Salzberg

I went for Mozart.  This viola player was dying to see the hometown of one of the world's  greatest musicians.   I timed my visit for the end of the Salzburg festival,  when there would be music throughout the city.  It was all about the music.

But once there,  I found so much more.   No,  not 'The Sound of Music' though that was fun.  I found medieval castles and mountains.  I found pastries and art.  I found church bells and sunsets and a wonderful 48 hours. 

I bought the Salzburg pass, which included entry into many sights and transportation on the city buses. It was a great investment.  I got €112 worth of entrance fees plus transit out of a €36 pass.  Plus,  I went to more because it was free, things I probably wouldn't have paid for individually. 

I started with the Rick Steves's walking tour,  which led through the platz and churches that make up the old city.  I followed the streets past the restaurant where Charlemagne ate and the theater where the von Trapp family performed.  I ended up on the old shopping street with fancy hanging pictoral signs for each business.  Mozart's birthplace was on that street. It was amazing to see his childhood violin. 

After the tour and a pretzel for lunch,  I rode the funicular up to the castle.  It was a phenomenal site up on the hill,  imposing and grand.   From the ramparts were endless views of the valley.  You could see the rain coming in from the distance.   I took the audio guide,  not realizing it included a climb to the top of the tower! It was a pleasant if exhausting surprise.  The views were even better and you could see why this castle was never conquered.  I got some great diagram pictures of castle construction from the museum.  I also saw some medieval weapons and torture instruments. 

After the mountain I dodged some rain storms  and took shelter in the cathedral excavations, where you could see ruins of old Roman tile floors and earlier structures. The guy who checked me in left me alone there,  which was pretty creepy....

  I took in a harpsichord concert at the New Residence. Harpsichord sounds a lot like midi NES video game music.   I then went through the DomQuarter museum,  which had great views of the cathedral and some pretty Baroque art. Dinner,  of course, was weiner schnitzel, and it was amazing. 

Day two started at the colorful Mirabell Gardens, full of fountains and flowers.  Next was the Mozart Residence, with a great audio tour featuring lots of music and a chance to see several more of his instruments.   I really enjoyed this one.   Then,  because I had the pass, I took the elevator to the modern art museum for the view from their terrace. I didn't go in, having had enough of modern art for a while,  but I enjoyed the view! 

I wandered though the Salzburg Museum in late morning,  loving the interactive musical instrument exhibit. They had headphones and touch screen videos of people playing the instruments on display.  I spent most of my time there,  but they also had a traveling exhibit of drawings from the Louvre, so I got to enjoy some Michelangelo and Raphael. 

Noon brought an organ concert at the main cathedral,  a chance to hear some old and new pieces in the church where Mozart once played.  It was fantastic, just what I wanted from Salzburg.

After another pretzel based lunch,  I headed out of town to the Hellbrunn Palace and gardens.   I ended up on a tour group with a camp group who loved getting wet from the fountains! They were very cute but loud and the guide didn't give nearly as much info in English as she did in German.  So much for bilingual tour.  It was pretty warm and though the Gardens were pretty there wasn't much to do. Rather than take the bus back to town,  I decided on an adventure. I rode the bus in the other direction to the Untersbergbahn, a cable car to the top of a mountain.   It was breathtaking, and a little nerve-racking, heading up to the top. It was even more alarming walking up to the summit from the station (no guard rail!) but the views were great.  I definitely hadn't expected to be on top of a mountain that day,  but that's the joy of the pass, you get to do unexpected things.  

One last adventure came in the evening, with a lovely sunset cruise along the Salzac river.  It was the perfect end to two wonderful days. 

I wish I'd had one more day to go to Hallstaff but overall Salzberg was just about perfect.

Prague

Everyone loves Prague. I have never met someone who didn't thoroughly enjoy their time there. Of course, that means word is out of Prague and everyone seemed to be there at the same time I was. Prague was crowded. Tour groups pushed through every lane, trash cans overflowed by evening.  It was smoky and busy and generally all the things that I hate about a city.

I loved it anyway.

