cool places; the Palace they used for the back of the Von Trapp house, the gazebo where Lisel and Ralph danced, and the abbey where Maria was almost a nun. But you couldn't go in some of the places so that was a bit disappointing. I do still recommend the tour however, as it took you to the lakes and mountains region of Salzburg which was gorgeous. It was there where we stopped in this charming town called Mondsee. This is where the scene of Maria and the captain getting married was filmed. The tour ended at the entrance to Mirabell gardens. This was when the day got better. The sun came out and the gardens, one of the most recognizable sets from the movie, were spectacular. There numerous wedding photography sessions happening and I understand why. The gardens were beautifully manicured with stunning fountains and statues. It was the highlight of my trip to Salzburg.
After wandering around and taking a ton of pictures, we headed to the town center. We grabbed a sausage and a hot dog from a street vendor and walked all over admiring the beautiful architecture. We saw a few more places from the movie and hiked to the top of the fortress and were rewarded with a awesome view of the city and the Austrian Alps. Even if you've never seen the movie, I highly recommend going to Salzburg, it is such a gorgeous town.
It was time now to do something for Dan. I had done some research prior to leaving and found out about a beer hall a little off the beaten path. Augustiner Beer Hall did not disappoint. It had all these different food stalls, where you could get anything from sausages to roast chicken to creamed herring. The only beer they had however, was of course Augustiner, which luckily was pretty good. The place was huge, with three different rooms that had a capacity of over a hundred and a massive outdoor garden. We choose a specific room however because they were going to be showing the Champions League Final between Barcelona and Manchester United. Now I really don't care for football, but it is fun to go out to a pub to watch it as people get so into it. Even though they weren't Austrian teams, everyone had a team they were rooting for and it got really loud. We stayed for the entire match eating, drinking, and cheering. In the end Barcelona won, as did I, as I had made a bet with Dan. I'll be collecting on my mani-pedi shortly (Full disclosure, I only like Barcelona because they don't have a paid sponsor on their jerseys. Instead they promote the charity UNICEF).
The next morning it was time to head to Vienna. We took a train and got there in about three hours. I wish I could say I enjoyed the beautiful Austrian countryside along the way. But the truth is I had one too many Augustiner's the night before and mostly slept. Oops. When we got there, it was a gorgeous day, 75 and sunny. Vienna was absolutely amazing. I had no expectations as I was mostly looking forward to Salzburg. But Vienna was equally stunning. It reminded me a lot of Paris, with gorgeous buildings everywhere you turned. Quickly I was sad we only had about 24 hours in the city. We wandered around and happened upon a festival where there was lots of food, activities for kids, and music. We enjoyed some more street food, spaetzle for me, and no surprise, more sausages for Dan, and delicious Viennese coffee. I'm not much of a coffer drinker, but I would be addicted if I moved to Vienna. The way they make cappuccinos is amazing, they are so rich and creamy, probably because they use whipped cream! We made our way to the Art History Museum which was really impressive, not only for the art work (from paintings by Rubens to Egyptian mummies to Roman jewelry) but for the building itself. It is a must see. We ended our day with another fine meal in a charming Austrian restaurant where I had spaetzle again, with cheese and fried onions, and Dan had the Viennese specialty of boiled beef.
The next morning we headed to the Hofburg Complex where we had only time to visit the Palace where the Hapsburgs once lived. This was a real treat as I love looking at fancy houses. I was not disappointed, but left wondering what did they really use all of those rooms for? We then headed to a cafe to sample some of the cakes that Vienna is famous for. I wanted to ordered everything on the menu. Instead I settled for a cappuccino, a sacher torte (chocolate cake with apricot filling), this strawberry mouse concoction in a cone I don't remember the name of, and a side of their famous Viennese beef soup. A weird combination I realize, but honestly one of the best meals I have had in my life. didn't come to Austria thinking I'd love the food, but everything I ate there was amazing. I'm already eager to find an Austrian restaurant here in London. We had only time to take a quick look at the Danube River before heading to the airport. I left Vienna eager to come back again soon. It was another amazing trip, I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to get to have all these wonderful experiences. And it's not over anytime soon, as we are going to Kenya in July and Copenhagen and Portugal in August. Stay tuned!
Pics here: Austria
Shoulda done the walking tour of Lomography HQ
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