Retro-Trip: Austria 1983

Salzburg & Vienna

Salzburg

Where our 1983 European Adventure truly kicked off.

Eurail pass in hand and without hotel reservations, our youthful optimism guided us in knowing that finding a place to stay was only a matter of time. Soon after arriving, we met a woman at the train station who offered us accommodations in her "pension" (pronounced "pen-see-own").

The view from our Salzburg pension

Truth be told, the 'pension' was a room in her house and was located a little outside of Salzburg but it was comfortable and nothing that a bus ride couldn't fix to get into town. It was also my first experience sleeping on a feather-bed with a duvet. For that, I am eternally grateful.

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Eurail Pass 2013: You have to purchase them before you leave - outside of Europe. We purchased our train passes for Spain from Rail Europe two years ago and found the company was great to work with. No snags. 

There are several different types of Eurail passes. The "Global" Eurail pass offers unlimited travel on the national rail networks of: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland (includes Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland), Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey. 

• The continuous pass is available for 15 days, 21 days, 1 month, 2 months or 3 months.
• The flexipass is available for 10 or 15 days of travel within a 2 month period. 

Prices are depending on the type of pass you want and for how long you want to use it but they are a great value.

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Back to Salzburg: The Salzach river divides Salzburg. One side is contemporary and modern, the other side, Old Town (or Altstadt), is a World Heritage site, preserving the 17th century (!) Baroque architecture.

The Salzburg Wine Festival just happened to follow Oktoberfest.
Who knew?

Drinking with new friends at The Salzburg Wine Festival

Salzburg - divided by the Salzach River

Baroque Architecture of "Old Town"

Chalk drawing on the street - before it was cool.

"Sound of Music" castle

Vienna

I have always thought of Vienna as "the most romantic place in the world". Cobblestone streets, lit up at night with gas lanterns - outdoor dining on the sidewalk. Imagine, Medieval and Baroque architecture, classical music, opera, The Danube and The Waltz. You just can't get any more romantic.

The Danube

One day, Mr. Something and I will travel to Vienna. 

I just know he will love it as much as I did.

Cafe Terrace at Night ~ Vincent Van Gogh

For some reason, when I think of Vienna, I think of this painting. 

A Parisienne scene, it always brings me back to Vienna.

Next Stop...Italy

Singing Along

Mystery Science Theater

So, I'm sitting in my local movie theater the other day enduring the pre-movie slide presentation when I notice amongst the ads for local dentists, realtors and laser hair removal salons, an invitation to "Come Sing-Along with Julie Andrews and The Sound of Music!"

OK. Let me get this straight. As a special one-night event, the movie theater is going to show the original "The Sound of Music" starring Julie Andrews. Everyone is invited to come and sing-along!

Don't get me wrong - I'm the first one to admit that I love a good sing-along (There's the Bathroom on the Right) but I am having a little trouble wrapping my head around sitting in the dark, surrounded by other strange singers,  and bursting out into..."Climb Every Mountain..."

Cringing at the thought of a crowd singing their own versions of "Edelweiss...", I understand that the lyrics will be displayed on the movie screen - thank God for small favors. Hopefully, the words will be spelled phonetically.


My question is...Who will get the party started?

I, for one have a hard time imagining that if I attended this screening, I would be the first confident sing-along-er to belt out, "The hills are alive, with the sound of music....la, la, la, la...." at full volume.

Will there be a leader? Someone in the front of the theater with a  little stick in their hand to help everyone with the tempo, perhaps?

At first, I blew off the notion of attending this event. Who in their right mind would want to sit in the dark with a bunch of strangers and sing? And then it hit me. OMG. It would be hysterical!

My plan is to call the theater to find out when it's showing and recruit other singers to join me. I can't do this one alone.