The first night we explored the Old Town of Salzburg. It reminded us of a fancy area of Dallas or the Woodlands. There were a bunch of close together cafes and high-end clothing shops. We had dinner at a neat restaurant- the guys tried Austria's famous schnitzel. It's basically a thin slice of either chicken or pork, deep-fried.
Warning: this blog post contains A LOT of pictures.
View from the train to Salzburg.
View of Salzburg from main bridge.
The next morning was undoubtedly my favorite experience so far- the Sound of Music Bicycle Tour. The girls went on the tour while the boys, well, slept. Not only did we get to see so many of the sights where the movie was filmed and Julie Andrews sang her famous songs, but we got to ride bikes through the beautiful landscapes of Austria. We began in the Mirabell Gardens, then went up to the Nonnberg Abbey that was located in a hilly area filled with fragrant flowers and the brightest green leaves everywhere. We biked past blue-green rivers, a lake with swans, a poppy field, wildflower fields, and saw the Austrian, snow-capped Alps. The girls and I decided it's the prettiest bike ride we will ever go on. Our tour guide was the nicest man, and we got to enjoy the tour with two other families with 7 kids total. The tour guide has us reenact famous scenes in the movie in the places where they were filmed. It was the coolest thing!
"Do mi mi, mi so so, re fa fa, la ti ti!"
In the middle of the tour, we came upon a big festival in the Old Town square and took a picture with some Austrian guys in costume! There were horse-drawn carriages and canons being fired.
The fountain that Fraulein Maria splashed her hand in.
A view of the fortress in Salzburg.
The cemetery by the Nonnberg Abbey that Hollywood modeled their set after for the cemetery scenes in the movie. This cemetery still holds the remains of Mozart's sister and the oldest grave dates back to 1238.
View from above at the abbey.
At the spot where the Von Trapp children try to get into the abbey to find Maria. Phoebe is Mother Superior.
Inside the abbey. This is the oldest convent in Europe that is still running.
more views inside.
The back of the Von Trapp House where many of the outside scenes were filmed.
Bike ride view.
Front yard of Von Trapp house.
Just a view from my bike on part of the ride.
Julie Andrews vs. Us
Phoebe
Claire
Abigail
Mikayla
Gazebo!!
That night we had booked a three-course Mozart dinner concert at the Oldest Restaurant in Europe, Stiftskeller Das Restaurant. The restaurant dates back to 803 and the first documentation was when Charlemagne visited there! The dinner was very fancy- we all dressed up. They recreated a 1790's dinner, complete with candle lights, food from that time period, 18th century costumes, and a string quintet that accompanied two opera singers on period instruments! We all watched the movie Amadeus, a movie about Mozart's life, before we left, and being in the town where Mozart was born and lived made the dinner even more special. The only negative side was drinks were not included and there was no air conditioning, so we ended up buying six .75 liter water bottles at 6 euros each...you do the math.
Oldest Restaurant in Europe!
The three course dinner was 1780's style. Lemon Curd Soup with Quark Rosemary Dumpling and creme on top. Then Roasted capon (kind of chicken) breast with pumpkin ball, semolina strudel and vegetables from Father Prior´s garden. Last was dessert-A semi-frozen honey parfait with 2 kinds of fruit sauces.
The experiences in Salzburg were so different- historical, appreciative of God's awesome creation, and just magical.
No comments:
Post a Comment