It is 9 pm, and after a year and a half of planning, we are finally in the Edmonton Airport Maple Leaf Lounge on our way to Europe. In the midst of trying to finish work and close deals all the last week, we packed and planned and worked some more. (Furthermore Lee had spent almost all of July working in Johannesburg). For packing, we applied the lessons learned from our trips to Wales, Barcelona and Hong Kong. In Wales we had two massive suitcases each. For Barcelona, we cut it down to one big one each. For Hong Kong we proved to ourselves that we could get by with just carry-on, but that trip didn't include a hike. Today we are going with just carry-on for Warsaw, Prague, Salzburg and the 10 day hike in the Alps. Furthermore, JoAnne has added a sketchbook with art supplies and Lee has added a duffle bag so we can check luggage on the way home. In addition, we are carrying our GPS, GSM cellular phones, laptop, Sony eReader, and iPhone/iTouch.

The last six months has not been about what we are going to wear (because that's a no-brainer) but how we are going to pack more efficiently. Lee likes that he's building a collection of cell phone SIM cards from around the world (France, Hong Kong, South Africa and at least two more on this trip).

Now here we are in the lounge, sipping wine, reminiscing about the pace of the last month - such as moving Mom to a condo, Lee being in Johannesburg and Toronto all the time, and all the deals that refused to close. Here we go, it's time to board.

Uneventful flight to London. We sat in the lounge at Heathrow for three hours. JoAnne kept dozing off while Lee kept eating appetizers while drinking a big bottle of Bulmer's cider. On the flight to Warsaw, we had the whole row to ourselves. Our beverage was tomato juice (pomodor in Polish?) and it was the tastiest we'd ever had. We had the "Traditional" Polish meal - meat salad and meat pierogies, followed by an amazing coffee - thick, strong with crema (not like the swill we had on the Edmonton-London flight). Lee was offered cognac for his coffee but turned it down. It was a fairly quick flight, with smooth landing. Customs was a breeze, and then we hopped in a cab for the Marriott.

The cab ride was hair-raising: 80-90 kmph in a 50 zone, running red/yellow lights, and at one point we were doing 80 when another cab zipped passed us like we were standing still.

The Marriott is very luxurious - the lobby and our room. We have a corner room with a huge bathroom (with separate tub and shower) and all windows, so by European standards it's huge. JoAnne went down to the lobby and got a pocket map of Warsaw and a visitors guide. Then our Marriott welcome gift arrived (beer and cheese plate), which was nice refreshment as we flipped through the TV channels - 2 Polish, several German, 2 French, all the American news channels, 2 British, Israel, Korea, Japan, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Arab. There is something for every visitor.

Maybe this was a coincidence but the Polish channels seemed to focus on the war, There was a movie about a heroic incident involving ordinary citizens against Nazis. This was followed by a symphony concert of avant garde music performed against a backdrop of filmed speeches from 1939 and of war ruins.

Hotel Warsaw Marriott.

Warsaw

We had breakfast in the Marriott lounge and then headed out to get our bearings. In the surrounding area we visited the bank machine, tourist information centre and got a Heyah SIM card for the cell phone.

Next we headed to "Old Town" (Stare Miasto). We never looked into the churches very closely, as masses were almost continuous, scheduled every 60-90 minutes. The reconstruction from the war is really remarkable when you consider that Warsaw was 90% destroyed following the 1944 uprising.

At the Maria Slodowski-Curie Museum, we saw many pictures of Maria and her family life. Her daughter, Irene, always looked a little sad in the pictures, like she was in the shadow of her mother. In fact Irene carried on her parents' work and won her own Nobel prize for Chemistry in 1935. The museum did not mention this, (possibly because she wasn’t Polish like her mother?). 2011 is the 'year of Marie Curie' here (2010 was the year of Fryderyk Chopin). The exhibit that dealt directly with her actual work and discoveries was very limited. It would be nice to see more about what she actually did, especially during World War I when she provided field hospitals with mobile radiation equipment.

We had lunch at 3 pm at an outdoor restaurant in Old Town - Bigos with potatoes sprinkled with fresh dill, pierogies with pickled cabbage/carrots, and Zywiec beer. All very good and worth going back for the full dinner. We stopped for ice cream cones (one whisky and one caramel), very reasonable serving size (small). A single scoop was 2.50pln ($0.85cnd). With renewed energy we walked through Old Town again, stopped at three bookstores (JoAnne bought a book on Polish Cooking) and headed back to the hotel for hors d’ouvres in the lounge.

One of the striking scenes today was the Monument of the Warsaw Uprising. There is a museum on the subject and we will definitely be going to try to understand it better - such as why didn’t the Russians do more to help, why did the Polish people assume the Russians should have done more, etc.

On Saturday we went to the Warsaw Uprising Museum (sometimes called the Warsaw Rising). It was appropriate to take the whole day for this museum. It opened recently and was very well curated. Pictures were encouraged, even "with flash". The museum demonstrated the conditions for Poles under German occupation, the tensions and preparations leading up to the uprising (started at 5 pm, August 1, 1944), and the activities of each day until Capitulation (October 3, 1944). Key exhibits and presentations included turning points such as regaining the post office, and the role of children and women as couriers (very brave). There were brief biographies of key people, in pullout drawers, at each of the stations. The biographies included their careers and the circumstances of their death or if still alive where they were currently living. Another interesting station was about the weapons - this included guns they made themselves. We also watched a 3D film "City of Ruins" which is a flight over the city showing the devastation. There was really so much in this museum, that we would go and see it again. Even though they did not achieve their objective of freeing Warsaw, they actually did drive the Germans back. However they were unable to sustain it due to lack of supplies (food and weapons). In the end the Soviets took over. Throughout history, the Polish people have never been in control of their destiny, until now. In summary, the museum is a story about the horrors of war and occupation, as well as the bravery and skills and drive to overcome.

Outside the museum building is a memorial garden, where we looked for names from JoAnne's family from the 840,000 listed on the wall as having participated in the uprising. We found one Maria Burek and several Budzynski's.

In the evening we walked along the Novy Swiva to the fountain by the river to watch the light and music show that was supposed to start at 9 pm. There was a huge crowd. People were even arriving in taxis. The fountain continued to operate, but the light and music never happened. By 9:30 people started to move on (including us).

We went to the restaurant in Old Town, where we had lunch the day before, for supper - our starter was Borszt (borscht) soup with meat dumplings, JoAnne had the herring and potatoes (with a sauce of cream and grated apples) and Lee had the pork cutlet (really a schnitzel). All very good but no time for dessert as the restaurant was closing at 10 pm.

Walking back along Novy Swiva (the place to party on Saturday night) we saw the "beer bus" which was hilarious - people sitting on bar stools around a "bar", peddling to move it around the square. Good thing they close the street at night. When they stopped the bus to get new passengers they were right in front of the cathedral with a giant poster of John Paul II looking down at them .

