17 - 19 May 2013 - A captain with seven children, what’s so fearsome about that – I have confidence…

You may recall from my Christmas post that I had received the gift of music from S in the form of a trip to Salzburg to see the city and to relish in the magic that is the Sound of Music.  The trip was set for May and eventually the time came where we could pack our lederhosen, crisp apple strudel, girls in white dresses and our tea with jam and bread.

To celebrate the impending trip I couldn’t help myself but prepare by having an evening re-watching the film and enjoying my take on food to match.  So we had some “schnitzel with noodles” and “crisp apple strudel” which are two of my favourite things.  I am sure we washed it down with something, let’s pretend it was an Austrian white wine.  More likely French champagne but who is quibbling over attention to detail.  Schnitzel was homemade but I let the team down on the noodles and strudel which were store bought.  I know, not a good housewife….off to the cellar with me as they do in Switzerland.

It was an early start on the choo choo and our first part was on lovely Swiss Rail where we then met the Austrian train in Sargans.  Now, I refuse to become a trainspotter as well as a plane spotter but I have to say this was a cool train.  Seats on board were sensation in the Business Class section (which is actually a higher class than First Class) with onboard wi-fi and at seat service.  Poor S is having some back issues and struggled to find a comfortable position and in the end we resorted to the First Class section where the seats were better for him.  See the sacrifices I make!!!

After many hours being entertained by the train we arrived in Salzburg.  We took a cab to the hotel (Hotel Sacher Salzburg – think Sacher torte) and later we discovered that we probably could have walked it!  Oh well, live and learn!

Hotel was decked out in a very traditional style, golds browns, fleur-de-lis and wood – you get the picture! Taken up to the room and we were greeted by a sea of green.  The wallpaper, carpet and furnishings were all shades of it – I think Kermit the Frog had exploded!  That said it was a big room with a wonderful view over the river.  One odd aspect was the setup of the lounge chairs which all faced the bed and seemed to be like where an audience would seat themselves and watch your bed time activities….not ideal so I got in there and changed it around and made it much more appealing and functional.  Re-wallpapering was deemed out of the question.

After a brief reprieve from the arduous journey it was time to head out amongst the Salzburgers and see some sights.  I am obviously a complete luddite as I was not aware that Salzburg was also the home to Mozart and hosts two world class classical festivals each year.  Worse still one was on when we were there and we did not attend one event which I am sure S would loved to have done.  I felt that maybe this time it was a little too much being “all about me”! 

We managed to catch a couple of the SoM sights in town, mainly the steps from “Do Re Mi” and the archway they sing and dance through.  It was pretty neat to see it.  I even had a little jump on the steps and felt like Kurt and Friedrich.

Every day ends in a meal and this is no different.  I had found out about a restaurant called Hanger 7 which is out at the airport – please note AT and not IN – and owned by the owner of Red Bull.  It is a fine dining restaurant that has a different chef from around the world each month.  Our visit coincided with a chef from Bangkok.  Restaurant is set in a specially built hanger filled with aircraft and cars with Red Bull emblazoned over everything.  Not sure about you but I don’t think I have ever had a can of the stuff – maybe a taste.  Still, the world seems to have embraced this strange little drink that gives you wings.  So, it is another day and another degustation, this time, modern Thai.  Overall the food was great, with nicely matched wines and a pretty unique setting.

Next day was tour day!  We were met by Daniel (I think that was his name) to take us on our journey through the old part of Salzburg and hit the highlights from the Sound of Music.  Oddly enough Salzburg has mostly denied the existence of this stage play/film and many have not even seen it.  That said it brings over 300,000 visitors a year to the city just for that reason.  I think they need to open up and embrace it a little more.  It is based on a true story after all but most of the facts have been changed to protect the innocent and make the story more interesting.  Gotta love Hollywood.

SO (a needle pulling thread) we headed off to the old part of town through the winding alley ways.  I have to say for ME (a name I call myself) this was the best part of the tour.  We were lucky to get the odd RE (a drop of golden sun) of sunshine on the walk.  This included a stop at one of the town’s local bakeries where the DO (a deer, a female deer) is needed by the power from a waterwheel.  Our guide even treated us to some of the bread.  All it needed was some TI (a drink with….).  It was then off to the car which was not FA (a long, long way to run) from the city centre.  Even better it was a top of the wozza Mercedes S Class.  Very LA (note to follow SO) dida!!

Thankfully you now know all the notes to sing and I will continue to write any old thing!

So in the car we hopped and proceeded to drive to the place where the rear of the house from the Von Trapp’s is located. The pics will do it justice. It was then off to the church where the captain married Maria and made an honest women out of her – hallelujah!! I have to add that our guide knows the Von Trapp’s!! How cool is that. He hosts them when they return to Salzburg and has been invited to their hotel in Vermont, USA. I need to add that the Von Trapp’s actually fled Austria before the war started, went to Italy and then to the USA. A different ending to the movie…..

Once back at the hotel we had a late lunch/early dinner of schnitzel and an Austrian specialty dessert which is like a form of soufflé – yummo is all I can say – yummo!

Even though I mentioned before of the complete denial of the play/film this year saw the first time for the stage play being performed in Salzburg – there was an SBS special about it recently on TV.  Even better, we had tickets!!  S said that it took some effort to get these as the show was sold out.  I am not sure if he had to bribe someone.  To top it off we had fantastic front row seats in a box!  Very happy me!!

The performance was in German with English subtitles which for the most part were not necessary as I knew the story but was useful for a couple of added scenes and songs.  The Baroness sings in this version!  And of course there is no translation for that immortal line by Mother Superior….”What is it you can’t face Maria?”  It was a fun show and all finished off with a sounding rendition in English of Eidelweiss.  Stirred the cockles it did!

Our Sunday in Salzburg was reasonably leisurely and after a relaxed breakfast we ventured back to the old town to see if we could have a tour/viewing of the main concert venue.  It is culturally significant for the Salzburg Festival but also it was the last time the Von Trapp’s would sing as a family.  You will remember the scene like it was in a quarry with archways around the stage.  Have to say that it was pretty neat.

 
It was then time to head off on the Austrian Express back to Einsiedeln.  Pesky train was 30 minutes late which meant we missed some of our connections and arrived home about an hour after we planned.  IT was worth it though and what an amazing Christmas present.