A Few of My Favorite Things

Once upon a time, Maria got the crazy idea of roadtripping through Austria. The idea gathered steam with her friends, and off they went in late October, seven friends, two cars, three days.

The voyage began with an all-night drive from Bologna to Vienna. Somehow they managed to make it through the long, dark hours on the highways and the busy, virtually nameless streets of rush-hour Vienna the next morning. They found a parking garage, and, not quite understanding how the tram system worked (a.k.a. how to buy a ticket) decided to trust their luck and ride it for free, which actually worked quite well.

Our seven young travellers found an ample breakfast in one of the charming Viennese Kaffeehausen, and then, charged up with coffee, they set off to enjoy the beauties of the former seat of the Hapsburg empire. White marble, green bronze, and gold paint covered each of the magnificent buildings in the historical section of town, and they stumbled upon an army festival, complete with pretzel stands and tours of helicopters. Michael and Rodolfo being vastly outnumbered by the five girls, the group chose to go on a tour of the Kaiserapparments, which included a large (which is hardly a large enough word to describe it) collection of flatware, an exhibition on the Empress Sisi, and a walk through the imperial appartments. Lots of gold, everywhere. For dinner the troop descended upon an unsuspecting little restaurant and ordered six weiner schnitzels. (Clare had to be unique.) Then it was back to the cars for a short little jaunt (three hours) over to Salzburg.

Our seven Americans were immediately taken with the city of Salzburg, starting with the hostel (it's called Jufa Hostel). Free breakfasts are priceless. Quite literally. Whereas Vienna was grand and impressive, Salzburg had more of a charming, lived-in feel.

The highlight of their Saturday was, of course, going on the Sound of Music tour with the lovely tour guide Sue, who led the bus in singing...well, maybe not. But they did see almost all of the places in which the classic film was shot, like the Mirabellgarten and the gazebo (which unfortunately was locked due to an eighty-year-old woman pretending she was Liesel and a broken hip)! And ate apple streusel. And learned interesting facts about the movie and Austria, such as: every third wall in Austria is yellow, and Gretel almost drowned in the boat scene. Next time you watch the movie, look for her, floundering in the middle of the screen.

That night they stumbled upon one a classic Austrian restaurant, and ate lots of bratwurst and other types of sausages. And Clare finally got weiner schnitzel. For dessert, a few brave souls tried the Sachertorte, a very compact chocolate cake.

Sunday morning, Michael and Maria woke up earlier than the rest of the group to "climb every mountain." They ended up on a ski lift that took them to the very top of the snowy Untersberg mountain, with breathtaking panoramic views of the countryside, dotted with quaint little towns. On the way down, they spied, high on the hill, a lonely goat. Julie Andrews would be proud.

Alas, the time had come to say so long, farewell, auf wiedershen, and goodbye to the lovely country of Austria. Back into the cars, trying to dechiper how the directions, written in Italian, drenched in crazy German street names, cooresponded to the poorly-marked road signs. They made it back to Bologna, and all lived happily ever after. Up until now, that is. The End.

Signed,

the Sengenblogger