Road Trip - Day 6 (Salzburg)

We are presently on the road through little mountain villages somewhere between Salzburg, Austria and Fuessen, Germany. It’s lovely and very rainy. Much of our day in Salzburg was spent outside with soggy pants and shoes while trying to navigate historic downtown Salzburg. But even with the nonstop rain we still quite enjoyed our time in Salzburg.

Thankfully, the hotel we stayed at in Salzburg was a drastic improvement from our hotel in Vienna (which is surprising when considering that both hotels are from the same hotel chain) and when we arrived in the evening our room was already set up for us (bunk bed for Atticus and a baby bed for Milayla). This was a huge relief as the previous hotel took nearly an hour to even track down their baby bed. Being able to sweep our children into their beds shortly after our arrival at the hotel made for a much better sleep for everyone and a very joyful morning.

We woke this morning to Atticus counting the cows on the walls in our bedroom. Yes, cows. It was a very classy hotel ;). After getting showered and dressed we were greeted with yet another lack luster breakfast but enjoyed having a small play area for the kids, along with the company of other travelers with young children, and a charming brother and sister from Australia. 

Then we headed into the historic downtown, first stopping at the Mirabelle Gardens. 

Once inside the Mirabelle Gardens, we danced and we sang because that is what any sane person would do (okay, so maybe it was mostly me who danced and sang, but Jason and the kids couldn't resist joining in a time or two). I am very deeply grateful for a husband and children who actually enjoy my random breakouts into song and dance as my outbreaks into song and dance in the gardens were certainly not an abnormal experience for me.

picture proof of my goofy hubby :)

In the gnome garden

so excited about meeting this guy

Picture proof that I was not the only one who did some dancing and singing...

There were certainly more musical outbreaks throughout the day as we visited places like Mozart’s former residence and his birthhouse, 

several churches and cathedrals, 

little shopping streets,

the home of Joseph Mohr where he penned the Christmas Song, Silent Night,

and then we traveled down the only road that used to connect travellers to Italy. It was a very narrow, little road. glad they have since upgraded.

view from the road

Then we headed into the historical town centre.

Mozart Square

We saw some more filming locations from the Sound of Music and even a nice museum about the history of the Von Trapp family (where they sell a family cookbook that I have my eyes on that I regret not having snatched up…another time). 

I had known that the Sound of Music broadway and movie had changed much of the story so it was very interesting to learn the facts. Maria was a very interesting and determined woman and I certainly admire that. I noticed many times throughout the museum that it was mentioned that her motto for life was “The most important thing in life is to find out the Will of God and then do it.".

Her resoluteness to that motto is inspiring. Her life was certainly a testament to her living true to her motto. I have filed it away to read more about her life and how she put this into practice. I certainly know she worked hard to build a strong family built on faith and knitted together with music. I have been feeling a pull lately to ensure that I know with resoluteness what my motto is as an individual and as a family. As a result, through much prayer and study, I believe that I have nearly completed my personal motto and Jason and I have made good headway on our family motto. Even though both mottos are still only drafts (and I am sure both will be tweaked throughout the years), it is amazing to see the difference that they have already made in our day-to-day actions, filling those actions with greater purpose and direction. It is much easier to say ‘no’ to the excessive distractions from time to spend together as a family when we have a clear direction and purpose in mind. Before I continue on more about personal and family mottos, I had better continue on about our day and perhaps save these thoughts for a post on their own.

the boys checking out the gorgeous Panorama painting inside the Panorama museum (the same museum that has the Von Trapp family history)

Our day was good. 

the horse bath; essentially a car wash for your horse

Mann auf Kugel

The historic old town of Salzburg is an interesting place to walk around as it is not littered with shops and fast food places like many other downtown areas. 

Instead, it is quiet and still, filled with original buildings that have been preserved and mostly maintained for their original purpose. 

this is the Salzburg Cathedral, where Mozart was baptized and where he was the organist for the church.

Something really cool about the architecture of the church and the statue is that they interact with one another. See how those angels are crowning the statue of Mary? You can't really tell by the picture, but the statue is quite the distance ahead of the church.

Where Mozart used to play

There are small cafes and restaurants that have been tucked into small corners here and there where you can try things like bread baked in a wood burning oven (from the oldest bakery in Salzburg), apple pretzels (or chocolate, or marzipan or even lebkuechen), Mozart Kugels (the originals which are blue and silver, not the red and gold you buy everywhere else) and Austrian dishes like Knoedel.

just plain cool.

inside another church. Cool roof.

I think he could pull it off. Handsome guy.

St. Peter's Cemetery. Probably most widely known as where the Von Trapp family hide in the Sound of Music, but it's a pretty interesting place on it's own. It's a pretty desirable place to be buried and people rent their plots here. It is up to the family to maintain the plot and if the rent stops being paid, the tenant is moved elsewhere. Mozart's sister Nannerl was buried here.

The Performance Hall. Another Sound of Music site; where Edelweis was sung before the ran for the hills.

"A few of my favorite things..."

When museums look this beautiful, you know it is a gorgeous town.

 It was all very enchanting, but my favorite part of our visit was the trip up to the Cliffside overlooking downtown Salzburg. We took a little trip into the mountain to go up an elevator to a beautiful lookout on the city. 

some gorgeous mosaics on the wall

waiting for the elevator

Even with the rain it was still a great city to look out upon. 

Even from up top though, there is no grandness to this city (quite the contrast to Vienna). It is calm and still. It is romantic and engaging. And even with the giggles and laughs mixed with tired cries from the kids, Salzburg seems to have played a song that we all heard and enjoyed. Perhaps the rain that soaked our shoes was the background music that allowed us to experience this city in its’ stillness and to feel the subtle magic of our surroundings. Ending our day just the four of us on top of the mountain seemed to be the perfect ending to a lovely day. We had fun admiring the view, 

taking pictures,

and making a little souvenier to take home with us. 

I love Milayla's series of facial expressions in these photos. She has one awesome love for exploring and discovery.

And with our decent back down into the mountain it was time to head back to the car and start on the road again. Though, I will admit I did get slightly distracted when we passed a store putting up their Christmas décor. I love Christmas and I love the new Christmas ornament that we all picked out for our yearly addition to the tree. It is a gold ball ornament with swirls that mimic a clef symbol that is sure to remind us of our trip and the magic of music. And as we walked back across the river we noted all the locks across the bridge. Something we will surely be asking some questions about to find out why they are there.

Loved our time in Salzburg.