On the Roam

Wandering through Salzburg and Innsbruck. Also, there's lots of food.

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Music
Intro and outro: Chilled Acoustic Indie Folk by Lesfm
Chapel and Church Organ Prelude Intro in D major by Julius H
Komm lieber Mai und mache deutsches Volkslied Overbeck/Mozart by Julius H
Everything Feels New by Evgeny Bardyuzha
One in a Million by Anton Vlasov
Winter Blossom by The Fealdo Project
All music from Pixabay

Transcript

Hi. This is Ginger Johnson and you’re listening to Past Perfect: A Podcast. 

About this time of year, I frequently get a bad case of wanderlust. This probably has something to do with deep blue winter skies that remind me of the winter I spent in Italy when I was 19 years old. We’ve got a blue sky again today and I’m wishing my feet could be walking over cobblestones. Unfortunately, there are no cobblestones in my future, so today we’re going to return to the Before-times, when my wanderlust actually took me somewhere. 
 

Sunday, February 16, 2020

 I’m sitting on a heated pew in the Salzburg Cathedral—perhaps an ironic place to begin writing in a journal that has a map of Vienna on it. We’ve just listened to mass. I caught a wisp of meaning here and there, but mostly I listened to the fullness of sound with the choir and the organ. The echo through the dome. The light coming in through the windows. Taking in the sculptural stucco work—Corinthian columns, acanthus leaves, egg and dart. The four organs under the dome. It’s lovely here. The past two days have been lovely. 

We caught the train to Salzburg yesterday then had lunch near the train station at Akakiko. We got our Salzburg cards, went up to our hotel via Mönschberg elevator and a walk through trees and fields until we found it—a gated convent. We went to Mozart’s birth house, stopped at a café for apfelstrudel (so good), and did the Rick Steve’s walking tour until it was too dark to see. We stopped at another place for hot chocolate and Spar to get some more food, then we went to Stiftskellar—a place that has been serving guests since Charlemagne’s time. Bill got us tickets for dinner and a Mozart concert there. 

It was sublime. There were musicians in period costume—bass, cello, violins, and viola—and male and female opera singers. They did selections from Don Giovanni, The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik in between courses. 

First course was chicken lemon broth with a curd cheese dumpling. Sounds weird, but it was really good. Then chicken on polenta with a glaze and vegetables from the Prior’s garden. Dessert was some kind of wild honey semi-freddo. The room was so very beautiful with candelabras at every table, and the candlelight flickering.

Later

I had to leave the cathedral because another mass was beginning, so we found a little café for lunch. Bill and I got gulaschsuppe and Will had two bowls of gemüsesuppe. I really like this little café. We sat inside next to a circular staircase going up. Tables were set up outside and there was quite a business going on. I think this café was next to the smallest jewelry shop in the world. Anyway, it was delightful. There was even a big picture of Waldorf and Statler from the Muppets. The owner had a big mustache and was the sort of person I really would like to sketch. 

Then we came to Hohen Salzburg Fortress, where we are now. There are beautiful views below us and we’ve all taken lots of photos. We had hot chocolate in the fortress restaurant, where Will asked Bill all sorts of questions about making steel, and I closed my eyes and sort-of napped with my head on my hands. My hip is bothering me and I’m hoping it won’t cause me problems the rest of the week.

Monday February 17, 2020

We leave this afternoon for Innsbruck. I’m showered, dressed, and mostly packed but for a few incidentals. I’m also hungry and looking forward to breakfast. 

. . . .

Yesterday was lovely and long. We had raced down Mönschberg to get to the cathedral in time for mass (lots of stairs),  [then] climbed in and around and over [a zillion more stairs] in the fortress. . . . After the fortress, we finished up the last section of the Rick Steve’s walking tour, then found our way to the restaurant where we had reservations. I got the fried chicken, which was really good, but I hadn’t realized one of the pieces was actually the liver and I had a bite of it. Blaugh. But we all had a pleasant time. We talked and talked, then we made our way back to the convent.

Tuesday February 18, 2020

We’re in Innsbruck now—we got here last night in the dark, so we haven’t seen much, but today we’re going to explore and walk around Innsbruck. Perhaps tomorrow we’ll ski. We just came from breakfast. There was a really nice spread here. I had müsli, yogurt, and fruit salad; bread with cheese wheels, a slice of ham, cucumbers, and yellow peppers.  Also orange juice and water. 

Wednesday February 19, 2020

I’m at the top of another mountain. Yesterday we went up the Nordkettenbahn—a funicular and two gondolas then a climb to the very top where the view was simply amazing. The sun was brilliant and there were people sitting in lounge chairs like they were at the beach. I took dozens of pictures and shot a bunch of videos, too, including a couple of time-lapses going up and down the mountain. It was exhilarating. We at lunch at the café at the top with some Italian women—mother and daughter, I think. 

