EUROPE BLOG April 16th, 2023 - SALZBURG

4/16/23- Over two weeks in and I feel we’re just getting started. We check out of our AirBnb early in the morning and drag our luggage several blocks to the train station, then up several flights of stairs to the platform. Dead tired, we board the train and are able to relax in our own compartment. During the ninety minute first leg of the journey, I check for our connection and find that the next train is rescheduled to leave 20 minutes before we arrive. Not sure how that’s even possible, but I’m searching for alternatives as a backup.

We get to Villach, Austria and immediately speak with an attendant. Turns out we now have to take several more connecting trains and a bus, which will cost us about 2 hours more on the journey. With no way around it, we wait about half an hour before boarding the next train and get off at Spittal-Millstatt.

This place is absolutely beautiful with the snow capped mountains in view and sunny skies. A far cry from the rain and cloudy weather we just came from. We take a few photos during the hour long layover before boarding the bus. I was able to score a free bathroom visit for us as it asks for coins to open the door. Sharece thinks I flirted with the attendant, but I call it a necessity of life.

The bus is a long 80 minutes as it’s fully packed, so-much-so that some have to sit on the floor. There wasn’t any room to tuck my backpack in so I was on watch the entire ride. At least the seats are somewhat comfortable and the ride smooth.

The next stop is blistering cold, looks like a ski resort and doesn’t seem too promising on getting good seats with all the people waiting. As the train arrives, we find that we’re standing in the first class section of the platform (nothing noted or mentioned anywhere) and have to fight past three long train cars to get on. Sure enough, it was standing room only as the train pulls away. Not dealing with this, we make our way to the dining car, store our bags to the side and order some coffees. This is so much better and we get wake-up juice to boot.

Finally, after about six and a half hours, we arrive in Salzburg, Austria around 2pm. I check my Uber app and low-and-behold they accept it. We wait a few minutes for it to arrive and five minutes later are at our next place.

The host greets us at the door, shows us to the basement dwelling and proceeds to talk us through every last detail. We didn’t want to appear rude but I have to let him know that the sun is out (on a day that showed rain), we’re late getting in and anxious to explore. He leaves seemingly a bit dejected but it was the only way. After a quick refresher, we take off walking into town.

The streets start out very urban, with cars zooming by and more modern style buildings. It takes us a bit to get closer to old town and soon end up at Mirabell Palace. The sun is fully out, bringing the entire gardens to life as we feel so fortunate to not have missed this.

Continuing on toward Fortress Hohensalzburg, we locate their funicular ride (FestungsBahn) that takes us to the top in only a minute, and it doesn’t take long for us to see some spectacular views of the city. We only have a bit over an hour before it closes, but that appears to be just enough time to go to the top of the tower (quite a bit of stairs but the views are even better) and check out the museum for a spell before riding back to street level.

The rain is now starting to come down at 5pm and we use this time to find an authentic Austrian restaurant (that almost ended up being an Australian restaurant due to Sharece’s mix-up in her google search). Bratwurst and sauerkraut for the lady and roasted pork and sauerkraut for myself turns out to be very good and quite filling. Add an apple strudel to boot and we’re set for the night.

Upon leaving, the rain is really pouring now, so we call an Uber to take us back to our room instead of treading water for twenty minutes.