The other crazy thing were the mini hot air balloons (perhaps 30 inches high) going off everywhere. You draw a message on the fabric balloon (generally a heart with initials), light some solid fuel, and let it go. Next we had dessert and coffee at one of the many lively cafes on the street, JoAnne had the meringue cake (orange and almond) and Lee had poppy seed cake with walnuts.

On Sunday we walked to Lazienki Park, passing the Canadian and American Consulates along the way. The Canadian Consulate was impressively modern yet understated, very much in keeping with the new Warsaw. The American Consulate looked like a bunker, and from Lee's fiasco in Johannesburg, he had learned to not try to take pictures. Across from the Canadian Consulate was the John Lennon Street (Jon Lennona), it ran along the north end of Ujazdow Park. We walked through the park, thinking it was Lazienki, but when we came to the other end we discovered we needed to cross the bridge over Al. Armii Ludowei to get to the really big park we were looking for. The green space scattered around Warsaw rivals Edmonton's.

It was a beautiful sunny Sunday, and many people of all ages were out walking. Most people were dressed very well, as if they came from church. We were surprised by the number of children, who were all well-behaved, and the presence of so many young fathers - actively engaged in carrying toddlers on their shoulders, pushing strollers, and carrying babies in slings. We wondered what made Polish society different from Canada in this seemingly higher birthrate and the engagement of fathers. Some ideas:
• Catholic country
• Socially family friendly
• Inexpensive to live, so potentially one breadwinner
• Couples get married, not just live together
• Single motherhood very low
Of course, it could be that we are out of touch with young father attitudes in the 21st century.
We wandered all over the park (which included a nice botanical garden). It was more crowded than other parks we've seen but generally everyone stayed off the greens so that probably contributed to the crowded walkways. Finally, 4 p.m. rolled around and we made our way to the Chopin monument (picturesque in front of a large round pond) for the free Sunday concert. Two hours earlier we had seen a piano tuner working on the piano next to the giant bronze statue. The statue is Chopin dressed in a robe with his torso half twisted towards the piano, chin raised, eyes closed, but eyebrows lifted so that he appears to be listening to the music.

The pianist was introduced as Domenica Schlesinger, from Kracow. She sat down and the audience fell silent while she played several pieces for almost an hour. What a beautiful way to spend a Sunday afternoon. We estimated more than a thousand people were there. This audience knows their Chopin and they know how to behave at a concert (such as not applauding until she lowered her arms at the end of a piece, no moving around, no screaming kids). This city has either a large cultural budget or a lot of sponsors for culture, and the people really appreciate it.

Prior to the concert we bought ice cream and water from a vendor in the park. Lee shoved the receipt from the cashier in his pocket and when we got to the guy who serves the cone, he was asked for his "papers". Being an old movie buff, Lee has been waiting all his life for someone in Europe to ask to see his "papers."

After the concert, we still had time to visit the Zacheta National Gallery of Art, as it was open until 8 p.m. The art gallery was fun. There were just two exhibitions plus a children's exhibit ("If you look for longer, can you see more?") which poked at Lee's favourite question: "What is art?" This exhibit featured three videos that were documentary or mock documentary, that made you question your assumptions. One that we'll never forget was the mock interview with a woman who has a degenerative disease, where her body is disappearing starting with her toes (HalfAWoman).

The other exhibits were "Generation in Transition, New Art from India", and "Agata Bogacka, Diaries". Bogacka's paintings were inspired by her grandmother's diary on her experiences during the Warsaw Uprising (the diaries were discovered only in 2008).

After a brief rest at the hotel (and putting on warmer clothes), we ventured out to a the restaurant C.K. Oberza, which is described as Galician. Lots of meat here and large portions. The beer comes in two sizes, 0.4 litre and 1 litre. JoAnne bravely ordered the 1L as the young women at the next table had them, although they were just drinking, not having dinner. JoAnne had the braised pork hock with baked (gigantic) potato and pea puree (yellow split peas). Lee had a pile of meats on a cutting board - three different sausages (including blood sausage), chicken and pork plus cabbage and fries (fortunately not many fries). We started with goulash soup (fabulous) and a Polish sour soup (pretty good), but we left no room for the Polish traditional desserts so we promised ourselves that we would come back the next night.

On Monday, we took the bus to Wilanów to see the Wilanów Palace and Poster Museum. Next to the palace grounds was the church of S. Anna where a funeral was just beginning (there was a priest on our bus who also went to the funeral).

We bought tickets for the Palace and proceeded to tour the gardens first. They were still being restored in a few places. The old pumphouse which looks like a gothic utility building, had been restored recently. Along the river there were ducks and water lilies. It wasn’t actually a river - it was a channel that led into the Vistla river. Across the water we watched some men fishing. On our side, there were bosquets between us and the palace garden.

Inside the palace we got the audio guide and proceeded upstairs to the portrait gallery. It was a good introduction to the people who owned the palace at various times, and their costume and style. The gallery portraits were presented chronologically, ending with photographic portraits of the late 19th century.

We took the tour of the main floor to view the royal apartments. Renovations seemed mostly complete. Some of the writing desks and cabinets were intricate, and the marquetry was very refined. These rooms were where foreign dignitaries (e.g., Charles de Gaulle, Jimmy Carter) stayed during the communist era.

Of special note are the two connecting galleries - one had ancient pottery and the floor tiles and walls were custom patterned to coordinate with the pottery. The other gallery displayed white fragments of decorative stone reliefs from early times. This was set against a background of plaster painted in coral.

Next door was the Poster Museum, which was in the old riding stables of the palace. These were the best of posters you might see. Some were promotion of art, theatre, and opera, but many were artistic with social messages or statements on their own. The museum has 57,000 posters in their archives but only around 800 were on display.

In the town, we stopped at an outdoor restaurant (Blue Willow?) for dessert and coffee. We sat in a leafy garden, Leslie Feist was on the radio, and we ate nalesnyky with fresh raspberries and whipped cream. We've seen raspberries in a number of places, so this must be the season.

After wandering through town we took the bus back to central Warsaw. We got off at the university, to see the new rooftop library garden we had heard so much about. After a lot of wandering around the campus trying to find the place, we eventually made it further down the hill towards the river past the older parts of the campus until we came to the green metal and glass building.

It took many steps to get up to the roof of the library. It was the most innovative garden we had ever seen. The plantings were all about greens and harmonized with the mechanical equipment (e.g., vents, electrical boxes, skylights). We hope there is some international award for gardens because this place is phenomenal and deserves an award.

By the way, this was the third venue in two days that we saw couples getting their wedding pictures taken, with no wedding party around. Very smartly, they set aside the time outside of the wedding day to get their pictures done, making one less thing to worry about on the wedding day.

On our walk back to the hotel, we noticed the Military Museum (already closed), and made a mental note for our next trip to Warsaw. On the grounds we saw MiG jets, helicopters, tanks, anti-aircraft guns, etc.

