Friday, September 16, 2022: Day 3
The Sound of Music Tour was fun. Betsy knew it would be fun, which is why I booked it, and I was enthusiastic on her behalf. Truth is, I’m not certain I have ever seen the movie all the way through. I’ve definitely seen lots of bits and pieces, but after this experience, I’m going to watch it when we get back home. Betsy watched it the day before we left so she would be prepped and ready.
She really didn’t need to do that. The movie plays a role in her childhood. She remembers when her mother took her to see it in Knoxville in 1965. They were there because her brothers were playing in a football tournament and Clemmie (known as Bubba to her family) wanted to see the movie so she took along her eight-year-old daughter. The gold curtain opened in the big city screen and both Clemmie and Betsy were enthralled. After that, Betsy got the movie album soundtrack and learned all the songs. She also had the sheet music and learned to play her favorites on the piano. Sometimes her brother Cleve, a gifted pianist, would play the songs and she would sing and he would gently tease her about how she sang with a Julie Andrews accent. She and one of her childhood friends would play in the living room imagining they were in the gold ballroom of the Von Trapp mansion. And her sister June is such a fan of the movie and of Julie Andrews.
All of that came back to her yesterday on the tour bus and remembering that experience with her mother and some of those sweet childhood times brought a tear to her eye, which brought a tear to mine. It wasn’t a campy tour, though the guide injected some humor. It was more informative about the making of the movie and of the true story of the Von Trapps. And, of course there was music from the movie and Betsy sang along with the rest of the singers on the bus. She sang the best and that’s not me being biased.
One unexpected part of the experience was the drive out to the lake country. The church used for the wedding in the movie is located in charming Mondsee, so that was one of the stops. It’s about an hour from Salzburg and we stopped at an area where Betsy and I will be visiting as part of our walking holiday in just a few days. It was gorgeous and such a perfect preview to what’s ahead for us.
We are excited about seeing a lot more of the lake country in the coming days.
As for food, we did not plan well yesterday. We skipped breakfast because we were late getting out of the room and had to practically run to make it to the tour bus on time. There was a stop for a snack at the wedding church, but we lingered too long looking around the little village and by the time we ordered something to eat, it was too late. We paid in advance for the food so we could leave in a hurry, but the food didn’t show up by the time we had to leave. Our money was wasted and our stomachs were growling. Fortunately, we had a couple of those small sized Kind bars to keep us from getting hangry.
At the end of the tour there was an option of going to Mirabellegarten, part of a palace in the New Town. Betsy opted in while I opted out and returned to the room.
Time to find food. When we were seated in a nearby restaurant, a couple who sat behind us on the tour bus came in but there were no tables left, so we invited them to join us. They were appreciative and the four of us had a great conversation throughout dinner. They are from Calgary, Canada and both retired and have been traveling the last six weeks in Switzerland and now Austria. They will visit Budapest, Venice and then end up in Florence to attend a family wedding. We very much enjoyed their company.
The weather has finally turned fall-ish so today seemed like a good time to try an Australian specialty, goulash, which seems to be a form of beef stew with a big bread dumpling. Betsy ordered a salad and some beef broth with a cheesy bread dumpling.
After dinner, we decided the Italian tradition of a stroll after dinner, a passeggiata, was in order. We walked through Old Town and then crossed the river and walked through New Town. We did a little bar hopping and stopped in a fancy hotel bar first.
Before we crossed the river back to Old Town, we came across a wonderful little bar in a thousand-year-old cave, Chez Roland. The bar has been open since 1924 and is known for its cool music, great service and cozy atmosphere. Given the napkin we saw at the fancy hotel bar and that we recently read somewhere that Queen Elizabeth sometimes enjoyed a glass of champagne in the evening before bed, we decided to have a glass in her honor.
We also stopped by an Irish pub just because that’s a tradition for us no matter where we are in Europe.
Back home and a great night’s sleep.
Next up: More Salzburg. Time to do the rest of the sites.
Kim & Betsy 