What an amazing and informative trip this has been. To see and learn in person the many things I learned about European history has been extraordinarily exciting! I was in Germany when the Army sent Dad and us to Schweinfurt between 1959-1965, so .. you see .. it's been a 'few' years! It's been eye-opening! If you want to see 1000 years of history up close and personal, travel the rivers of Europe .. like the Vikings did when they wanted to vacation and plunder and emigrate to warmer climates!
Here we are early Friday morning arriving in Linz, the 3rd largest city in Austria, population approx. 200,000, located in the north center of the country a mere 30km from the Czech border. Adolf Hitler set-up Linz to be a major steel producer for the 3rd Reich. And .. they are still a major industrial center.
Jan and I opted to travel to Salzburg with an excursion group, an all day journey. It's about a 2-hour bus ride. Heard and read a lot about it. Our guide was educated in Salzburg, was an exchange student in the US (midwest), and now lives in Linz. She gave us a lot of info. on the drive there. Salzburg sits in the lake district. There's 76 of these lakes .. many in beautiful settings surrounded by the Alps. As many Austrian towns do, Salzburg used to be a Roman town called Juvavum, a settlement along one of the major military roads of the ancient world. Centuries after the collapse of the Roman Empire, Bishop Rupert founded the city in 696 AD.
on the way to Salzburg
walking across the river to the 'old town'
Salzburg is home to over 100 churches, castles, and palaces! Birthplace of Mozart, where the movie 'Sound of Music' was filmed. The fortress at the top of this picture is the fortress of Hohensalzburg, one of the largest in Europe, built in the 11th century.
Prince-Bishops became very important in the development of Salzburg. They not only ruled from a religious (Roman Catholic) seat, they were also in charge of EVERYTHING! They built most of the city. This was a residence and gardens of one.
We walked through many alleys and thoroughfares. Just like a medieval city!
If you followed my blog of my 8600 mile road trip to Florida and back in October of 2018, then you'll remember my fascination and collection of pictures of New Mexico and Texas ranch signs. Well, ... get ready for some interesting store signs ..
Oh yeah .. they have the best setting for Christmas Markets so far ..
They also have the largest cathedral in Austria ..
started in 774, rebuilt in 1131, sustained bomb damage in WWII
Scenes from The Sound of Music were filmed in this old cemetery :
It was an interesting day in the city! So much history. On the way back to the bus I took some pics of another palace and its walls across the river ..
Back to the ship and the .. Farewell Gala Cocktail ceremony where the Captain re-introduces all of the staff to toast a successful voyage. Afterwards we all went to the main dining area for the Captain's Dinner.
appetizer was .. grilled Atlantic scallop, lime risotto, tomato salsa, cress ..
yummy .. I ordered two of these!
soup was .. creamy porcini, thyme foam, parma ham cookie
Jan asked the chef for the recipe ..
main course :
slow roasted beef tenderloin, pate de canard, truffle jus, glazed vegetables, ..
dessert .. rum-raisin ice cream, plum compote, chocolate crumbles, whip cream
Tonight we have 4-locks to navigate through on our way to the German town of Passau, the 'City of Three Rivers'.
Will you ever eat hamburger or popcorn again?
ReplyDeleteI've finally had a chance to catch up on all of your posts. Great pics and stories. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete