Disclaimer:
We haven’t blogged in quite a while due to a myriad of circumstances. We hope to be able
to resume publishing blogs from time to time on our life here in the south of
France. But no guarantees that we can keep it going.
Today I thought I would
share our recent trip to Germany and Austria.
A reason to go
Due to my
being laid up because of my knee, we hadn’t been on any kind to trip for a long
time. So when Volotea (a low cost airline) offered flights to/from Munich for
19€, I jumped on it, never dreaming of the adventures to come.Volotea ad Germany and Austria are not the most popular destinations but we have been several times and love both countries. What's not to like: great hospitality, great history, art, music, culture, architecture, and all the wurst you can eat with great beer.
The first shock
was the costs of hotels in high season in Munich and Salzburg. We usually
travel in shoulder season when most tourists have returned home. Anyway, I booked
some well rated hotels and some train tickets for our further escapades.
The next
shock came when I checked in online for our flights on Volotea. In Europe,
there are many cheap airlines offering stripped down service and just a seat on
the plane. But Volotea took it to new heights. It is usual to have the airline
assign “potluck” seats free of charge. Volotea put Pat in the first few rows
and me separated in the last few rows. If you want to sit together, it costs more:
the cheapest seat is 11€ so I thought that’s not too bad. However all the 11€
seats were center seats, so
still no possibility to sit together. To sit together costs 17€ each so my 19€ seats
are now 36€. But what the hey! On the plane, a cup of coffee is 3.50 and a
snack 5.50, so we abstained.
Munich
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| Glockenspiel in the upper greenish balconies |
After a
S-Bahn train into Munich, we walked to our hotel. The area around the station
looks scruffy being populated with numerous shops and cafes catering to the Arab
community. While watchful, we never felt threatened and the people on the
street were courteous. After dumping the bags, we went for drink in a leafy Italian
jardin recommended by our host. Yet another shock when the
waiter shorted my change by 1€. Pat asked if I was going to leave a tip and I said
not now as he just took it for himself. The German at the next table started
laughing at us tourists being taken. I told Pat we are definitely not in Kansas
anymore. This happened twice more during our short visit to Munich.
We continued
to the main square Marienplatz and the Rathaus( city hall) and waited for the glockenspiel.
It didn’t happen and we were told later it only goes at 11A, 12A and 5P. So the
next day we planned to be there at 11.
Ludwigsburg
The day we
were there, there were sand sculptors making all sorts of scenes from pure
sand. It had rained in the morning and all the work had to be smoothed out from
rain drops pounding it. In all there were thirty sculptures planned with
several not yet started. Perhaps the most unusual was a sculpture of a roll of
toilet paper. (Who would think of TP as art??)
As we left
Ludwigsburg, a cloudburst with marble sized hail broke out. We had to wait in
the cab til the hail stopped and under a bus stop until the rain slowed so we
could get into the train station.
Back in Munich, we had three obligatory sites to click off our list. We walked down to Frauenkirche, the main cathedral in Munich.It had been totally bombed out during WWII and was but a shadow of its former glory.
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| Frauenkirche (Notre Dame de Munich) |
Continuing our stroll to Marienplatz, We found good cafe seats to view the Rathaus glockenspiel in action.
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Rathaus Marienplatz
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Youtube says it is overrated, but thousands congregate on the platz at each showing. video (right click)
Munich Glockenspiel We paid dearly for our good seats, about 11€ for a coffee and a tea.
Now for some real Munich, on to the ViktualienMarkt. A huge open beer garden and market, it captures the Munich experience better than all the rest. There are 12-15 food stalls offering German specialities such as kraut, cheese, wurst, pretzels,seafood, Asian and more. I think there were 4 beer stalls dealing beer in eine kleine or eine gross (1 liter) sizes. Even a Maypole!
In the service area, men and fraulein serve in traditional dress including lederhosen. In the open market there are gift and flower shops with an emphasis on cheese and wine gift packs.
You can select your food/drink and find a place on the wooden picnic benches, frequently with half drunk natives who are exceptionally friendly.
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| Looks better than it tastes (but I ate a few) |
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| Picnic Bavarian style |
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| Small beer |
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| Happy camper |
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| Asian Gambas |
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| Mushrooms and olives |
On to Salzburg
So goodbye to Munich for now. I had bought a Bavaria Pass which allows unlimited train travel within Bavaria but also extends to border towns such as Salzburg, Austria. on the platform at the staton, there was some confusion as our train should have used track 15 but at the last moment was changed to 16. But for some friendly natives who understood the announcement (when we totally missed it) we would still be sitting on the wrong platform.Pat found a train conductor who confirmed twice that this was the right train. However, when we were "controlled", it was decided that we weren't allowed on this train!! After much heated discussion among native speakers and the conductor (in our defense), he was insistent that we were not allowed. It seems this train was a slightly higher class of service than our passes allowed. So, at the next stop, we were summarily thrown off the train and told there would be a regional train coming soon. After 45 minutes the regional came and trundled down the tracks to Salzburg at 30-40 mph.
The first 1 1/2 days in Salzburg were a total washout. It poured rain from Thursday night to Saturday morning. We made the best of it by visiting 3 museums on Friday and dodging the rain between bars. The Shamrock Irish pub provided a welcome spot to watch France whip Uruguay in the World Cup. Dinner in a VERY traditional (lederhosen on all male staff) cafe was wiener schnitzel Salzburger and we were glad to be inside. We were on the bus to/from our hotel which was located on the outskirts of the city. Overall, the hotel was OK but we think it was located too close to a horse farm because the hotel was clean as a whistle but cursed with flies.
