Cork & Alli's Trip Report

i knew there was a vamp in there somewhere....

cork was ready to go for his jugular.....

i knew there was a vamp in there somewhere....

She's not kidding, I put my hand around his throat and dug my nails in. You would have wanted to kick his a$$ too IBD. You'll get the specifics on tomorrow's report. We were never in danger. Too smart for that. You meet all kinds, you know?

Day 3 of cork & alli's adventure..... (this one is a long one!)
After Demetrius departed.....( after freezing his a$$ off...I'll let cork explain this one...)
We tried to get back to sleep. Cork did, I could not. The woman truly CAN sleep anywhere.
As it became light I was able to see the beginings of the ALPS!!!! How impressive. We washed up and were ready for Salzburg. But were they ready for us?
At the station we stopped in at the TI to secure a room. As it turns out...we booked the last one in this wonderful hotel in the "old town" (Salzburg really does have an older section of town ;-) ). We took the bus that let us off right in front of the old town. We walked around a bit, looking for our hotel. Everywhere there were booths set up with new years eve trinkets (good luck pigs, horseshoes etc.) Other booths were set up selling different foods and drinks (the best of which turned out to be hot wine! )
We finally found our hotel. It was WONDERFUL! The Blaue Gans (this is a test...who can tell us what this means?) This is where the Internet was free!!! I took a shower while cork did some computer catching up! Then she took a shower while I did some SoWalling!
The hotel was a 4 star, and a great and gracious hotel. What luck that we got the last room!...but as I said earlier, we had incredible luck with accommodations and timing throughout the entire trip!
After satisfying our shower needs and our computer craving we set out to explore Salzburg. What a beautiful and majestic setting! Mountains, cathedral domes, and an old castle dominate the skies. On the city level there are alleys and shops everywhere. During this time of the year every shop, restaurant and business has a live tree (Austrian pine) outside their door (and usually more than one!) These Christmas trees are all real and the most beautiful trees in the world. They are so delicate looking. Cork said Salzburg was like a fairy tale city and she was right! The best was yet to come, though, as it is even more lovely at night!
My grandfather was from Austria, so I felt the sensation of being quite connected to this city! I could feel the history and the culture , the city wears it proudly!
We walked through the streets and alleys. We decided it was time to eat so our culinary quest began. I was insistent that we try to find a restaurant that served authentic cuisine. We found a cute little cafe that fit the bill! I had goulash with a potato dumpling and cork had grilled sausages with sauerkraut.
After lunch we meandered around visiting the various cathedrals. The most impressive was St Peters (It seems every city in Europe has a St Peters...) So beautiful! This is where the VonTrapp family hid from the nazis. Before we investigated the grave yard we came across an archway covered in tree branches. We went through the arch way and what a surprise! It led into a large court yard with Christmas trees EVERYWHERE!
On one side was a small Moroccan style cafe and on the other was an entrance to a hotel. At the end of the court yard a small bar area had been set up. For some reason we were "drawn" to it. Here we purchased our first hot wines! Pure manna on a cold day!

We took our mugs and walked out to investigate the grave yard. What an amazing place! It seems strange to refer to a grave yard this way...but it is true! Lining the walls are the gated sites and all along the path are the in ground plots. Each plot is tended with love. I was astonished to see each grave elaborately decorated for Christmas! Some were more lavish than others, but each had been lovingly decorated! It was like walking through a museum or art gallery! I did not take any pictures of these...it would have been a travesty! I would have felt disrespectful! I did take a picture of the gates similar to the ones the Vontrapp family hid in.

We walked back to our little grotto area bar to return the mugs. We stopped in at the little cafe there and I loved it. We thought it would be a good place to come back to for dinner....UMMMM...NO!!! It was new years eve and they had a set menu...about 70 euro a piece...
We walked around some more, checked out the booths and shops. We were on a quest for a lucky pig! I finally found the most unobtrusive pig I could find....a tiny (I mean REALLY tiny) glass pig. I guess size does not matter...because we had good luck the whole trip! Cork was disgusted with me...but hey....I don't like pigs. We bought a few more trinkets ( I tried to get cork to buy herself a "dirty pig" but she wouldn't)