In the evening we went back to our new favourite restaurant, C.K. Oberza. We vowed to not have so much beer and food (well just JoAnne regarding the beer). We had appetizer pierogies (Galician style, i.e. cheese and onion) - the best yet, and potato pancakes. Lee's pancakes came with goulash (awesome) and JoAnne with forest mushrooms (very good). For dessert we shared the traditional Polish baked cheesecake (and worth the trip just for that).

We dashed back to the hotel in pouring rain. It was our last night in Warsaw and we are definitely coming back.

Some of our pictures from Warsaw on Flickr -->

Prague

In the morning we packed up and moved on to Prague. We caught the 10:15 bus at the station across the street from the Marriott (3.80pln each, about $1.20cnd). Since we were still with carry-on luggage we were through security and at the LOT lounge by 11 a.m. The LOT lounge is definitely one of the nicer Star Alliance lounges. The Warsaw airport is very attractive, fresh, and modern. We boarded our flight at 12:30, took off at 12:50 and were in Prague at 2 p.m. We caught the Cedaz airport shuttle to the Marriott. The first stop was across the street from the hotel, and at 120ck each it was less than $16cnd for the two of us. We were in our room just after 3:00 pm.

The Prague Marriott is another great hotel and the executive lounge is probably one of the nicest. After a couple of hours' rest, we went to find the bank machines ("bankomats"). We learned that contrary to VISA's ATM locator, neither HSBC nor Deutsche Bank have ATMs, so we had to pay the $5 foreign transaction fee from our bank back home to get Czech money. We also found the laundrymat (for later in the week) and then wandered into the Old Town (Stare Mesto) to get our bearings.

We wandered all over Old Town and at 8 p.m. attended the "Ava Maria" concert at the St. Francis Seraphicus Church at the foot of the Charles Bridge. It featured organ and trumpet, and it was amazing.

We stopped for street food in the square on our way back. It was okay, but we missed the food in Warsaw. One thing about Prague that we were not used to on this trip were the crowds of tourists. We don't think we actually saw any locals out there except for the people serving. Places we want to visit over the next few days include Charles Castle, Museum of Communism, Church of Our Lady of the Snows and Kafka Museum.

Hotel Prague Marriott.

We started with breakfast at the Marriott lounge, similar to Warsaw but serving really weak coffee (likely appeals to the many more Americans there). We made a quick trip to the Billa grocery store for Czech and Moravian wine and spices. The only spices they carried here are paprika (several kinds), garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper. We bought each kind of paprika, so we are looking forward to experiencing the differences when we try them at home.With our 2007 Lonely Planet Guide in hand, we followed an out-of-the-way route to the Charles Bridge and then crossed over to the Charles Castle, taking many pictures along the way.

At the Charles Castle we bought the "Long Tour" tickets so that we could see all the buildings over two days, which is how long it takes. We saw the National Portrait Gallery (very well curated), and St. Vitus Cathedral (took lots of pictures). We went to the museum in the old palace, which covered many aspects of medieval topics - coronations, archeology, artifacts, banquets, etc.

Walking down the steps from the castle we stopped for a national street pastry called Trdelkna. It's an unleavened dough wrapped around a cylinder and baked over a gas flame until browned. JoAnne had hers with plum jam on the inside and Lee's was rolled in crushed peanuts before baking.

For supper we planned to eat at the Old Municipal House, in their basement restaurant, as it was recommended by the server at the Marriott lounge. Even though it was just after 9 p.m. and they were not closing until 11:30, and there were empty tables, they refused to give us a table. Bizarre, we thought.

We walked to amother restaurant that we saw on our circuitous route this morning and had a good meal of garlic soup, goulash, and a cabbage/carrot salad with a horseradish dressing. JoAnne ordered the white wine (Moravian of course) and then the waiter turned to Lee and asked what kind of beer would he like. When Lee asked for white wine the waiter was taken aback. We joked about that for days.

On our way back to the hotel we saw a beggar/homeless person in the street (they are relatively rare here). A tourist stopped and said he just landed and didn't have any money, "...but I can give you a cigarette...by the way, do you know any good places to eat?"

When we started out in the morning we discovered a farmer's market right in the square next to the hotel. The vegetables looked fantastic. Also there were baskets of raspberries. We must stop and buy this next time.

Emily and JoAnne talked for about an hour in the morning, getting all caught up with Emily's adventures at her conference in San Francisco. Thank goodness for Skype.

Today we took a fast route to Charles Castle, as we had seven more sites to see on our two-day ticket. Nevertheless we made a stop at St. Nicholas' Church in the Old Town Square, as this was one of the strongholds of Jan Hus (Hussite Movement). It had a small footprint but disproportionately high ceilings, so it was unusual and interesting.

At the Charles Castle we started at the Golden Lane, so called because of the goldsmiths who lived and worked there. This was our favourite part of the tour, as it had the very small houses where guards and "ordinary" people lived within the castle walls. We saw the little house of a famous psychic, and also #22 where Franz Kafka lived in the years 1916-17 when he was writing The Country Doctor. It's now a Kafka gift shop. Running along the top of these rowhouses was a long hall for guarding the castle. It now holds suits of armour, helmets, and weapons. At the end of the lane was the Powder Room (a tower) which housed the dungeon and torture equipment. This was quite gruesome.

Next was St. George's Basilica and next to it was the Chapel of John of Nobomuk, who was a martyr. Under the altar were his bones, encased in glass. It was typical of altars to be placed over tombs or bones, so this is not really unusual.

We visited the Rosenburg Palace, which was the home for gentlewomen (i.e. impoverished ladies of the aristocracy). They lived by a strict rules and dress code, and code of conduct. It was interesting for its Biedermeier furniture and costume. The 19th century artworks were 50% super-interesting and 50% really boring. We liked seeing the studies for major works, as well as the grand paintings that depicted legends. The landscapes were rather dull for our tastes (at one time in history these were extremely popular). It made us think of Thomas Kincaide (but they were not as cloying as that). The portraits were very good though.

The Museum of the Castle Guards was well done. We saw that the role was more than ceremonial (at some points in our visit on the castle grounds we did see "changing of the guards"). We learned how the role of the guards changed over the 20th century due to the evolving political situations. The guards have alliances with other countries, e.g. the Slovak guards lead the ceremony when the Slovak president is there.

Finally, we visited the Royal Palace. The two remarkable features were the complex design of the ribs of the vaulted ceilings (a pattern we had never seen before) and a room where they kept the Land Rolls. The Land Rolls were huge volumes kept in enormous cabinets right next to the justice room. Unfortunately, pictures were not allowed unless you had a special license.

We had lunch at a the Tkalcovsky dvur restaurant down by the river. We noticed that the 0.4 L of draft beer was the same price as the 0.2 L soft drink. We both had the goulash soup, JoAnne had a marinated camembert cheese (very Czech apparently) and Lee had sausages with mustard and horseradish. Of course we both had Czech beer.

