Salzburg: The Hills Are Alive!

Our last stop landed us in Austria.

While rushing through Amsterdam & Germany,

I started to regret adding this extra leg to our trip.

It seemed like we were one destination too many,

and I couldn't really remember what Salzburg had to offer.

Upon arriving,

time stood still.

The last two days in Salzburg are seared in my mind,

and will, most likely, be the most impressive memories from the week.

We wandered the city in awe...

ate our body weights in 'schnitzel with noodles' & 'crisp apple struedel...'

visited Mozart's home...

frolicked through the snowy Austrian hillside...

... & tucked in a corner of the cafe at the Sacher Hotel 

for a slice of their famous torte.

But honestly, 

my favorite part of our time in Salzburg, 

was going on the Sound of Music Tour.

Isn't that terribly cheesy?

Well, it gets worse...

It was actually my second time to take the tour.

The first time I went on it, it was okay...

 I only booked it for us since Tyler had never done it,

and it really is a big part of visiting Salzburg.

But it ended up being an awesome day!

Tyler even had fun, too.

Though he couldn't hold a candle to the amount of trivia I had on hand...

I even might have corrected our (awesome) guide, Matthew, a few times.

I'm serious about my Von Trapp Trivia, I tell you.

Very serious.

*** 

Our Trip to Salzburg:

Stayed: Near Mozartplatz at the cozy Aldstadthotel Kasererbraeu, Kaigasse 33. 

This hotel was perfect for us. Great prices, good location, friendly staff, 

and free access to their (slightly dated, but kinda awesome) steam room & sauna.

 The hotel also has an old movie theater inside it that plays current movies every night.

(I believe it used to be "the" theatre in Salzburg, where all the movie premiers were held.)

Ate: St. Peter's Siftskeller. Said to be over 800 years old, this restaurant is carved into the mountain,

and, while a bit on the fancy side, has some really affordable options. We love this place.

(The restaurant is about 50 ft from the cemetery that inspired the "hiding from the Nazi" scene in the Sound of Music.)

Sacher Cafe- Though originally from Vienna, the Sacher Hotel has a hotel in Salzburg.

Spend an hour in their cafe indulging in their famous cake... it's pretty tasty.

Coffee is good, too.

(Also, this is where Julie Andrews stayed during the filming of the Sound of Music.)

Saw: The Nonnberg Abbey (where the real Maria lived & scenes are filmed) 

offers a good overlook & walking trail above the city.

The home Mozart lived in during his teenage years. It's €7 (including an audioguide). 

The museum is so-so, as it mainly focuses on his family members.

Did: The Sound of Music Tour. Yes, it's cheesy... but if you like the movie, just try it.

It's €32 per person for a four hour tour. We booked through Panorama.

*all images original to Aspiring Kennedy

Pack Your Bags: Neuschwanstein, Germany

Munich is a fun city…

And while it does offer some really exciting things,

I prefer to use the stay there as a base camp

for day trips away from the city.

Plus, I get to go to the train station in Munich more this way...

and I love the train station in Munich.

It has, like, eight bakeries in the main terminal.

No joke.

But back to the top of day tripping from Munich.

One of the best day trips from Munich is to Neuschwanstein….

Ah, yes, the “Cinderella Castle.”

It’s two hours away from Munich,

And fills up the majority of a day.

It takes you from the city center of Munich

and deposits you at the beginning of the alps…

Almost straight across the Austrian border.

Visiting the castle feels a bit touristy, 

and at some points a bit generic….

But, oh my goodness, it really is breath taking.

You have to go once just to see the castle in person.

Here's how you do it.

Take the train to Fussen from Munich.

The trains run pretty much ever hour.

 It’s right at a two-hour journey there.

 Once you arrive in the tiny & charming town of Fussen,

 you’ll buy €4 for a return ticket on the bus parked outside the station.

Take either the Bus 73 or Bus 78.

Either one will take you to the castle.

Well, almost to the castle.

It will drop you in the tiny town of Hohenschangau 

where you buy your tickets from the ticket office.

 The ticket will be for an assigned tour time in your language, 

as you aren't allowed to enter except for in a tour group. 

 

When you realized you have over an hour or more to wait,

 you can fill your time with grabbing something good to eat 

from one of the many restaurants in town.

After you’ve wiped the mustard off your chin and are ready to go, 

you’ll have three options on how to get up to the castle:

1.     Hoof it. It’s about a thirty minute walk. It’s beautiful. It’s what most people do.

2.     Hoof it. Well, take a horse-drawn carriage and let them do the hoofing. 

It’s not a romantic couples carriage covered in fake roses.

 It’s a large cart with as many random groupings can fit it.

3.     Take the bus up. This cost €2.60 for a return ticket. It takes you up past the castle to the overlooking bridge, but as it runs every 20 minutes and is very popular, can lead to a long wait.

We walked it. It was fun, and I got to stop and take pictures…. which you can’t do in the carriage or bus. Plus, after sitting for so long- it felt nice to walk.

Up we went...

When you arrive, 

you can spend a bit of time overlooking the valley below...

 

perusing the gift shops for various trinkets...

playing with any puppies you find leashed up around the castle...

 

or taking silly pictures.

 
About five minutes before your tour starts, 

head through the castle gate and wait in the courtyard

until your tour number is posted.

They'll take it over from there...

The historically-light tour may have you feeling a bit under-informed as you leave,

but upon exiting the castle, take a left.

This path will take you up to the bridge above the castle

and offer brilliant views that round out your day in Neuschwanstein perfectly.

The views of the lake & castle are stunning.

Absolutely breathtaking.

You'll feel like you are looking at the box lid to a puzzle at your grandma's house.

 From there, you can take the bus down

{just buy your ticket directly from the bus driver}.

You can also walk back down to the castle to hop a carriage or walk down.

Before you leave, spend a little time in the base town of Hohenschwangau.

Grab a drink to enjoy on the deck in the sunshine

or maybe polish off your day with something sweet.

Then work your way back to Fussen via the bus.

The return trains run almost every hour,

so you'll be fine whenever you leave.

You may even want to spend some time wandering Fussen.

It's a perfectly German village with plenty of shops & restaurants.

But whatever you do,

don't forget to look out the window on the way back.

*all images original to Aspiring Kennedy

Pack Your Bags: The Romantic Road, Germany

Stop Number 2:

Wurzburg, Germany,

at the top of the Romantic Road.

{Which as it turned out, was named such in an attempt to boost tourism after WWII.}

We spent the night here in the sweetest hotel,

Hotel Gruener Baum,

and ate dinner at the most amazing German restaurant 

that the friendly front desk staff recommend.

{Hint: Always ask the staff where they eat.}

The next morning, we woke up 

and ate breakfast in the hotel's charming breakfast nook... 

complete with a little chicken doll 

perched by my shoulder.

After we had finished off our coffee

and crammed our suitcase shut...
 it was off we went in our fancy rent car.

{Which was cheaper than a VW Polo!}

We headed on to Rothenburg.

Rothenburg is the major "must-see" town

on the Romantic Road.

And honestly,

you really must see it.

It's so picturesque...

The streets are quaint

and delicious smells pour out of the cafe doors

and the cracked windows of the small restaurants.

The marketplace opens up to a large square,

and off to the side, you'll find Kathe Wohlfarht.

Probably one of the largest (& most famous) Christmas store in the world....

you'll spot it by the enormous nutcracker flanking the entrance.

It's amazing... even in March when Christmas is still nine months away.

Tuck in somewhere cozy for a bowl of soup

and the best apple pie of your life.

{Seriously- that slice is sitting at #1.}

Grab one of the area's famous Schneeballen {"snowballs"} for the road.


You can't cruise this path without trying 
the famous orb of fried strips of pastry dough coated in powdered sugar. 

It would be tragic.

Then hop back in the car and truck it on down south....

you've got your next destination awaiting you.

*all images original to Aspiring Kennedy

Amsterdam... Don't Forget To Live Here.

While the majority of my personality leaves me carefree & decidedly oblivious to structure,

few  people ever witness the possessive, controlling streak I feel towards certain areas of my life.

Buying food for a party will never be trusted upon another.

Planning a vacation should never exclude my opinion.

Shopping for clothes is reserved to me & myself alone….

Even my mother can’t crack the code on my personal tastes.

And write on my blog?

 Well, you better forget it 

if you think I could let someone post a single sentence 

without me checking, editing & re-sculpting it to read in a way

 that fits my mental frame of reference.

But today, I’m breaking my own rules…

I’m handing the blog over to Tyler 

to write about the first destination of our mystery trip, Amsterdam.

Since I know all of the stops along the way,

I like watching this unfold through his eyes….

