Salzburg for a day!
I am in Salzburg! arrived last night after leaving Chicago Thursday evening, getting to Heathrow Friday mid-morning and then taking the coach to Stansted to get my flight here.
Today we:
* finally managed to work out how we are getting home from Croatia, yay! Instead of two ferries to get to Italy and then a plane to London, we are now coming straight back to Manchester from Dubrovnik, since Ryanair got stupidly expensive while I was (foolishly) waiting in the hope that it would get cheaper. Much relief.
* went to the Mozart House and Mozart's Birthplace museums, neither of which were in a particularly authentic state, though they contained some interesting relics and historical material. The latter in particular was more like an art installation than a museum: I failed to grasp the significance to Mozart's life of a flock of blue geese suspended in mid-air, winging their way across one of the rooms, and a slightly crazed-looking stuffed white rabbit concealed in a hole in the wall. And then there was the giant fluorescent writing on the wall that read (in translation) "Mother! I like to eat butter!". Hmmm...
* wandered around a very pretty churchyard and adjoining cemetery
* hired bikes and took a ride down by the river to Hellbrunn Gardens. I haven't been on a bike in years! but it was fun. The garden also contains the "I am 16 going on 17" pavilion from The Sound of Music, which is one of my Secret Cheesy Love films, so that made me happy :)
The Salzburg Festival started today and the town is full of tourists. Tonight's opening concert is the Vienna Philharmonic - it's been sold out for ages but they are televising it free on a big screen in one of the public squares, so we are going to watch that - and then our train to Zagreb leaves at 1:30am. Next stop: Croatia!
Today we:
* finally managed to work out how we are getting home from Croatia, yay! Instead of two ferries to get to Italy and then a plane to London, we are now coming straight back to Manchester from Dubrovnik, since Ryanair got stupidly expensive while I was (foolishly) waiting in the hope that it would get cheaper. Much relief.
* went to the Mozart House and Mozart's Birthplace museums, neither of which were in a particularly authentic state, though they contained some interesting relics and historical material. The latter in particular was more like an art installation than a museum: I failed to grasp the significance to Mozart's life of a flock of blue geese suspended in mid-air, winging their way across one of the rooms, and a slightly crazed-looking stuffed white rabbit concealed in a hole in the wall. And then there was the giant fluorescent writing on the wall that read (in translation) "Mother! I like to eat butter!". Hmmm...
* wandered around a very pretty churchyard and adjoining cemetery
* hired bikes and took a ride down by the river to Hellbrunn Gardens. I haven't been on a bike in years! but it was fun. The garden also contains the "I am 16 going on 17" pavilion from The Sound of Music, which is one of my Secret Cheesy Love films, so that made me happy :)
The Salzburg Festival started today and the town is full of tourists. Tonight's opening concert is the Vienna Philharmonic - it's been sold out for ages but they are televising it free on a big screen in one of the public squares, so we are going to watch that - and then our train to Zagreb leaves at 1:30am. Next stop: Croatia!