Around the corner was the Kafka Museum. The Lonely Planet guide book doesn't know what to make of it. Let's just say, if you appreciate Kafka you'll love it, if you don't like Kafka you wouldn't be there anyway. Indeed, neither JoAnne nor Lee had finished Metamorphosis, but now we both want very much to read The Castle and other books. It was very much like an art installation, in that it engages you in many ways without telling you what to think - you do the interpretation yourself. It described the circumstances of his life, so you could form your opinion about where he was coming from. They quoted his own words about his thoughts and frustrations, and identified influences from his friends in the Yiddish theatre. They described in some detail his last few months as he lay dying of tuberculosis and starving to death because his larynx prevented him from eating or drinking - and during this time he was still trying to edit his books. "The Castle" remains unfinished. This is the book we both want to read.

When we walked back through the Old Town Square, we saw a huge group around devotional candles. In the centre were three hockey sticks positioned ceremoniously. The police van was nearby. We later learned that three Czech players were killed in a Russian plane crash.

Supper tonight consisted of hors d'oeuvres, red wine (a Monrovian Frankovia) and beer in the Marriott executive lounge. On our list to do are the Communist Museum, National Museum, Our Lady of the Snows church, John Zizov statue, laundry, finding the train station for Sunday's trip to Austria and eating pig's knee (saw this on the menu boards outside several restaurants near the castle).

Hotel Prague Marriott.

We started the morning with a trip to the laundry. How this works is a mystery - the attendant ran everything (machine settings, the soap, the spin cycle) without even looking at the clothes, or so we thought. For some reason, one load took 30 minutes while the other took 90. While we waited we chatted with a woman from Atlanta, Georgia, USA who had just moved her family to Prague from Shanghai and was going to be stationed here for at least two years. She had been to that laundry before and recommended against letting them put the clothes in the dryer, as it is too hot and the clothes will shrink. So we took them back to the hotel and hung them all over the bathroom.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped at the farmers market in Republic Square and bought what would be our picnic lunches for the next two days (spelt bread, poppy seed bread, apricot pastry, two kinds of plums, wild boar dried sausage, a chunk of cheese, a cucumber and an apple).

We timed our walk to the train station and found the platform from where our Sunday 7 a.m. train will leave.

Next we headed to Vysehrad, crossing first Wenceslas Square then walking through Charles Square. At one end of Charles Square is the New Town Hall, which was built when New Town was actually new. It was here in 1419 that followers of Jan Hus flung two Catholic councillors out of the window, which kicked off the Hussite Wars. At the other end of the square (really a long park) was the Faust Dum (Faust House) where the legend says that Mephistopheles brought Faust to hell through a hole in the ceiling. It is now a part of the medical school at Charles University. According to the Lonely Planet guide, an alchemist once worked here.

From there we backtracked to Resslova Street to the Church of St. Cyril and St. Methodius, to see the Memorial to the Victims of Post Heydrich Terror in World War II. It was more than just a memorial. It had a detailed display and narrative of the rise of the Imperial Nazi Protector Heydrich, the training of the Czech paratroopers who were involved in his assassination, the nearly-botched event, and the terrible aftermath. It was a very moving account, which concluded with a walk through the crypt where most of the paratroopers died, mostly by suicide to avoid surrendering to the Germans. In both Warsaw and Prague we have learned a great deal about the significant and shocking events of the war, which in relative terms was not that long ago. JoAnne and Lee debated a bit about what drove one of the paratroopers to betray the rest.

At the end of Resslova street was the "Dancing House", designed by Frank Gehry. We walked along the river past fine buildings of Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Cubism, which was new to us as an architectural movement (looks like origami folds).

We walked as far as the tunnel and then climbed the steep hill to Vysehrad. At the top was the cemetery where Anton Dvorak and Alfonse Mucha are buried. The artistry and variety in many of the headstones was outstanding. We entered the church of SS. Peter and Paul, which was on the site of Prague's original church from 1100, but was completely made over inside by Art Nouveau craftsman. JoAnne snapped many pictures of the saints and other fabulous decoration, and only saw the "no pictures" sign on our way out. Also on the hill was the St Martin Rotunda, which is supposed to be one of the oldest buildings in Prague, but it looked mostly made over. We stopped for a late picnic lunch on a park bench above the city ramparts and then walked back to the hotel. Today we were in a lot of areas that were new to us.

For dinner we tried a new restaurant on Kolkovna Street, based upon a recommendation from the Lonely Planet Prague guide which described them as "posh" Czech dishes. It was on a zig-zag route from the Marriott through Old Town, and after a bit of wandering in circles we found it. JoAnne had the cabbage pancakes served with a sour cream garlic sauce and Lee had the pork hock with marinated or pickled vegetables (hot) with mustard and horseradish. They were really good dishes but left no room for dessert.

Hotel Prague Marriott.

Today we went to the Communist Museum. It was surprisingly busy, but it is well-advertised on the street, and the fact that it is above a McDonalds restaurant seems to be a selling feature. The museum was very well done, with lots of items from the area. There was a very detailed story of how communism was voted in by the people, because they thought it would be better than the turmoil and depression they were experiencing already. The museum covered many aspects of the era, such as the goals, the working life, farming, education, markets, propoganda and news filtering, communist art (they called it "social realism"), interrogation, the role of secret police (who maintained their strength by keeping the "dirt" on the politicians), and an interesting feature on the underground '70s rock band "The Plastic People of the Universe" of which Vaclav Havel was a member.
There was a very moving film montage on the protests of 1968 and 1989. As these took place a few feet away in Wenceslas Square, it hit close to home, especially as 1989 was not only in our memory of social awareness but also contemporary to us as adults. The protesters wore the same clothes we wore then, and we had those '80's hairstyles, but we were not getting beaten up by the police. The montage was composed of local news videos, which were then replayed as background to a folk song called "Thank You". There was not a dry eye in the room.

We got our comic relief picking out souvenir postcards in the gift shop, with slogans such as "They coined the phrase 'politically correct' 50 years before the West caught on" and "There was no toilet paper in the shops. Luckily there was no food on the shelves either".

From the museum we walked across the bridge and up the hill in Letna Gardens to the Metronome. This was the site of a huge and preposterous monument to Stalin. It took five years to build (Stalin died three years into it) and was discretely blown up seven years later when Stalin was denounced. The Communist Museum has photos of it being built and the blowing up. The artist David Cerny topped the empty pedestal with a huge metronome. The area behind the monument is now a skateboard park. There is graffiti everywhere, which seems like a good way to scrub out any traces of "state control" karma.

From there we walked past a beer garden in the park - we love a city that offers takeaway draft beer in a public park. It was Saturday and many parents were enjoying a beer while their kids played.

