Back in Vienna.....what's the first thing I did?? Horsey time....take 2!! Every afternoon for 1 hour, the mares & foals are allowed out into a temporary paddock beside the stable complex. It was here that I spent 1 blissful hour sighing over the beauty of the horses, rattling off hundreds (yes, I mean hundreds) of photos & listening to poor Andrew shuffle from one foot to the other, check his watch & pray for it to all be over!! All too soon it was time to go & I consoled myself with my other great Viennese love - Aida. A chain of cake & pastry shops that are To-Die-For! Think less Cheesecake Shop & more Windsor High Tea....all take away. What was most exciting this visit was that it was 5 minutes before closing that we shimmied our way in the door & there it was....a hand written sign taped to the front of the display cases....HALF PRICE!! Yes, it was a blessing that I needed "just one more shot of the foal nibbling at the grass" cos we had timed our arrival perfectly. Of course half price just means I bought twice as much......dinner & dessert! I couldn't have asked for a nicer finale to our second visit to Venice....as it turns out, not a boring city at all!
Time for a new city though & now it was Salzburg's turn. Or should I say....now it was time for all things "Sound of Music"! A small detour on the way to Salzburg that I have to mention was Grannau. A tiny village really but what a gorgeous spot. Out the back of the hostel flows a jade green river of possibly the coldest water in the world! FFFFF....Freezing! The perfect place to spend a couple of days hanging out, riding bikes (well I wouldn't be riding the bikes...don't you remember what happened in China??), riding horses, cuddling the hostel cat, hiking & taking advantage of the movie lounge in the hostel. Sounds perfect right?? Well sadly we didn't time to stay overnight....Salzburg was waiting! Next time.....
Now, you can't really start your Salzburg experience without refreshing your memory of the movie that put the city on the map...The Sound Of Music (or in Andrew's case a virgin experience!). The hostel conveniently plays the movie at 2pm...EVERY DAY...(plus extra showings for interested parties!). It was with the sounds of 'my favourite things' still ringing in our ears that we boarded the Sound Of Music bus & were introduced to our all-singing, all-dancing guide. To add to the wonder of the day Andrew had been set a challenge. Sarah had challenged him to take to the hills, twirling & singing the movie's title song....more about that later though. As we travelled along the well beaten path we got to see the back of the house that was used for filming on the lake, the driveway that Maria runs down at the start of the movie, the gates & front garden (if you closed one eye & squinted with the other!!) of the front of the house, the glass rotunda used for the love scenes & then the finale.....the tiny town of Mondsee & the stunning church used in the wedding scene at the end!
Now I'm sure you're wondering when did Andrew do his singing?? Unfortunately there were 2 problems....firstly, it poured down with rain the entire day & secondly the "hillside" they used during filming is in Germany....hmmmmmm....So instead he donned his rain coat & sang & twirled his little heart out in a paddock on the side of the road! Very funny & just so slightly embarrassing!
We also heard a rather sad story about the glass rotunda while we were there too. Apparantly, a few years ago, an American lady wanted to recreate the scene where Leisel was dancing inside it with Rolf singing "I am 16 going on 17......". Anyway, unfortunately this lady had 2 problems....she was 86....& she forgot that in the movie Leisel used Rolf's knee to jump across the opening of the rotunda. So our American friend jumped, missed, landed on the concrete floor & broke her hip...whoopsies! Now, the sad part of the story is not that she broke her hip (well I don't think that's the sad part) but that she tried to sue the curator's of the rotunda....she lost, but ever since, the entrance into the rotunda has been locked....BOOOOO!! Now you can only take photos from the outside & there will be no more dancing!
Back in Salzburg itself there were many more landmarks that made it into the movie & we had a lovely day wandering around enjoying the scenery. Meanwhile it continued to rain!
I will remember Salzburg for 2 more things in particular....I finally had my hair cut after 4 months...YAAAAYYYY! ( Thank You Betty - who did an amazing job understanding my bad German & didn't shave my head or die my hair blue) ...& we discovered the most amazing produce market, right in the middle of town in the courtyard of a church. (You didn't think I could go to a new city & not write about the food did you??). At the market we ate giant pretzels, chocolate mousse, apple struddle, a custard pastry thing, deep fried french toast with some sort of savoury filling......delicious!! I could have spent hours there, wandering up & down, admiring the brightly coloured fruits & veggies & drooling over the endless cabinets of cheeses, breads & meats......oops, I think I just drooled on the keyboard!
It was with sadness that we left Salzburg. Although it is most known for the Sound of Music, it is actually a lovely little town filled to the brim with scenic spots, beautiful parks & gardens & a stunning river through the centre. Plus, despite their reputation (much the same as in Germany), the people were lovely & friendly. Alas, just as we settle into the rhythm on a town, it is time to move on......next stop...MUNICH....beer & pork, here I come!
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