Friday, July 30, 2010

Charming Salzburg

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I know you are a bit sick of my trip photo posting Scheiße, but I took so many photos and what else am I going to do with them? I'm going to do exactly what I said I was avoiding the first time and post mostly tidbits of the city...vignettes, flowers, city views.
I'm a fickle woman, k? I decided we (mom, dad, mich und sister) most definitely get boring faster than old European towns that people travel to see year after year. I hope you find them enjoyable.

Apart from being as hot as hades, I found Salzburg to be quite delightful. I had read in Bill Bryson's book (post with excerpt here), that he found Salzburg to be affectedly dainty and full of tourists. Full of American tourists (groups of them) it was. I had not heard that much English being spoken around me in so long. Honestly, I'm glad Graz isn't a tourist destination. It does get annoying.

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(across the bridge from the old town...away from tourists)

To be fair, I just reread Bryson's description and he does say once he got off of the main street and old town district, he found he liked the city much better. I agree. The main shopping street is just SO crowded (and so melty hot), it kind of takes away from its charm.

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(Main street)

And all the hanging curly iron signs are not original. So, I see why he calls it "twee" or affectedly dainty. Take a look at McD's...

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Pretty Hotel Sacher on the Salzach River

But, it's still dang darn charming. I've shown you this café before, but I must show it again. I want to live here.

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I'll even bunk up outside under a green & white striped umbrelly, put pink flowers in my hair and sip on a coffee extraordinaire.

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Up on the fortress.

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One of the best things we did, suggestion courtesy of my brother and Linds (they were here a week before us), was to take a Sound of Music tour. For one thing, it was in an air-conditioned minivan...hallelujah. For another, we would have not seen the best part of Salzburg: the lake district in the outskirts of the city...otherwise known as the Salzkammergut.

The salt we use at home does come straight from this area. And I use me lots of salt. When we first got to Salzburg, I asked Molly, "Do you know what Salzburg means?"..."no"..."well Salz...pronounced "saltz" is "Salt!"..."right!"..."Salty Burger!" all excited like she's so clever...."umm..no, hahaha". (try salt mountain)

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They used two houses as the Von Trapp home in the film. This one was where all the 'back of the house scenes' were shot.

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You know this scene.

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Beautiful Lake Fuschlsee.

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We rode a luge ride out here. Here is mom being pulled up the mountain backwards.

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We met some friends on our tour and had lunch with them afterwards. Megan and Sam from Florida.

Don't think for one second we didn't sing the famous movie tunes in the car while driving through the hills (which were totally alive) with the help of a Sound of Music karaoke CD. Our driver was actually damn good!

We also saw the church where the famous SOM wedding takes place:

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This is the little town.

Our hotel had no air conditioning and was much hotter (and stagnant) than being outside. Every night my mom tried new solutions (and def. kept us informed)...opening the window wider, narrower, keeping the hall door open, probably even fanning herself with her beloved iPad...all to no avail. Then one night, by golly, she got it...she came dashing into our room and said "I've got a trick!"

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She bounced on our windowsill and started trying to pull the transom window (over the main window) open. It seemed stuck (really she was doing it wrong), so she was pulling with all her might swinging her little self back and forth. The window below her was open and Molly goes "MOM! You're gonna fall out the window!" Mom didn't care...she was determined to make us 1 degree cooler. We got a quick shot of her and she started laughing so hard tears streamed down her face.

And I'll depart on that note. Schones Wochenende.


Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Vienna : Last Day

Day 3 started out with a Vanilla Latté at Starbucks (something Graz doesn't have), a walk through Vienna's Stadtpark and a viewing of the crazy Hundertwasserhaus:

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"The Hundertwasserhaus features undulating floors ("an uneven floor is a divine melody to the feet"), a roof covered with earth and grass, and large trees growing from inside the rooms, with limbs extending from windows. Hundertwasser took no payment for the design of the house, declaring that it was worth it, to prevent something ugly from going up in its place.

Within the house there are 52 apartments, four offices, 16 private terraces and three communal terraces, and a total of 250 trees and bushes. The Hundertwasser House is one of Vienna's most visited buildings and has become part of Austria's cultural heritage."

-Wikipedia

Afterwards, Molly and I headed to the Prater Amusement Park for a change of pace. Not sure where Mom and Dad went.
possibly to get some Red Bull?
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I would not, could not ride this cute ferris wheel (the carts sway in the wind as it goes (terrifying) and they are small!) Molly was shocked my heights phobia has grown so fierce. I was even scared of a simulated flight ride...in a theater. yikes.