We headed next to the Veletrzni Palace for modern art. With just three hours until closing, we went through the temporary exhibits first. Then we split off - Lee to see the Impressionists (Picasso, Van Gogh, Picasso, Monet, etc.) while JoAnne to the early 19th century section to see Alphonse Mucha and his contemporaries. We met on the floor for contemporary Czech art with 30 minutes to closing and realized we should have skipped the international masters and gone straight here. We zipped .through it until they sent us away, locking the doors behind us. Another place added to the list for the next visit to Prague.

We circled around the neighborhood before heading back to the hotel. What a nice break it was from the tourist-crowded streets of Old Town. Back to the Kolkovna Street restaurant for another great meal and then to the hotel to pack, as we had an early train to Austria.

Hotel Prague Marriott.

Some of our pictures from Prague on Flickr -->

Salzkammergut Lakes & Mountains

We got up early for a quick breakfast in the Marriott and walked to the train station. We had a first class compartment mostly to ourselves for the five hours to Linz. We had 45 minutes between trains in Linz, so we bought some snacks and boarded the City Shuttle train for Steeg-Gosau.

InnTravel had arranged a taxi for us, and we were out of the station before the train pulled out. In five minutes we were across the river at the Gasthaus Agatha Wirt. JoAnne's eyes popped at the sight of apple, plum and pear trees everywhere. But it was like the sheep in Wales - fascinating at first but after a while you're stepping in rotten fruit everywhere if you don't watch out.

After showering, we walked around the church next door and down to the bridge in Au where the River Traun meets the Hallstättersee. We returned to the hotel for supper in the garden area. Since today was a travel day (even with the 4½ km walk to the bridge) we decided to go light on supper, JoAnne had the fish and Lee had the vegetable strudel. But we did splurge on plum cake for dessert. JoAnne is determined to try to duplicate this at home - with ground nuts in the batter. The fresh plums are at their best right now. We turned in really early, as it was a long day and we start our hike tomorrow.

Hiked 4½km (but official hike doesn't start until tommorrow).

Hotel Landhotel Agathawirt.

We started with breakfast in the hotel restaurant - some kind of spelt bread with walnuts (goes great with honey), various cold cuts, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, fresh peppers, liverwurst (tasted fine and reminded us we should have it at home) and great coffee (good and strong).

The hike was the most memorable we've had to date on any trip. The ascent was 750 meters, the most we have climbed in one hike, but it didn't feel tough. It was mostly road on the way up and forest path on the way down. We passed many Swiss chalet style houses and rich green meadows, some with milk cows. The reward at the top was Gasthaus Hutteneckalm, where we ate our lunch in a quiet Austrian room. JoAnne ordered in German and the waitress responded in German. She didn't realize we were English speaking until Lee went to pay the bill. Lee had goulash mit brot and JoAnne had a salad (lettuce, carrots, and cabbage) with hot fried potatoes and an egg on top. We each had the acclaimed specialty, Kaiserschmarrn - chopped pancakes sprinkled with powdered sugar and stewed lingonberries on the side. JoAnne regretted insisting that we each have our own. Even if we shared one it would have been a struggle to finish. The powered sugar was interesting - more like pulverized granulated sugar, slightly gritty, as opposed to the floury icing sugar we get at home.

On the way back to town, the couple that was sitting at the table next to us cycled by (must have been a tough ride up). The man spotted the Canadian flag on our packs and stopped to chat, as he had visited Nova Scotia a few years ago (a friend of his is an English classics professor at Acadia University in Wolfville).

It was 3:30 when we got back to the hotel. We went to the grocery store (Nah & Frisch) around the corner for toothpaste, and cookies for JoAnne and a beer for Lee. At supper, everyone spoke German and they had all either hiked or biked that day and most were middle-aged or older. For supper, we tried to eat light, as we were still stuffed from the Kaiserschmarrn. Again we turned in early.

Hiked 13km.

Hotel Landhotel Agathawirt.

On Tuesday we packed and headed for Hallstatt. We had a bit of a mixup trying to find our trail, as we had to walk through St Agatha and probably Au, and there are lots of houses and little lanes that curve around, so common in Europe. If you miss a turn you could be headed in the opposite direction. Eventually we got on track at Obersee and met our path which runs along the lake.

We followed the trail, stopping once at a picnic table for tea. Along the way were many gorgeous homes with boat houses. At one section we were in the forest, along a nature trail with the many trees labelled, unfortunately only in German, not Latin. Unlike most other German vocabulary, we found almost nothing similar between the German and English names of flora (e.g., foxglove in German is Fingerhut and red currant is Johannesbeer).

One of the final sections of the path was on a bridge that wrapped around the cliff, hanging over the water. It was recently installed, as the old bridge had washed out a few years ago. We came to the boat station and waited for the boat to take us across the lake to Hallstatt. Three Japanese girls got on with us. We soon discovered that Hallstatt attracts a lot of Japanese tourists. The boat trip provided a thrilling view of Hallstatt, which has quaint old houses seemingly piled one on top of another going up the mountain side. Very picturesque.

We disembarked and walked down the street a short distance to our hotel, Gruner Baum, which is situated right between the edge of the water and the market square.

After dropping our packs in the reception room (too early to check in) we walked through the old town to the station for the funicular which would take us up the mountain to the old salt mines. The funicular took us up to Rudolfsturm, a tower built in the 1600's for the defense of the mine. (We could have taken an alternate route from St. Agatha which would have brought us to Rudolfsturm.) We continued up the slope visiting the interpretive displays on the original people who lived and mined here in the Bronze Age and Iron Age. From the burial sites and the rich artifacts found in the graves, there is very strong evidence that the people here were very well off. Salt was valuable and traded with other regions, including Italy for wine and olives and even for goods from North Africa. This period is in fact known as "Hallstatt Culture".

We took the tour of the mine after donning our protective suits as it is a bit dirty and only 8°C. It is still a working mine, so we were warned not to touch anything. The highlight for Lee was going down the slides to get to lower levels (JoAnne took the stairs). The highlight for JoAnne was the brine lake, where salt is dissolved out of rock and pumped to another town (Ebensee) through the world's oldest pipeline (since the 1600's).

After the salt mine, we checked in and explored the town as far as the Catholic church. We had a fine dinner at Gashof Zauner, just off the square by our hotel. We had the fish (caught earlier that day in the Hallstättersee) and plum dumplings for desert.

Hiked 9km (plus another 3km or so as part of the Salt Mine museum & around town).

Hotel Grüner Baum.

On Wednesday we took the bus to the Dachstein cable car station (Obertraun Dachsteinbahn, less than 15 minutes on the bus) and took the cable cars up two levels to the Krippenstein station for the circular walk through the Karst Nature Trail. When we got to the Krippenstein station, it was thick cloud in front of us and all around us. At one point Lee walked down into an ice cave and got some pictures. The visibility was very poor, as far as views go, but still it was phenomenal to be in all that cloud. It heightened our perception of the ropy-lookingr ock formation, the thick pine shrubs, and the lively mix of alpine flowers that we might not have noticed otherwise.

