"A del vice, Adle vice..."

Liv's previous post was a great segue into this one, where I'll try my best to describe our experience in Austria. To do so, I will have to use all the synonyms for elegant, pristine, & welcoming that are in my repertoire.  

Let me start from the beginning, we left Munich & headed east on a train so luxurious we worried we were sitting in first class and that Herr Controler would take one look at our shabby attire and goofy passport necklaces and send us back a few cars. But, no, this fancy train was just a foretelling of what was to come in Austria: a land that is perfectly attuned to simple elegance.

After taking another train out to the countryside surrounding Salzburg, we found ourselves in Trimmelkam, the village where we'd be spending our petit séjour. Our hosts were gone that first night, so we had reign of their adorable house and access to all the feline affection we elicit from their cat, Rosa* (who was so cute that she merited a spot in the 2Cousins7Countries rendition of "My Favorite Things"). We felt like little girls again, playing house in the quaintest cottage-home that Austria had to offer. So, what did we do: played some Brandi Carlile, sautéed up several different beige vegetables, drank some of the wine we'd been carting all over Europe and swooned in front of a George Clooney film.  Yep, just like we did as little girls, only substitute an Austrian vacation cottage for Gram's and Poppa's house, wine for Hansen's soda, and a George Clooney for the sexier of the two male leads in White Christmas (I guess that's Danny Kaye).

Gah! Can you tell I'm getting homesick at all? Here I am supposed to write a post about the WEEK we spent in Austria and I'm musing about cats and my childhood.

The following day we ventured back to Salzburg in hopes of touring the city by foot, but managed to get distracted within the first hour by a tour company advertising "Sound of Music Tours". We agreed to walk over and check it out, knowing that we were both goners already. How could the female off-spring of our two mothers ignore something so beloved by our fore-bearers. A deep appreciation of this film is in our genes, right next to the love of board games and sharing our feelings. 

So we signed up and we hopped in a tour van (after a glass of glühwein) and listened to songs from the movie as we visited the lake where the Von Trap children fall out of their canoes, the gazebo where Leisl falls in love and the snowy mountains where they ultimately flee Austria, among other spots. For Liv and me, it was the most fun we had in Salzburg.

It's a beautiful town, with a castle, a river, a charming old center and not-so-charming middle-aged men. While Austria gets the blue ribbon for being the loveliest of the countries we've seen it also gets a blue-ribbon for condescending "tourism industry professionals". 

Me: "Guten Tag. We have a ticket for a guided tour."
Snooty guy: "Well of course you have a ticket, otherwise you wouldn't be hereeeeeee"

I am happy to report that that's where the unpleasantry ended, in fact, everyone else we met proved that Austrians are possibly the most hospitable and generous of all Europeans. Our hosts in Salzburg (technically Trimmelkam) shared their company and their dinner with us, Alison and Charlie (who aren't Austrian, instead, they're the best kind of ex-pats) devoted hours of their time to improving our stay in Vienna, and Monika and Debby made us feel as though we'd practically been re-born from the womb of Graz herself.

Before I jump to Graz, I should write about Vienna. It is easily the most beautiful city I've seen to date. San Sebastián has been dethroned by his regal, dignified cousin from the north. Liv and I were shocked at just how expansive, yet pristine Vienna was. Even under fresh blankets of snow, Vienna sparkled with class and mystique. On our first day, we met the aforementioned Alison who first showed us to a few of Vienna's important sights before exposing us to it's tastes. Over our time in Vienna, she introduced us to the famous desserts at Café Central, Austrian wines at Café Landtmann and Hungarian goulash from a tucked-away restaurant near Saint Stephen's Church. Before saying our goodbyes, she also treated us to one of the most comforting gifts of all: chocolate, bread and peanut-butter, which our American palettes have sorely missed. 

While in Vienna, we also attended a symphony in the Auersperg Palace where Strauss and Mozart echoed through the ornate walls and mirrors. Here again, I was reminded of Leizl, who asks her father if she may "stay and taste [her] first Champagne" while singing "So Long, Farewell". Why? Because we bought our first Austrian Champagne (technically, sparkling wine) to commemorate how special it felt to be in a palace- in Austria- with our life-long best friend.

And then, we left for Graz. We were told that, in fact, Salzburg, Vienna and Graz were the three loveliest cities in Austria and it seems that this must be true. Graz, like all my favorite cities, had a frosty river running through it, winding streets and a contemporary art museum. We spent time exploring all three: one day beholding the art pieces, one day exploring the city, and another exploring the, ahem, bars of the old town, which the Grazians affectionately call the Bermuda Triangle. We spent our final night with our hosts and this time, we cooked them a meal: Thai curry soup with rice noodles. Liv and I have been craving spice, which, regrettably, might have been a tad too strong for our coughing and tearing hosts.

Then began our journey to Croatia. Dun dun dun. That is a post within itself. Because I'm writing this you know I've made it safely. Liv on the other hand is still stuck back with the border patrol in Slovenia. Just kidding!! She's perfectly safe, but it was still a bit of a comical ordeal. A post for next time!

Ta ta! P.S. We discovered it was actually written "Edelweiss"