Photobucket Just looking at these things made my feet feel funny. Is that normal with a fear of heights? Seriously, this just developed in the past 3 years. Art has to comfort me during turbulent flights...tears usually start aflowin'.

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I'll give this 'sh*t-on-a-stick' a big hell na.

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The ride we took, that, at first, seemed like a baby rollercoaster (and pretty much is). It scared the dickens out of me. It looks like your cart is going to roll off the side when you do those stupid turns, of which there are like 6, and you feel your crusty cart tipping when you do. I would shift my body weight while turning, like that would keep us from flying off. Molly was laughing the entire time I was shaking with fear and trying to keep my purse in for dear life.

Poor Molly (whatever, I was her personal photog) just wished she had known of my irrational fears before we embarked upon our journey out to Prater Amusement Park. Thing is, I didn't really realize what had become of me. I haven't been to an amusement park in years. I used to ride everything and LOVE it (The Looping Starship at Astroworld always freaked me out though.)


We stopped by the Rathaus. The summer film festival was still going on.
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We got ourselves a tomato, basil, mozzarella crepe fresh off the grill. Genius idea and cute booth to boot!

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Don't you dare put that Nutella on my wondey crepe.

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Feeling (and looking) the typical crust sensation after a day at an amusement park. Found a delightful home store to ease my pain. Prices caused pain to return.

Then one last dinner just the four of us. :(
We found a delicious outdoor Italian place.
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Ich und meine Mutter.

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Vater und dat Mädchen.

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We ditched those 'rents and went to have a drink and read some German tabloids.
"Sie suchen nach Liebe" - "Liv Tyler is lookin' for love"...possibly in all the wrong places.

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Before retiring in our hairball headboard hotel bed.

Gute Nacht, Wien!

Monday, July 26, 2010

"Poser"

Before I go onto Vienna: Day 3 and possibly bore you, I thought I'd interject a little sass and semi-silliness.

If you've been reading my crud for awhile, you know that I love my interior design blogs. I've always loved stuff like that...used to watch at least two HGTV shows a weekend, would inspect my Domino, House Beautiful and Cottage Living magazines before bed at night and would always be doing some DIY up in my tiny apt. I hadn't discovered blogs until I moved over here and once I did...whoa. Lovin' 'em.
Feel inspired and at home amongst them. Other people have design neurosis too and it's all there for the viewing!

Now, my sister Molly feels the same way, but about fashion blogs..namely one in particular: Cupcakes and Cashmere : one girl's blog about her love of fashion and baking.
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Emily (love this pink outfit) of Cupcakes and Cashmere. (her photo, of course)

At first, I discouraged her admiration, saying it's pretty narcissistic when girls post pictures of themselves and what they wear everyday and the brands, etc., but I eventually sorta caved in. I do like this particular blog and I like this blogger's personality..and she throws in some interior design too.

So, for fun and the sometimes needed sight-seeing break, every now and then, we'd stop for a mini shoot "Cupcakes and Cashmere style" and I'd have to give it my best with the camera I know so little about. Many photos came out maddeningly blurry. Molly didn't necessarily dress in her finest for these since we were HOT and in travel mode, but we went with what she was wearing and used the character-filled streets and gorgeous scenery of Austria as our backdrop.

And, we laughed at ourselves while doing it, for sure.

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overdid the blurry background bit

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This lovely café is the main focus, make some like this in the States people!, but you can see Moll up the swirly stairs.

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actually not posed. makeup-free edition.

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(picked up a glass for a prop and we both cracked up)

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(this is for you, "Rachel in England")

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lipgloss application : a fine moment
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again, beautiful scenery too blurred. dangit.

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Molly wanted to try her hand behind the lens. (First rule Moll: tell me there's a big pole jutting out from behind my head. And possibly I look like Laura Ashley on parade. Danke.)

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I told her to look at the bubble chandelier, (so stupid!) and we got a pretty dumb photo, naturlich!

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a fun display

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at the Prater Amusement Park in Vienna. Inspired by Emily's carnival-themed photoshoot, but definitely not in her league. Not you Molly, just our imitation pics...we needed one of those lollipops or some cotton candy. ha.

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I realize these photos are nowhere near as wondey as the ones on C&C, but we had fun and I learned a little more about shooting pics...and really mostly realized there's so much more I need to learn and photography ain't all that easy, folks.

As for Molly, and I'm doting on my little sis here, just so you know she's not just another fashion obsessed teenage girl...when she got home from this trip several days ago, she received her class rank: 1 out of 520-something. Tied with 15 other valedictorians. VERY proud of all her hard work. Love you and miss you sis!