When we reached what was supposed to be the Gjaidalm, a "refuge" hut and restaurant, we actually could not see it and the paths seemed to drop off the mountain. But we followed in the direction of voices. The Gjaidalm gasthof was a 'bio' (organic) café, according to the sign. We ordered sauerkraut and dumplings (two meat-filled and two just bread dumplings) and of course beer. As we ate our lunch (the server joked "here's your lunch AND your supper" as it was so big) the rain started to pour down hard. We got there just in time.

The restaurant was decorated inside with Buddhist statues and prayer flags and we noted that the owners were from Nepal. We surmised that if you are going to leave Nepal, you might as well go to the Austrian Alps for a similar mountain lifestyle.

While we were in the restaurant, two Austrian men came in wearing traditional mountain clothing (hat with feather, knickers, long socks) and we were to see this style more frequently over the next few days.

When we got back to town, we did our usual detour to the grocery store for snacks, wine, and beer before returning to the hotel. In the evening we did a more extensive walk around Hallstatt, going up and down the steps between the houses, and then out to the more residential area. The road through town is extremely narrow and only allows for one lane of traffic, so there are wider spots where a car can pull over to let others pass. We watched as one car at good speed, drove in reverse from the Old Town, all the way to her parking spot just outside of town. In the evening we had a light supper in a café and held off dessert.

The Gruner Baum is a very old hotel, elegant and filled with antiques. Our room, which was very spacious, had a separate sitting room and bedroom, a nice bathroom and a small foyer as well. We were on the 3rd floor (4th floor in North American terms) and the stairs creaked like crazy, as did the floorboards in our room. Wherever the furniture in the lobbies and lounges were not antique, it was refreshingly modern, to good effect. We ate our breakfast at the front window that looked out over the lake. It is a beautiful hotel, with very friendly staff. Hallstatt is a very pretty village and we are putting it on our list of places to return to someday.

Hiked 11km.

Hotel Grüner Baum.

On Thursday morning, a taxi picked us up, and after dropping our luggage at the hotel Gosauerhof, took us to the foot of the Gosausee (a series of three lakes) where we started our next hike.

The day was overcast, with low clouds, but it was still quite warm. The area was busy with hikers of all ages, especially the first lake (Vorderer Gosauersee), which is a popular spot and reminds us of Lake Louise in the Alberta Rocky Mountains. When we reached the second (smaller) lake, the crowds thinned. We continued on a somewhat steep climb to Hinterer Gosauersee (the third lake). The reward at the end was a picturesque, clear underground spring-fed lake, with cows in the narrow meadow alongside it and another gasthof (café) at the end. As usual, we dined outside amongst gorgeous views. We tried to go light on our eating, this time having soups, with beer for Lee and a spritzer for JoAnne. Then we saw an apple strudel going to the next table, and couldn't resist. It was very tasty and obviously homemade.

There were more hikers on the walk back. The café runs the "Hinterer Gosausee Express", which is a wagon with seats pulled by a tractor between the café and the main lodge at Vorderer Gosausee. Some people take the ride for lunch and then walk back as it is mostly downhill. On the walk back we passed a group of rock climbers inching their way along the steep cliff below us and just above the water. There is a lot you can do here.

We caught the bus back to the Hotel Gosauerhof (under 15 minutes), and after cleaning up we walked around a section of village next to Gosau, called Hallen Bad an Kalvarienberg. There were a few churches on the slope, with cattle and sheep in the meadows between the houses. At the uppermost point there was a little pink church (Kalvarienberg) that would be end the end of tomorrow's hike, so we left it alone. We found our way back to the hotel on a small trail along the canal, which allowed us to avoid the busy main road.

All the houses everywhere are the same style - stone foundation, white stucco mid-section, brown wood upper level with wraparound balcony, and metal roof. On the balcony railing are planter boxes filled with pink and red geraniums. Some houses have these balconies on all three levels and almost all of the houses are square in footprint. Since no house deviates from this traditional style, there are no eye-sore houses. We hink that the owners express their individuality in their landscaping, as we saw myriad different details.

We had supper at the hotel, turkey schnitzel (JoAnne) and pork cutlet (Lee) with a nice bottle of local wine, and apricot dumplings (apricots from the "house trees") for dessert, which was the best to date.

Hiked 14½km.

Hotel Gosauerhof.

On Friday we took the bus back to Vorderer Gosausee, where we took the Gosaukamm cable car to the top of the mountain, at Zwieselalm. As we went up we were lifted through the clouds, and at the top the sun was shining brightly and we looked down on the brilliant and thick white clouds filling the valley. For the first time we had a clear view of the mountain tops and the glacier.

The only huttes were early in the hike and we passed the last one, Zur Zwieselalm, at 10:45 am. It was too early for lunch, but Lee suggested we stop for coffee. At 10:45 it was too early for beer even by Austrian standards, or so we thought. Then we noticed two other groups of hikers seated at tables already loaded with beer. Before we left, they were ordering lunch and more beer.

The day's walk down from the peak was easy-going and spectacular, with lots of great views of the mountains and glaciers, alternating with cool and pleasant forests.

That night at dinner we met a British couple from Cornwall, who were also travelling via InnTravel and were a day behind us (hi Keith and Mary!). Our host at Hotel Gosauerhof, Anni Laserer, encouraged us to talk to them as they had asked for advice about the hiking route we had taken that day. We talked late into the evening on many subjects, starting with the fact that they live very close to Port Isaac where "Doc Martin" is filmed. We talked about our experiences on our hikes with InnTravel (Italy for them, France for us) and learned that they had walked the Offa's Dyke Trail a couple of years before we did. Anni upped the enjoyment by serving a round of schnapps "on the house."

Hiked 10½km.

Restaurant-Hotel Gosauerhof.

On Saturday we had our second hike in the Gosau area. After a few false starts, and being redirected by locals in the village who seemed to know where we wanted to go but recognized that we missed a turn or two, we finally got on the road in the right direction. However, we immediately missed the trail head into the woods. Nevertheless, we determined from the map and GPS that the trail would cross the road again in 300 meters. Just as we arrived there, we saw a large group of adults and children who were also doing the same hike. We let them get ahead of us and we continued on, this time following the proper trail.

The next stopping point was Inglmoosalm, where the hiking group had stopped. We pressed on to our higher destination - Goisererheutte. When we reached the road just above the hut at Inglmoosalm there were breathtaking panoramic views of the mountain tops and valley back into Gosau. The terrain was now steep and somewhat rocky and full of tree roots to step over, but very well marked with the red-white-red stripes painted on rocks or trees every 20 or so meters.

