The Other Side

Day 107, Wednesday 3rd December 2008 (Cath)

Taking the train from Salzburg to Budapest, via Vienna, felt like closing the loop on our European travels. The one place we didn’t mean to leave out of the loop, but have had to because of limited time and money, was Slovenia – we have heard such good things about Ljubljana and Lake Bled that we are sad to miss it.

Before we wrap up the Salzburg section of this blog, I should emphasise that it is not (shock! horror!) all about The Sound of Music. It has a UNESCO World Heritage listed old town centre, it is the birthplace of Mozart, it is in the middle of the incredibly picturesque Salzkammergut landscape, and in the warmer months (unfortunately not now) you can explore ice caves nearby.

We had a great time wandering the streets and experiencing the European Christmas atmosphere for the first time, especially at night (which starts at 4:30pm, so there’s plenty of time). The Weichnachtsmarkt outside Schloss Mirabell and the Christkindlmarkt in Residenzplatz were our nocturnal hang-outs - you were most likely to find us standing with a warm mug of gluhwein in hand, listening to a choir sing, surrounded by fairy lights, then snacking on various kinds of wurst and donut pretzl. 

Mozart’s birthplace

Rugged up street cherub (don’t know if this really counts as a ’strange child mannequin’, as it is more like a statue, but I won’t keep Salzburg out of the competition on a technicality)

Poo Man – keeping the streets clean

Note: his bike/wheelbarrow is a good idea, but wouldn’t you want the poo-filled trough behind you? Perhaps here in Salzburg, even horse manure smells sweet.

The train to Budapest was pleasant en0ugh – sunny green rolling hills, villages and meadows, and an imperial city made up the world outside our windows before dark – and it was our last for some time. The next one we plan to catch will be in Egypt, which seems far, far away, but is really just around the corner.