Ich Möchte Mountains...

Dearest Readers,
My deepest apologies for temporarily vacating the blogosphere. Not to fear, I have returned and have brought some scenery to share with you that I believe will make the wait worthwhile. Last week, hubby and I spent five days touring around Austria and Germany with our friend Reuben. (When I string together a sentence like that previous one, I feel the urge to smack myself. Touring around Austria and Germany? Really? Who says that?) Anyway, thanks to Reuben's stellar German prowess, we accomplished the dual purposes of our trip: 1) meat, and 2.) mountains.

Along the way, Matthew and I attempted to pick up some helpful German phrases, but the only one that stuck was, "Ich möchte (insert direct object here)." Which means, "I want (and then add whatever you want)." So we wanted mountains. And meat. Mountains of meat? That might be taking it too far, although we did conquer a few too many schnitzel burgers and bratwursts.

But, enough jawing. You need photographic evidence of the mountains and the meat. Let's begin in Salzburg where we spent three glorious days surrounded by the Alps and The Sound of Music.

We took full advantage of the sun while it was out and started our venture at the Mirabel Gardens, which were near our hotel. (Please notice the tip of the MOUNTAIN in the background!) This gate was at the entrance to one end of the grounds, and it sat atop...

...the infamous "Do Re Mi" steps! Folks, you better be ready for some recurring references to the movie versions of Fraulein Maria and the Von Trapp children. There's a lot more where that came from.

 

Case and point: reference numero dos. Wish I had a bike handy while belting out, "Doe - a deer, a female deer!"

Matthew was quickly becoming sick of my Julie Andrews impersonations.

However, he recovered enough to pose with me near this beautiful magnolia tree.

Then, it was time to exit the garden through the swirls of lovely tulips and cross the bridge into the old part of town...

...where we passed the fanciest McDonald's sign ever...

...and a street performer who looked curiously similar to her canine counterpart. Eventually, we made our way to...

our inaugural meal o' meat.

Nothing better than food from a roadside stand. Less than an hour in Salzburg, and we had begun to fulfill the mountains and meat requirements. Off to a great start!

A few cobblestone steps later, I found the door of my dreams.

And then, we stumbled upon a really intense, giant game of chess.

These guys weren't messing around. I was slightly afraid both of what the bald man might do if he lost and how the older gentleman's health would be affected should he lose. All that worrying left me in need of some fuel. 

Luckily, this pop-up pretzel shop was nearby. Chocolate covered and filled with marmalade? Do you even have to ask?

Well, that pretty much wraps up day one. We had just enough sunlight left in the evening to get back to the Best Western and plan day two. The next morning was drizzly, but we weren't about to let that keep us down.

We went back into Old Town for Sunday morning brunch.

And then, it was time to go up. You might recognize this facade as the exterior of the festival amphitheater where the Von Trapps sing the (fake) Austrian anthem, "Edelweiss," and make their sneaky escape from the Nazi audience members. If you look closely, you might see the man at the base of the second stairway wearing traditional regional attire. Lederhosen, yah.

Climbing higher, we came upon views like this one. Not too shabby. I loved the oxidized copper domes and steeples.

Up further still was a great lookout spot. Made it just in time to hear the bells all around the city as they struck the hour. And yeah, that's a castle in the top corner. Apparently, it was a rarity in the castle world because it was never overtaken. If you could get a good idea of how steep that hill is, you would understand why.

Around on the opposite side of the hill we climbed were a few exceptionally quaint cottages. I think a hobbit may have inhabited this one at some point in time.

Pass the hobbit houses, and BAM! MOUNTAINS!!! Yup, we stood up there for awhile. Kind of takes your breath away. If this is but a taste of Switzerland, I should probably keep my inhaler handy on that trip. Don't be so distracted by the mountains that you miss the building above Matt's left shoulder. That is indeed the Villa Von Trapp. The outside of it anyway. This was where they filmed the exterior shots on the rear terrace of the house. And where all the kids got dumped out of the boat and into the lake.

There, zooming in a bit may help to jog your memory.

When we had sufficiently basked in the majesty of the mountains and vowed to climb them all, it was time for an afternoon snack.

Back down the hill toward the pretzel stand. I bet we single-handedly kept these guys in business during our time in Austria. This time we tried the doughnut flavored one. For the record, chocolate was superior by far.

Full bellies once more, we strolled through the cemetery where the Hollywood version of the Von Trapps hid in iron clad vestibules from the pursuit of the Nazis. Remember how Rolf ruined it by blowing the whistle? What a turd face. While there, we talked to a nice man who was wearing a Mizzou Tigers baseball cap. Small world. And of course, I gravitated toward the flower beds that were growing on top of the graves. I hope that doesn't make me disrespectful.

How could I possibly miss these pansies? I promise, I did not stage the water droplets. Pretty perfect, huh?

Exquisite. God is a genius. And He knows just how to get to me.

I liked these golden pom pom bushes. That's their scientific name, obviously.

Wowzers. Ok, that was the last one. But I could keep going. I'll spare you this time.

On that girly note, let me tell you about the most manly thing ever that you can look forward to about our third day in Austria: CLIMBING A MOUNTAIN! That's right. We followed our adventuresome little hearts 2,000 meters up a snow-covered precipice with inadequate footwear and lived to tell the tale.

Vintage Converse = Zero Traction.

 More to come soon. Gutenacht(?)