Just before we reached the top, we passed through an area that had a lot of barns, as well as cabins or small houses that were occupied. Between the houses and barns was a network of low stone fences that were somewhat in ruins. It reminded us of the ancient sheep folds that we saw in Wales as you approach the top of Hatteral Ridge from the south.

At the top was Goisererheutte and from this point you could see down into the other side of the range, with snow-capped peaks all around. While we waited for our lunch, the hiking group arrived. They were reduced by half, but still made up a large group of adults and children. At this point we noticed that even the youngest of the children had real hiking boots. So cute.

Once the group settled in, one of the hikers pulled an accordion out of his backpack case and started playing, and a woman sat next to him playing some sort of wooden 'clacking' instrument for accompaniment. The people at the tables sang along. What a treat to be among Austrians enjoying themselves on a Saturday afternoon. The host of the hutte brought out a dessert for each of them (and some beer showed up as well). They stopped playing to eat, so we started heading back down but before we got back to the area with the barns we heard the music start up again. Now we felt like we had just experienced the real Austrian countryside. In Canada, an enjoyable hike would be nature, scenery, solitude and hopefully seeing some wildlife. In Austria, it is nature, scenery, no animals, but social interaction with music and beer and good food at the destination.

On the descent we mainly followed the road, which looped back a different way, and it was scenic as usual.

That night at supper, our table was set for four instead of the usual two (a strong nudge from Anni, we think), so JoAnne invited the British couple to join us for dinner. Then the musicians came in and set up. There was an accordion and one of those instruments with the 'hammering' strings, like a dulcimer. That night it was a full house in the restaurant.

Hiked 17½km.

Hotel Gosauerhof.

The next morning the same taxi came to take us to Ramsau-am-Dachstein. Anni and Brigitta insisted that we come and say goodbye before leaving the Gosauerhof. What attentive hosts they are! We do want to come back.

The taxi driver was their sister-in-law and since it was a Sunday (and the taxi was a large van) her parents came along for the ride. We arrived at the Sporthotel Matschner. Since we had hiked everyday for the past week and had a big hike yesterday, we relaxed a bit by just getting the sense of the town. The town was host to the 1999 Nordic World Championships, so there are several monuments and high-end sports facilities in the region, including a ski-jump just behind the hotel. Everywhere there are ski-lifts, ski-schools, and cross-country ski training facilities. There is even a "bridge" in a sheep meadow to train going up and down a hill. It is little wonder that such a small country does so well in these events.

We went into a major sports shop, called Ski Willy Sport 2000, and bought some new cross-country ski clothing (JoAnne) and hiking knickers/socks (Lee).

At 6 pm we joined the host of the hotel and several guests in the bar to go over the hiking program for the week. We had used the hike descriptions in the hotel's literature to map out our hikes for the week (two challenging ones if the weather was good and two easier ones if the weather was not so good). The host went over the hikes that their guide, Gitti Wieser, would be leading. He talked us out of the hikes we had planned, since snow was in the forecast. Any hiking above 1,200 meters would not be possible the next day and getting above 1,500 meters might not be possible that week. Since our planned bad weather hike was similar to the Monday guided hike we decided we would go with the group.

Hiked 5km.

Hotel Hotel Matschner.

That night, it did snow, at least 15 cm, and it was still snowing hard when we got up. Definitely we were going with the group. Even the planning guide from InnTravel indicated that there could be snow in September, and so we were prepared with everything but gloves. Fortunately we did fine without them (being true Canadians) but if it was any colder it would have been not pleasant.

So at 10 am we set out with our new hiking group - Gitti, the leader (grew up in the area but was well travelled, and once made it to Edmonton to visit friends she met in Australia), Mathaus (an engineer from Westphalia and avid photographer), and Laura and Brigitta who were both from Berlin.

It snowed all day, so the hiking was slushy and slow going. The highlight was the stop at the Halseralm, a 400 year old farmhouse still without electricity. We had a lunch of Kaiserschmarrn flambéed, for which they are famous. JoAnne enjoyed a Gluhmost (something like mulled cider) on Brigitta's recommendation. The great thing about going out with a group like this is that they can point what is good and you can enjoy everything like an Austrian. We were fortunate that Gitti and Brigitta spoke very fluent English, as did Mathaus, and by the third day JoAnne was feeling pretty comfortable that she was understanding a great deal of the German conservations.

Hiked 9km.

Hotel Hotel Matschner.

For the Tuesday hike, the snow was already starting to melt at the lower elevations. We took the bus (free with the Sommerkarte compliments of the hotel) all they way to Schladming. As usual the bus trip through the valley was scenic. Schladming was the largest town we have been to so far in Austria. Gitti led us to the end point of the Wilde Wasser trail (in town) and we worked our way towards the source in Untertal, over the course of the day. Near the start of the hike, each of the mountain streams along the trail had playful mechanisms powered by the water, such as hammers beating a block of wood.

Along the way we stopped at an old water wheel that was used for grinding the grain in the valley. When we got to higher elevations we came upon a geological formation that has many vents. Due to the glacier that was once there and the underground glacier-water streams, cool air blows up and if you put your hand in the vent, you can feel cool air in summer and warm air in winter (actually, air of constant temperature). Today it felt neutral to us. The ancients used to put their containers in these vents during the summers to keep their food cool.

At the end of the hike we reached a hutte where we enjoyed the area's specialty "stusse" (known as headcheese in Canada). This place had many stuffed animals hanging on the walls. When we pointed out the big, potentially Canadian moose head on the wall, it suddenly got a lot of attention and everyone started snapping pictures.

After lunch we walked around the hutte's lake while we waited for the bus to take us back to the hotel. We saw many rabbits, a couple of pigs, some donkeys and even a peacock and goat. The lake was is stocked with fish, which they served in the restaurant.

The taxi that was due to pick us up the next day called and offered to delay the pickup so we could spend a longer day in Ramsau. That was perfect, as it would allow us to go out with the group one more time. The group accommodated us by agreeing to a 9:00 am rather than 9:30 start.

Hiked 9km.

Hotel Hotel Matschner.

Some of our pictures from our walk in the Salzkammergut, via Flickr -->

Salzburg

On Wednesday morning, we said our good-byes to Brigitta, who was leaving on the morning train. Another couple joined the group. Gitti drove us to the trailhead in the hotel's van (Wandererbus) back though Schladming to another valley (Obertal). We hiked a long way up, through some snow and along gushing streams, and entered a high valley with a lake surrounded by mountains. Here there was not one but actually two huttes to serve the wandering folk. Again we had a great lunch, and then walked around the area still covered in snow, where there were ponies and quite a few rabbits.

Back at the hotel we joined the group for a final "kaffee und kuchen" and then said our good-byes. Our taxi took us through Fitzmoos and then on the autobahn to Salzburg, in just under an hour. Our hotel was the Altstadt Hotel, part of the Raddison chain, on the edge of the old town (Altstadt) section and next to the bank of the Salzbach. The river essentially cuts through Salzburg.

