Austria to Germany to France!

Our journey continues with visits to three different places in three days! It’s amazing how close different countries are!

Day 5:

The day started with a quick glass of fresh orange juice then onto the train to Salzburg, Austria. Salzburg means Salt Mountain because this was the place to trade for salt to preserve your goods.

We went to the old city and visited the Salzburg cathedral. This place was even more ornate than the other churches we visited.

We also saw the cemetery the Von Trapp family from the Sound of Music hid in.

For lunch we looked around the flower and food market stands with fresh produce.

After that we headed to Mozarts Geburtshaus or the birthplace of Mozart. It was a small museum with paintings and letters. There was also his first violin and tiny harpsichord. My favorite part was seeing the sets of his operas and how they’ve changed over time.

We ended our Salzburg visit with a harpsichord concert by a student. The acoustics in the room added to the traditional music being played.

Day 6:

The last day in Germany was on a Sunday. Since Germany is predominately Catholic and Sunday is the day of rest, many of the places were closed. We started off with lunch at Park Café since we slept in. After that we went to two museums.

One was filled with Flemish and Italian renaissance painters while the other had sculptures and impressionistic paintings. I preferred the older one even though a section was closed off for renovations. We got to see one of the most famous paintings, “The Battle of Issus” by Albrecht Altdorfer. It depicts Darius III the Persians retreating from Alexander the Great and his army. (I seemed to have lost the picture sorry) It’s interesting to see all the culture changes in art from clothing style to beauty to architecture.

Later we had to leave to get ready to leave for Paris. We ate a Greek gyro then went to bed.

Day 7:

The day started very early with a run through a loud thunderstorm with heavy rain. It was pretty scary. After the two hour train ride, we moved into a flat and took a nap. Our flat was small but had all the essentials and was bigger than the hostel. There was a big bed, television, bathroom, and kitchen with a small dishwasher.

Later we took a walk of the city and passed the Effiel tower and Arc de Triomph. The Arc de Triomph is what Napoleon had built for the soldiers.

For dinner we stopped by Café L’etincelle.

More about France coming soon!