We changed clothes for the holiday evening. We SoWalled some more then headed out. We had more hot wine and walked around a bit. Our culinary quest for dinner was Weiner Schnitzel with spaetzle!!! We found the perfect place and had dinner! After dinner we walked around some more, had more hot wine, walked, wine, wine.....One of the highlights of the evening was when we walked out side the old city and stood on the bridge! Looking back at the city was breath taking! All the cathedral domes were lit up as was the old castle. Cork got a pretty good photo of it (I hope)
The square was beginning to fill up. Big plans for the New Years Eve celebration! Around 9:30(??) the first band began to play. The Wild Cats...an all lady band. They were very good. Most of the songs they performed were American 80's. The second band was Star Mix. They were good too. By this time the square was rocking. Cork & I kept leaving our spot to get more wine, but we were always able to squeeze back into our spot...center stage! There was much revelry form everyone. At one point we had a rowdy group of young bloods behind us...too funn!
As the 12:00 hour drew near, I could tell there was this "person" inching closer to us.:roll: I tried not to make eye contact...but I could tell he was trying to get close to us. When 12:00 hit he was behind us and grabbed both of us and hugged. He started talking to me. I could never figure out his real story....He was from India, Italy, Pakistan, Iran or Spain???? He told Cork he was living in Salzburg doing some kind of work...he had been away from his wife for 4 years (was that it cork?) He was trying the whole time to suck my face .... Cork finally made him back off. He bought us each a small bottle of champagne, which was nice...however, we drank and split! Weaved and bobbed our way through the crowd so Ackhmed (or what ever his name was) would not follow us!
Back at the hotel we SoWalled some more and then tried to DD several people. We did manage to talk to BB and Jennay. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!
The next morning (AGAIN) we didn't wake up until LATE! I took another shower...I learned to take advantage of every shower I could get....never know when the next one will be...
We left our bags at the hotel and enjoyed the city some more. We found another small Tea Room/Bakery and had some lunch. Quiche Lorraine and salad...it was delish!
Later in the afternoon we collected our bags and headed for the station. This time we were headed for Munich for dinner at the Hofbrau House! And this, my dears, will be saved for tomorrow!

All in all ...New Years Eve in Salzburg is an AMAZING experience.:clap_1:

Also...as I posted yesterday, one of the shops sold nothing but hand painted blown eggs. The shop was truly amazing!

Pictures from Salzburg

Here is the little courtyard area:

Painted Eggs galore!

:clap_1: ...this thread is my new addiction. I cannot get enough!!!

Just waiting for cork to chime in
You should'a been there with us kitty-o!
It was extreme funn!

So beautiful!! Great report...the hot wine sounds delish!

okay, I'm caught up on this trip report. ready for mo!

Finally got to read this all in pieces and finished today.
Sounds like you two took Europe by surprise.
I did something similar with my sister when she lived in Holland, but it was summer, and there's nothing like the smell of cow Sheeit while traveling on the Autobahn.
Can't wait to hear the rest. :clap_1:

Whew, me, too. Just caught up. What a trip. When's your next trip. I hope to get some in-person accounts of the trip from Cork and/or Allifunn in February. I'll provide the limoncello.

i just got around to reading this - what an adventure ! i'm with beachrunner tho - i could never do without my "stuff". there are just certain essentials i must have....like showers !;-)

keep up the exciting reports !

more....more!!!

For you Miss 12,000 I will gladly do so! Tomorrow morning I'll post about our trip to Munich, our all nighter into Milan and then Venice
Cork will jump in when she can...and you will love her spin on the trip....:rofl:

Day 4 of Alli's Adventure with Cork

I liked the Munich station. When we arrived in Munich our quest was to find the Haufbrau House, to act like real tourists and get the full Oompah. We asked a woman at one of the counters (I can't remember which one) how to get to the HH. She didn't speak English very well, but we were able to figure out which direction and that it was about a 1/2 hour walk to Marienplatz. Once outside the station we were not sure which way to go. We asked a man on the street (he spoke no English but sign language is the universal language ). As usual, we ended up where we wanted to be! We walked through an area that had an ice skating rink set up. Cork & I decided this kind of skating we could do...they had large fiberglass figures that people were using to help them stay up while skating..."training wheels for dummies" I think cork took a picture.
The walk was wonderful. Munich is a wonderful city, hopefully next time it will be a longer visit! As we walked, we passed quite a few wonderful shops. I know cork would have loved to investigate, but everything was closed.
We made it to Marienplatz. There is a great, huge glockenspiel in the center square. What a lovely clock tower! It was dark so I was not able to take any decent pictures. (but I did find a few on line).
Using my eyes we were able to find the Haufbrau House. This place is huge, full of tables and people! Here you just find a seat and sit wherever you can fit. We ordered beer (Cork got the JUMBO stein and I had a baby...I don't do beer very often) I did pose with her mug though....:roll:
The band was set up in the center of the restaurant. They play once every 10 - 15 minutes or so. One song and then they take a rest. I suppose they are there all night (and maybe day too) so they pace themselves. I do enjoy German music...but only in small doses, I could not live on a steady diet of it!
We ordered dinner. I had stuffed cabbage with mashed potatoes, which was very good.
We enjoyed the HH a while longer and headed back to the station. Our reservations were made and we had about a 40 minute wait until our train left. Cork found the waiting lounge, we walked in & I immediately walked out! I'll let cork explain this one. I found a table near-by, sat down and actually drifted for a while. We got back together and went to our gate. Once on the train we found our compartment (empty at the time). Cork went to sleep (it was about 10 at this time) I read for a while and then turned off the light, laid down and tried to sleep. (I didn't drink a gallon of beer so it was difficult :rofl: ). Just as I was getting comfortable we made a stop (this was about 12:00). An older couple had reserved 2 seats in our compartment (overnight trains are all reservations only). They were not the most amenable people we had run into. (I guess they were not happy with us from the start...we had spread out all over the place ) They sat across from us, so cork & I tried to sleep on the opposite side in 3 seats. They were reading magazines and news papers, so they kept the light on. He had some kind of condition (trouble breathing...which thank goodness for, since we were in a smoking compartment & they could have been smokers) He kept opening the window. On this trip we went around our elbow. We went through France and Switzerland to get to Italy. Through out the night we stopped at every border to have our passports checked. This night...very little sleep...but thank goodness for my trusty sleep mask and ear plugs!
Our dour travel companions finally got off around 6-7?? We Dozed until Milan. We arrived in Milan around 8ish. Once we were in Milan, I understood Cork's dislike of the city. The stations were pretty much indicative of the cities themselves, and Milan's was cold, dirty, crowded and unfriendly.
Our first attempt to board a train in order to reach Venice was a disaster. Morning rush and the trains were being rushed! The first train we got on was so crowded that there was no where to even stand! The second one, which was about 30 minutes later, was equally crowded, but we knew what to do! ;-) We nosed our way to the front of the platform and as soon as they posted the arrival gate, we bulldozed our way into the train. We were able to find a compartment and sit down! (thank goodness for first class tickets!) This train was extremely crowded too! People had to stand in the aisles. Since Italy has made all trains reservation only, it is much more difficult to get around. You can get on the train, but you must pay a supplement. Most trains have to go through Milan in order to get anywhere in Italy.
We arrived in Venice! In the station we were going to try to find a TI to book a room, but the room found us! A man stopped us (do you think he realized we were tourists??? :funn: ) He asked if we would be looking for a room. Yes we would. He was quite nice, gave us the name of his hotel and a map to get there. The price was reasonable and was discounted. We decided to give it a try. The Hotel Rio near San Marco.

I am going to stop here and continue when I can devote more time to the report on Venice!

On the way to Munich
The Glockenspiel
The Haufbrau House Oompah Band
Jumbo Stien

WOW!! Wonderful pictures. Nothing like that in America...how old were they?

i haven't drank enough beer in my lifetime to fill that stein !

WOW!! Wonderful pictures. Nothing like that in America...how old were they?

Any where from the 11th century on up. I love the parts of Europe that are old and full of soul, culture, heart and history! The older the better for me!

Any where from the 11th century on up. I love the parts of Europe that are old and full of soul, culture, heart and history! The older the better for me!

No wonder you like me so much.

:clap_1: ...thanks for keeping your word!!!

No wonder you like me so much.

:clap_1: ...thanks for keeping your word!!!

for you Miss K!
I wish Cork would post...this is HER adventure too...but I know she is busy with family and work. She will just have to play catch up....

wait, I gotta catch up! can't sit at the computer for longer than 5 minutes at a time. meant to read up on this thread today, but never did. it will be my priority for tomorrow, I promise!!!

Love it!