I hope you do, too.

**** 

If ‘Amsterdam’ were the topic on Family Feud, 

weed and red light district would surely be the top two survey responses.

And rightly so.

My eagerness for a caffeine fix quickly gave way to confusion 

upon entering one of Amsterdam’s hundreds of coffee shops. 

“Is Weezer touring again?”

Moreover, the reflection off the canal from the red light district is quite beautiful at night,

 and, like the Sirens’ call, lures many a tourist into it’s traps. 

One can more than guess what awaits inside.

But, I am quite naïve when it comes to marijuana...

as is evidenced by calling it ‘weed’ or even ‘marijuana’ for that matter,

and Weezer is the only show I’ve seen where I was certain (is it) ‘toking’ was taking place....

And since Aspiring Kennedy is the only girl I fancy,

I had no interest in the red -or green- offerings of the city.

So what can Amsterdam really offer a square tourist like myself?

Expectations were low 

(unlike the mental state of most of the college-aged tourist in Amsterdam), 

but I was pleasantly surprised to find that Amsterdam has quietly preserved 
the serene European way of life.

Aspiring Kennedy and I have a policy when we travel…the Always Come Back Policy, 

which states that we will more than likely return to each place at some point in our lives. 

This mindset frees us from the guilt of not seeing everything in any location during our first visit, 

and allows us to take time and enjoy some sights and much culture.

This policy fully applies to Amsterdam, 

where 24 hours is not long enough to bike the city, 

visit the Van Gogh museum, take a canal boat tour, and drink in the culture.

24 hours is however long enough to have many experiences, many of which are intrinsic. 

One can begin to understand the local vibe by simply walking the streets of the city.

Amsterdam’s house-lined canals and numerous bridges offer endless photo opportunities…

so beautiful in fact that photos take care of themselves. 

One only need stop and snap the scene.

It is impossible to go hungry while walking the streets of Amsterdam. 

Another delicious eatery is always only a few steps away. 

The Dutch give great care to the taste and quality of their food, and the service is always friendly.

(Writer’s tip #1: If you start a conversation with ‘Do you speak English?’ 

then you’ll have a Dutch friend for life. 

While most locals speak impeccable English, they appreciate the gesture.)

(Writer’s tip #2: If you are like me, then you are curious about tipping etiquette with each new place you visit. Amsterdam establishments, like most of Europe’s, provide good wages for service staff. Patrons are not expected to give any additional gratuity. 

However, we Americans typically require a little more attention from servers 

than our European counterparts, so an additional Euro (or five) is always appreciated.)

Every tourist must pay a visit to the Anne Frank Museum. 

Two hours is the most you’ll need. 

It is sobering, yet healthy to consider the contrast between how much fun you are having 

in the streets so close to where her infamous suffering (and many others’ quiet torment) occurred.

One final surprise was the tranquil lifestyle in Amsterdam… one that I admire. 

Residents seem to daily enjoy the same delights as visitors. 

Many locals commute by charming bikes, and so there are few vehicles on the road. 

Children dance and play in many public spaces. 

The city is big enough to host Europe’s largest retailers, 

and yet the local shops and boutiques have maintained an authenticity that keeps the town hip.

The Amsterdam lifestyle is so convincing in fact 

that the 'Always Come Back Policy' has changed to the 'Don’t Forget to Live Here Policy'. 

Only time will tell if we’ll actually return, but I hope so.

*** 

Our Trip to Amsterdam:

Stayed: Eden Hotel Amsterdam- Amstel 144. Clean & modern rooms, central location, low rates.

Ate: Restaurant De Stroisvogel- Keizergracht 312. €23.50 for 3 courses. 
Serving organic meats in a cozy, friendly atmosphere. 
Reservations recommended & easy to make by email.. 

(Thank you, sweet Liz, for the great recommendation. Can’t wait to try more on our next trip!)

Saw: Anne Frank House. €9. Book online to avoid the long queue, or go before 10 am. 

Red Light District: For someone with a low-shock value, I was knocked off my socks. 

Only recommended for those with strong stomach. 

Literally, you will see endless rows of prostitutes behind glass doors with a tiny bed in the background. When a client approaches, they invite them the tiny, dimly-lit room and close the curtain. 

This city is really amazing. 

We can't wait to get back to experience more... 

and fall more in love with this fine place!

*all images original to Aspiring Kennedy