We checked into our upgraded room, which was about the size of an apartment by European standards. The hotel was very old (built in 1392) but the furnishings are new. You can still see the original stone arches, wooden ceiling beams and niches to place candles to light the stairway.

When we walked out to check out the old town we were stunned by the carnival atmosphere in the squares. There were games, rides and beer tents everywhere. Even more fun were the wine stands. "Sturm" is extremely popular - it is a young white wine that is served at room temperature. It is unfiltered, probably low alcohol, and sells for 2.50€ for ¼ L.

The most surprising thing we saw was that most of the people, of all ages, were wearing traditional dress (dirndl for women and girls and lederhosen for men and boys). It was not until the next evening when we learned from a young lady sitting next to us at the beer-wine-sturm tents that this was the start of the festival of St Rupert. We were very lucky to be here at this time. Furthermore, there were crafts and demos from local businesses and craftsman. It was a like a country fair.

We ate our supper and had a bottle of local wine (from Styria, the region we had just come from) in the square and realized we were in love with Salzburg.

Hiked 8½km (before heading to Salzburg).

Hotel SAS Radisson Blu Altstadt.

Thursday morning we bought our Salzburg Card (free access to most sites and public transit) and then walked up to the Hohensalzburg Fortress, which is perched on the hill above the old town and is a landmark that can be seen from anywhere in the city. The fortress has a long and interesting history, with many sites unlike anything we have ever seen, such as the Golden Room and tiles from the original chapel. The torture tower was downright creepy.

The fortress, as an attraction for English-speaking tourists, still has some distance to go, as there are only some parts curated in English. There are many parts designated as special areas (like workers' rooms) but not open to the public. The Rainer Museum on the military history looked fascinating but it was all in German. Definitely there is potential to expand, so in five years we should make another visit.

After visiting the fortress, we wandered over to some fortifications on Monchsberg (Monk's Hill) and then down to the expansive meadow below, in which there is a single house smack in the middle. According to the tour guide at the castle, this was once inhabited by the "Watcher of the Cabbages".

Just before we got back to the old city, we stopped at a local bakery where JoAnne bought a bag of powered sugar in the hope that this is what they put on the strudels and Kaiserschmarrn (that does not turn to mush on cakes).

In the remaining hour of the afternoon, we rushed to the Museum der Moderne Rupertinum. We were fortunate to see the Attersee photo exhibit. Christian Ludwig is an artist who started exhibiting in 1964. Most of his work was in the late '60s and early '70s. He adopted the name Attersee from his love of yachting and he is an art professor at the university in Vienna.

In the evening we had supper in the beer garden area in Altstadt and watched the fireworks from the fortress, in celebration of St Rupert.

Hotel SAS Radisson Blu Altstadt.

On Friday we followed the recommendation from the young lady we talked to at the beer gardens, and took the bus to Hellbrun Palace. The highlight was the 400-year old garden of water works or water "tricks" as they translated it. It was picturesque, playful, amusing, and ingenious. We were warned to expect to get a little wet.

We also went into the palace (actually a mansion). No one ever slept there and it was only used in the summer. The rooms we saw included the dining room, the formal festival room and the "octagon" or music room (great acoustics) and other rooms which were devoted to showing off the Prince Archbishop's collections. How lucky one must have been to be a guest at Hellbrun. Before we left Hellbrun, we found the pavilion in the park where "Sixteen Going On Seventeen" was filmed for The Sound of Music.

Next stop was Mirabell Palace, across the river from the old town. We took in the Salzburger Barockmuseum for the Rembrandt etchings which had just opened that day. We also saw a collection of studies for paintings in the baroque era in the museum's permanent collection.

A few blocks away was the Mozart Residence which is one of the two Mozart museums in Salzburg. We saw Mozart's piano, a collection of his father's books, and objects belonging to the family. We watched a very moving film about Mozart's early life, ending at the point where he was starting to achieve fame.

In the early evening we went back to Mirabell Palace to get pictures of the gardens at dusk without crowds. Walking along Linzerstrasse, we found an interesting old restaurant, Alter Fuchs (Old Fox). It seemed lively and free of tourists, so that was inviting. It was back to big portions of food, with lots of meat, but a nice change from the sausage and sauerkraut (which we never really get tired of).

Hotel SAS Radisson Blu Altstadt.

We decided to devote Saturday to the remaining museums on our short list. We started with the Museum der Moderne Monchsberg, because we love modern art and we are usually in a rush to get through art museums before closing. What a treat! Highlights were Cindy Sherman (and take-offs of her work by other artists), Robert Wilson (a video spin on famous paintings, featuring several celebrities), Eleanor Antin, Marcel Duchamp (and take-offs), an interesting David LaChapelle exhibit ("Jesus is my Homeboy") and several others, including an interesting spin on "Death in Venice" from Ming Wong.

Four hours or more later, we found we still had time to see the Residenz State Rooms back in the old town. With less than one hour before closing, we saw the Dom Cathedral and the Dom's museum and its medieval church artifacts, including statues of St Rupert and St Virgil, and St Rupert's cross (circa 700 AD). Next we saw St Peter's Abbey, another very old church. Mass appeared to be starting, so JoAnne stayed hoping to hear some nice church music, while Lee went to finish shopping for wine to take home. JoAnne misread the schedule however, and sat through a Rosary with no music.

In the evening we had a good bowl of goulash soup in an outdoor café overlooking the St Rupert's festivities in the square. Thus we had room to sample a few more of the festival treats - sweet pretzels, mandrel (glazed almonds) and more sturm and wine.

Hotel SAS Radisson Blu Altstadt.

Some of our pictures from Salzburg on Flickr -->

25 September 2010 - Travel Salzburg to Edmonton

Sunday morning we woke up somewhat ready to go home, after 3½ weeks of being away. We took one last wander around the old town and had coffee at an outdoor cafe. Possibly this would be our last really good coffee until we go to Paris in three months. The stalls in the market were already starting to set up for the final day of the St. Rupert's Festival.

We took the bus to the Mozart Airport (we started at the Chopin Airport in Warsaw and left from the Mozart Airport in Salzburg - how great is that?). The Hohensalzburg fortress was still in our sight. Lee pointed out that the fortress is still a reference point, even at the airport, which made a girl on the bus laugh. It is true - several times we looked up for the fortress to see if we were going in the right direction.

It was a long but uneventful flight home, with short connections in Frankfurt and Toronto. We were in the house by midnight local time.

MISS

• Austrian and German hospitality
• Awesome food everywhere, but especially peasant dishes and European hotel breakfasts
• Beer, especially when paired with peasant food (and gotta love take-out draft beer and wine in Prague and Salzburg
• Awesome hotel rooms everywhere
• Great coffee everywhere (except for the Marriott in Prague)
• Mountain huttes for lunch (did we mention peasant food with beer?)