My apartment was in the new city section, very much away from the historic sectioon and its crowds.  I started from here, using another Rick Steves' audio guides to wind through town.  Wenselslas Square started things off, with its big statue of the founding king and lots of bright sunshine.  From here I walked through pretty 19th century streets, smelling the delicious trdlink cooking on street carts.  The entrance to the old city was a grand medieval gate, darkly gothic and imposing.  Underneath it was tourist heaven: shops in medieval looking pastel buildings stretching as far as the eye could see.  I can see this being a lovely stroll in October, or perhaps at 6 AM.  The street led to the main square, which could have been Times Square for the crowds.  Jan Hus, the statue subject, was clearly a popular guy.  The main city hall was under construction and covered in scaffolding, but the astronomical clock still performed on the hour.  I liked how it was at street level, not up high and hard to see.

From the square I wound down toward the river and Charles Bridge, along with my 1.1 million closest friends also making the trek that day.  The shops continues, including some unique finds (The Apple Museum, brand not fruit).  The Klementium was sadly closed for renovations.  Fighting the crowds, I crossed the impressive bridge with its artists and musicians and tourists to the little quarter on the far side.  There I found a good lunch (bread dumplings!) and relaxed away from the crowds for a bit.  

After lunch I sought refuge from the madness by walking through the Jewish quarter and admiring the a architecture. I easedropped on a Spanish tour near the Spanish synagogue and learned it was founded by those fleeing the Reconquista.  Cool.  

The medieval art museum was a delightful little break from the sun,  full of statutes of Mary and gold-backed bible paintings.  I found some great examples for our units on art history.   It was also nice and quiet.  I loved it.

I got a late start on the second day,  because I knew I wanted to stay out until after sunset to see the lights.  I went straight to the castle by tram.  The ride was full of city sights and super easy with the text/ticket feature.  The castle sits above the city,  in the blazing sun on the hill.  Its main feature is the St Vitreus cathedral,  which started as Gothic but was neo- gothic by the time it was done.  I loved the 20th century stained glad mixed wth the older medieval tombs. 

After the cathedral were the royal rooms, which didn't have much.  They did,  however,  feature THE windows from the Defenestration of Prague, which was pretty awesome. One of the more obscure ways to start a war...

The rest of the castle included a small history museum (lots of open graves- not my favorite), another chapel, and a fun street preserved like the Middle Ages.  It had a big armor exhibit.  I was so spoiled by Higgins Armory that it didn't wow me much,  but they did have a crossbow range. I was not missing that opportunity. The attendant was petty shocked I wanted to try - seems to be a manly thing while the women shop- but I needed to test this out so I could teach it later! I learned that I am a terrible shot,  and that while crossbows are hard to load,  they are easy to fire. I hit the paper - 1/3 times....

From the castle I meandered slowly downhill,  just exploring the neighborhood.  I found the Lennon graffiti wall and old water wheel before settling in for sunset.  As the sunlight faded,  I ducked into a garden restaurant for dinner before finally seeing Prague at night.

Overall my two days were busy,  crowded,  hectic,  and informative.  I learned a lot about Bohemian history and culture,  and saw some sights I had longed to visit.  Definitely recommend Prague- just maybe not in August.

Copenhagen Day Trips

There was so much to see in Denmark that I'll  have to go back.  I ended up sticking with the sites on Zealand, with one major exception. Everything was accessible by easy train connections.

First up was Roskilde, home to the Viking ship museum.  It's actually the second Viking ship museum that I've be been to.  I went to Oslo's last year.  Oslo definitely wins when it comes to impressive artifacts.  Their complete ships can't be beat. But Roskilde had something just as impressive, which was a full experiential history museum. You could learn to make rope and ribbon, and learn to the knots. You could watch as historians and carpenters recreated actual Viking ships with historic tools. Some people even got to try carving.  I did a tour of the boatyard and learned all about how Viking ships were created.  They are learning a lot from these recreations.  For instance, a ship probably only lasted about 30 years,  because after that the iron nails couldn't be replaced any more. 