Saturday we headed for Hellbrunn Schloss (the king's summer palace and home to many scenes from The Sound of Music.
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| Sound of Music Pavalion |
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| These seats are tricked with water |
video here
village scene
. The grounds are great with beautiful gardens and fountains and the highlight is a tour of the "trick water fountains" They are powered only by water and were invented/installed 400 years ago. we were prepared but many unsuspecting guests got wet from the hidden water spouts.
We decided to climb mount Unterberg, but on second thought, took the cable car up about 6,000 feet into the ski slopes around Salzburg. It was about 44 F with a strong wind so we didn't tarry at the summit.
Back in town where it was warm, we jumped off the bus near Mirabell Gardens. Sculptures and flowers, a good combination.
Tonight we have tickets for Mozart!
Mozart Dinner Concert
The room for the concert is literally part of the mountain the fortress sits on. It is carved out about 70 feet at the entrance and from there you lose track after multiple stairs, halls and alcoves. Somewhere, it connects to Salzburg catacombs but we didn't go there.
The concert room is spacious measuring about 80 feet square. It is ornately decorated and must have been a royal home back when built. Frescoes adorn the walls and ceilings
with plenty of room for the performers who dress in 18th century regalia and sing and dance to many of Mozart's finest operas. There is a 5 piece chamber orchestra and a soprano and tenor. Near the end of the performance, the performers sang happy birthday to a lady next to our table and presented a cake. The soprano almost burst my eardrums that close when she hit the high notes. The performers are budding stars laboring behind the many primary orchestras in Salzburg.
There was a group from Japan, probably 2 or 3 families, that had reserved the front tables and introduced their young children to the fine life. The elders had champagne (while we had expensive wine) and their children drank sparkling drinks in champagne stems. It was fun watching the kids (and parents) in what may have been their first exposure to a live Mozart performance.
The Fortress
Built in 1077,as defense against hostile attacks, the fortress has never been compromised (other than by internal fires). it sits about 250 meters above old Salzburg and is only accessed (easily) by a funicular that moves 50 people at a time to top in 90 seconds. Enroute you get a grand view of Salzburg. at the summit, you are rewarded with great panoramic views. There are two museums, the ramparts, cannons and other armament, a marionette shop and several shops along the way.
Mirabell Garden
Mirabell Palace was built in 1606 by prince-archbishop Wolf Dietrich for his beloved Salome Alt. Today, it serves as the backdrop for the most romantic weddings you could possibly imagine.
With the fortress in the background, the color, variety and imagination of the gardens is spectacular. The statues are from sculptors all over the world and while maybe not spectacular, are plenty good for me.
The Dwarf Garden originated during the rule of archbishop Franz Anton Fürst Harrach. It originally consisted of 28 dwarves (nowadays 17) made from white Untersberger marble and is the oldest of its kind in Europe.
Back to Munich to catch our plane
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Pork Knuckle with red kraut
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Other photos
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| Lock bridge Salzburg |
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| Lock bridge |
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| Street performer |
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| Street performer |
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| Palace hall |
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| Hell means Munich beer plus lunch hotdog |
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| Hellbrunn art totally in marble |
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| Art from construction sand |
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| My garden (I wish) |
On the 4th,
we headed for Ludwigsburg to visit Mad King Ludwig’s summer residence. Read about
the mad king Mad
King Ludwig and the castle Residence
Castle. The castle is surrounded by beautiful gardens and mythical scenes
from children’s fairy tales. We saw Hansel and Gretel’s house, the magic mirror, numerous fairytale scenes 
We stopped for a bite before doing the guided tour of the castle. I was itching for some good German sausage/wurst and was delighted to find a meal on the menu listing "two traditional sausages" with potatoes. I ordered gleefully and anticipated a fine lunch. What I got was two skinny swiveled weenies instead. Yes, frankfurters are served here and are "traditional" sausages if one really stretches your imagination!! 
The day we
were there, there were sand sculptors making all sorts of scenes from pure
sand. It had rained in the morning and all the work had to be smoothed out from
rain drops pounding it. In all there were thirty sculptures planned with
several not yet started. Perhaps the most unusual was a sculpture of a roll of
toilet paper. (Who would think of TP as art??)
You can select your food/drink and find a place on the wooden picnic benches, frequently with half drunk natives who are exceptionally friendly.
video here village scene 
. The grounds are great with beautiful gardens and fountains and the highlight is a tour of the "trick water fountains" They are powered only by water and were invented/installed 400 years ago. we were prepared but many unsuspecting guests got wet from the hidden water spouts.
Built in 1077,as defense against hostile attacks, the fortress has never been compromised (other than by internal fires). it sits about 250 meters above old Salzburg and is only accessed (easily) by a funicular that moves 50 people at a time to top in 90 seconds. Enroute you get a grand view of Salzburg. at the summit, you are rewarded with great panoramic views. There are two museums, the ramparts, cannons and other armament, a marionette shop and several shops along the way.
Pat wandered in after souvenir shopping but missed the band. I ordered the obligatory "Eine Gross" (one liter beer) We ordered traditional house fare: a sausage plate for Pat and a pork knuckle for me. Even though red kraut was out of season, it is still served here.
The knuckle was fantastic with pork skin, tons of pure pork fat and a "small" lean portion that would feed two people. However, when in Munich, one must do one's share!
Pat wandered in after souvenir shopping but missed the band. I ordered the obligatory "Eine Gross" (one liter beer) We ordered traditional house fare: a sausage plate for Pat and a pork knuckle for me. Even though red kraut was out of season, it is still served here.
The knuckle was fantastic with pork skin, tons of pure pork fat and a "small" lean portion that would feed two people. However, when in Munich, one must do one's share!
