cathedrals – Growing With Leala

After a couple hour bus ride I am in Austria. I arrive first in Salzburg, the former roman settlement run by an archdiocese. It flourished in salt mining riches and at some point was part of Bavaria. Eventually Salzburg was annexed into Austria where it remains today.

Salzburg is also the birthplace of Mozart and where he spent his early years before he wandered off to Vienna to make money.

But what many from the USA know this city for is from a little musical called Sound of Music that was filmed here. The musical was a childhood staple and is the focus of a tour I attend (more on that later).

I am a week too early for the Salzburg music festival which is disappointing or fortunate depending on the way you look at it. I think it would be neat to attend some performances but the crowds would get on my nerves.

I book a boutique hotel from my credit card points and I have been having good luck when I do that lately. I am staying at a really nice hotel on the river in a room overlooking the river and fortress.

I make dinner plans at a trendy restaurant that just happens to be the oldest restaurant in Europe called St. Peter Stiftskulinarium. But before that I explore the area a little and pop in some churches.

Stiftskirche St. Peter (St Peter’s Abbey)

I am dinning outside today but apparently there are historic rooms you can dine in. I could not figure out how to get reservations specifically in those rooms. Dining outdoors is nice but it could be any trendy restaurant in any city. The steak I ordered is slightly overlooked. I am so used to restaurants undercooking my steak I wasn’t expecting this one. I guess order steaks rare if you dine here. The menu has many other interesting dishes as well but I have my heart set on some red meat for some reason. I guess its been a while since I’ve had a steak.

After dinner it is still early so I walk around town and end up in the cemetary of St Peters church. It is quiet and calm due to the tour groups gone for the day and it is probably one of the most beautiful, but small, cemeteries I have ever seen.

Spent some time browsing on Getreidegasse. I admire the clothing styles and store signage.

I walk along the river and enjoy the sunset.

Finally I enjoy the evening view from my hotel room. I think I’m really going to like Salzburg.

My driver drops me off outside the old city gates. We have driven through beautiful fjord looking mountains surrounding a bay. As we get closer to Kotor the traffic gets worse and I see a large cruise ship ahead.

I grab my bags and go in the old city to meet the owner of the apartment I am renting. I am starting to second guess my visit to this town. Crowds are thick with groups doing day tours of the town. I’ve been communicating with the apartment owner by WhatsApp who tells me to wait in front of a church. A boy appears with an older photo of me on his phone “Is this you?” Yes and so I follow him. I am following a little boy to my apartment apparently. I meet his mom. She says he is 7 and she is teaching him English and often sends him on task; a point that is reinforced when he comes to collect my payment later.

I settle in and decide to eat and walk the city walls. The lady at the apartment tells me I am visiting on a holiday time. Many businesses will be closed the next two days, including grocery stores. She tells me that most of the restaurants in the old city are rip offs and not really good but then tells me most things outside the old city will be closed so I really have no choice, do I?

I eat at a lackluster place and then wander around. I start to notice all the cats. I think I read about the cats in my research but perhaps I forgot? Anyway this town is a holiday getaway for many including cruisers, people from nearby Balkan countries and until lately Russians. Despite the slow down it is still pretty busy here, luckily it does ease up a bit during the week.

This town is almost at the coast, actually a bay. The country once was part of Yugoslavia. It held onto the membership more than some but is now independent like all the other former Yugoslavia nations. It is facing some of the same problems politics wise as its neighbor, Bosnia and Herzgovina.

I end up going a wine tasting at a little bar. I had wanted to buy a bottle to take back to my apartment but all the wine shops are closed for the next couple days. Luckily I get a discount on a local bottle of wine. I sip this bottle for the next couple days. I also try a chardonnay that I can handle since it usually is not my favorite. I am also introduced to grapes I know nothing about.

The next morning I let myself sleep in so its too late to start and ascent up to the fort up the mountain. The heat gets unbearable to do the climb if you attempt it too late. I decide to take the day off today because tomorrow I have a very long day tour scheduled. I do go out to eat meals and walk along the city walls late in the morning but I am not doing any planned sightseeing today. In fact I use this time to pay bills and follow up on future travel arrangements. I forgot to schedule days off to do these things so days off have to be forced.