(Happy Birthday Chip!!)
A rainy Saturday morning in Munich, Garry and I at the laundromat while the girls are back catching up on a bit of needed sleep!
When last we wrote there was one more morning ahead of us in Italy, then our journey to Austria to arrive that afternoon . . . we had it all planned out. As we're learning on this trip, every day brings the unexpected and the unforgettable and that Thursday was not to disappoint us - oh, the magic of traveling!!
"Rise and shine" went the wake up call that Thursday morning, up early for another homemade breakfast by Emanuelle at our B&B. The "rise" part was a bit challenging for the two youngest K's, however not as difficult as the "shine" command for the Venice sun! Convinced that a little rain waS NOT going to interfere with our plans, we set off for the train station in our now-familiar brigade - each of us in charge of our carry-on bag and a backpack. Walking the 1/2 mile over to the train station, with a full hour to go before departure and just a drizzle to contend with, made us feel smugly confident. We'd become such veteran travelers, or so we thought . . .
Ooops, what happened to that train we were supposed to take? That departure simply didn't exist on the message board at the station, instead it was replaced with a bus logo ?!? Ok, no worries - off to find the bus (that would then take us to the connecting train in 3 hours). If only someone at one of the FIVE ticket counters could've given us help that we could follow, we might've managed to find that bus before the monsoon blew in!! After finally finding another American family who shared the same frustration we were feeling, we found the right spot for the bus. Slight problem, all seats on the bus were taken - next connecting bus was not to leave for 5 hours, we lost our reservations on the connecting train to Austria, and the bus driver didn't think there were any open seats on that next bus either. To add to our drama, the wind and rain were now howling and we were without umbrellas (I know, Lucienne, I should've listened to your advice re: umrellas!), Kim's need for food was growing increasingly noticeable (can you say FDS, Mr. Lee??), and we had to walk nearly a mile back to buy tickets at the SAME TRAIN STATION that had previously told us to go over to the bus WITHOUT the needed tickets! After waiting in another line there for 45 minutes, we were helped by an incredibly kind ticket seller who managed to find our cherished 4 seats on the later bus!!! With that good news under our belts, we set off to find the much-needed food outside the train station . . . and back into the storm (complete with thunder and lightning by now!) Thankfully we were able to buy a couple of umbrellas, and then made our way back to the B&B we'd checked out of to store our bags and scrounge up some plastic trash bags to put over the girls and protect the backpacks with laptops inside. Now soaked to the bone (will try and attach a picture) and covered with garbage-bag ponchos we were definitely the conspicuous American travelers!! The happy ending to our story is that we had a crazy bus ride out of Venice and Italy in the pelting rain into Austria (didn't know buses could go that fast and squeeze through such narrow tunnels RIGHT NEXT To those huge trucks), followed by a lovely evening train ride into Salzburg. We had the entire firstclass car to ourselves for that 1 1/2 hour ride through the magnificent Austrian Alps, complete with castles and charming cottages out the windows!! All I could do to stop myself from belting out a few bars of "The Hills Are Alive" but, as you all know I'm no match for Julie Andrews - plus our Sound Of Music tour was still to come the next day!
After arriving in Salzburg we were ready to tackle our next rain-soaked trek to find our hotel - and the lure of McDonalds at 11:00PM (complete with ice in our drinks!) was too tempting to resist. Needless to say, by the time our heads hit the pillow that night we were zonked and we slept well with so many new memories to savor . . .
Friday in Salzburg did not disappoint - starting off with our Sound of Music tour. Does it get much better than that? Traveling through the charming town of Salzburg, visiting so many of the places where the movie was filmed, while listening to the soundtrack piping through the bus ... Wow! Jordan and Tyler,and be thankful you were spared the embarrassment of your mom singing along - especially when I serenaded Kara with "You Are Sixteen Going on Seventeen" . . . it was just too fitting. The apple streudel we devoured (in the little cafe next to the church where Maria and the Captain got married - and there was a couple getting married!!) was served by a waitress who looked just like Meredith Lee (yes, we have pictures to prove it!) and was one of our favorite treats so far. After leaving the tour, and having to pry mom off the bus, we set out to explore the massive Hohensalzburg Fortress overlooking the town. Tyler, add this to your "bucket list!" With our next train leaving at 5:00 we knew we had to maximize our few hours there and we did the very best we could. The Funicular up the steep, steep cliff into the castle was enough to send Kim and Kristen to the floor so we didn't have to look out and see how high we were going and how fast!! The actual fortress was very cool but we couldn't linger since the clock was ticking. A return trip to Salzburg (maybe even in winter) will be a must!!
Off to the train station, again, this time for our trip into Germany. The accomodations on the trains are fabulous, thanks to those of you who advised to travel firstclass - pretty nice way to travel. The views out the spacious train windows were beautiful throughout Germany, even as the rain continued. Once we got in, and found a Starbucks for Garry (there were none in Italy - oh no!) we managed to find our way to the hotel here. Soon after arriving, Kristen's friend Linda (from UCSB last summer) met us here. We're so happy to see her, and it's comforting to know she'll be with us through the weekend. For dinner last night we asked her to help us find an "authentic German restaurant" and after a lively conversation in German with our concierge, she hit the bullseye! THe Beer Garden was full of loud and jovial Germans, inspiring us to try some new German dishes. Danny, you'd have been proud of Kristen trying some goulash - she loved it! On the other hand, Kara's potato salad tasted nothing like any potato salad we'd ever had before - but the huge salty brezels (pretzels) made her happy, too. Strolling back to the hotel in the light, cool rain was the perfect cap to another incredible day.
Time to move the clothes into the dryer, then off to Dachau Concentration Camp. Should be quite a day . . . will write more later since we'll have wi-fi tomorrow.
Auf Wiedersehen!