We went down one gondola ride and looked at that level. There was skiing there, and a restaurant, and coolest of all, an igloo with snow art on the interior walls. A king, a dragon, a witch, and a troll sculpted, along with the folk tales that they came from. 

We continued on down the mountain and went into Innsbruck to the Hofkirche, which was one of the most amazing sights I’ve ever seen. There was a multimedia presentation introducing Emperor Maximilian I, then a walk through a cloistered courtyard into the church, where his empty tomb/monument is. It’s surrounded by 28 life-size bronze statues of kings and queens and other relatives. The statues are all very individual, but with such intricate detail on the clothing and armor. I was absolutely gobsmacked. I took dozens of pictures again. 

Then we went into the Folk Art Museum, which was full of amazing artisanship—woodworking, kitchen tools, native costumes, fabrics, metalworking, etc. On the second floor, they had several rooms that had been taken apart and reassembled in the museum. Gorgeous woodworking on the ceiling beams, and around doors and windows. We were able to see the Hof Kirche from the roof level.

From there, we wandered through the city, finally settling on an Italian restaurant for supper. We walked back to the hotel and crashed.

We’re now at one of the ski places. I wish I liked skiing. I like the idea so much, but the reality—not so much.

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Perhaps if I …had more practice, I would like skiing. As it stands, it’s [like being on] a large moving piece of sliding danger. When I called it quits yesterday, I met Bill and Will for lunch at one of the restaurants there. We sat next to a couple from the Netherlands who were there for a week of snowboarding. It’s amazing to me how many people we’ve met and had conversations with. The British man who was all for Brexit, the Ukrainian man who was attending a soccer game in Vienna for the day, the two Italian women at the top of the Nordkettenbahn, these two Dutch people—Sylvia and Roland (who didn’t believe in climate change). It’s been interesting.

After lunch, we took the funicular to the top where I sat and wrote while the storm raged around me. I went back down at about 3:30 to meet Bill and Will. I had some hot chocolate while we were waiting for the bus. It was vending machine hot chocolate for €1, but it wasn’t bad. Back down the mountain, we had an early dinner at the hotel, then Bill and I went for a walk.

Bill and Will have gone skiing again today, and I’m sitting here in the restaurant of the hotel, waiting for the time to come to catch the bus to Ambras Castle. I’d like to explore the castle, then come back and wander through Innsbruck. When I was on the funicular going up, snow was coming in through an open window and it looked like it was snowing inside. 

Saturday February 22, 2020

I’m home again in Vienna now, stationary with pen in hand, [ready] to catch up. On Thursday, I bought a 24-hour bus pass and went out to Ambras Castle. I was so glad I did, too. The place was practically empty. I was in the Spanish Hall by myself for most of the time, and it was simply gorgeous. The chapel was lovely, and the bathing rooms were quite astounding with a tub the size of a baptismal font. The Künstkammer was fascinating. I love the idea of having these collections of natural wonders and artworks. I wasn’t as impressed by all the armor because I’ve been to the armory section of the Welt [Museum], which is simply astounding.

One of my favorite things, though, was coming upon a magnificent peacock in the gardens on my way to the Künstkammer. He was just hanging out there, like one does in a castle. 

It was cold though, so I caught the bus back to the Hauptbahnhof and had some lunch at a Thai place across the street. Coconut curry with rice. So good! But so spicy! Then I walked through the old town finding my way to the cathedral. It’s lovely inside, and I liked the system they had. If you wanted to take pictures, you could buy a ticket from a machine for a euro that was good for an hour. So I took pictures of the glorious blue and gold pipe organ, and the painted ceiling that was meant to look like a dome; the patterned marble floor, the sculptural monument, the windows and the light, the pomp of it all. 

Then I wandered through the streets and alleyways, stopping in shops as I wanted (one antique, one Austrian handwerk and dirndls), and ended up at Katzung for heat and hot chocolate. I inked in my small sketchbook for a bit, but it was dark and I don’t think I had my glasses, so I made my way back to the hotel. It was a truly lovely day.

When Will and Bill got back, we went down to the restaurant for dinner. I had a big mixed salad, because I was just craving some vegetables. There was an accordion player in the next room—it was nice to have music with dinner. The next morning we packed up, had breakfast (love that müsli, yogurt, and fruit salad), and took the bus to the train station so we could deposit our luggage in a locker, then we walked through the old town again. We had lunch at the Thai place again, then walked some more, eventually ending up at the cathedral again. I didn’t get a photography ticket, but I wished I had, because I noticed so many more things—the birds and the insects on the shrine; the beautiful blue, magenta, and yellow colors of the marble, the gilded angels here and there. I guess they’ll just have to live in my memory. 

Then we went back to the train station, got our luggage, and caught our train, thoroughly pleased with our trip.

From my quiet office to your ears, I hope you’ve enjoyed a visit to Salzberg and Innsbruck. Wishing you memories of past adventures and dreams of future ones. Until next time, be well and let your light shine.