But the very best part of the day was that I got to ride on a Viking Ship replica!  We had to row out of the harbor and then put up the sail for a glorious ride,  then row back in.  Rowing was hard! If you weren't in perfect sync with the others in the boat your oars got crossed.  It wasn't like a modern paddle, just a skinny board reinforced where it rested on the side of the boat. It was about eight feet long. Such a cool experience.

In Roskilde I also saw the cathedral, a great example of bricked northern gothic style.  Many kings of Denmark are buried there. 

The second trip was a quick succession of castle-castle-museum.  I started at Fredericksborg Slot, one of the royal palaces.  This looked like something right out of Disney, from its still, reflective moat to the dancing fountain in the front courtyard.  The palace is full of portrait paintings of rulers past and decorated with historic furnishings.   My favorite was the room where a chair pictured in an 18th century painting was still there! It was heavenly to walk through these grandios rooms with a fantastic free audio guide. It even played triumphal music when you walked into the ball room, as if you were arriving royalty.  I truly loved visiting here.

Second stop of the day was Kronberg Slot. I stepped off the train ready to walk the 15 minutes to the castle when I saw a bustling festival spread along the way.   It was some kind of historic maritime festival,  with people in old fashioned clothing,  a massive tall ship, and many food and craft stands. You could cook over an open fire in a long handled cast iron skillet or listen to a group sing folk tunes.  It as so fun I decided to skip going into the castle to spend more time in the square. 

Finally,  though, I had to move on. The Louisiana art museum is regarded as the best modern art museum in Scandinavia. I don't like modern art.  I don't like that it doesn't tell you much about the civilization it comes from.  I wonder what historians will make of it in the future.  But I had to go.  So I did.  It was not my favorite,  as my very polite little cousins would say. But I saw it.

Lastly,  I couldn't resist the call of Sweden.  Malmo was only a half hour away over a bridge,  North Sea on one side,  Baltic on the other.  I've put off gong to Sweden because I feel like there's so much there that I would want to see. My mother's family came from there about 120 years ago.  My mother has been twice,  my uncle a few times.   I have always wanted to go but hesitated.  So this was a perfect induction. Honestly,  it's just like any other cute Scandinavian city,  but with meatballs and dahla horses.  Both of which I had.  Someday, I'll do Sweden right - rent a car, see the old family farm that is still there auth a different family.  But for now,  Malmo was a great taste. 

I ❤ Copenhagen!

I'm not sure why Copenhagen became the first stop on my sabbatical adventure.  It might have been the cheap plane ticket from Boston.  But after Norway last year, I've developed a love for Scandinavia and was excited to see more of it.

An easy seven hour flight from Boston and I was on the ground ready to go.  To get a sense of the city I started with the Rick Steve's walking tour.  Actually,  no,  I'm lying.  I started with a Danish.  How could I not? And it was delightful.  Raspberry and almond slivers on buttery pastry... the perfect welcome to the city treat.

Then I set off on the walking tour,  getting a good orientation to the city and falling mite in love with every step. The weather was gorgeous, and the city easy to walk around.  It's very flat.  That is good.

Copenhagen is an perfect mix of old and new.  I frequently forget that Denmark was one of Europe's great empires, but Copenhagen reminds you.  Brick is the most common building material but you see wood half timbered buildings and cement mixed in too.  There are a wide pedestrian zones, open plazas where people gather, lots of trees and even more benches which is greatly appreciated when you're jetlagged. My first day took me from Tivoli Gardens to Nyvhan, where the canal comes up into the city against multi colored houses.  It reminded me of Bergen,  one of Copenhagen's historic trading partner cities.

The 2nd day was dedicated to some of the biggest landmarks period I started by taking the bus boat up to the little mermaid statue sitting in Copenhagen's Harbor period it was lovely, but very crowded as its new the crew ship dock period from there I wandered back through a beautiful park to the Amelia board palace, where the current King and Queen live along with their family. Part of the palace has been set aside as a museum, which was nice to walk through. They've managed to show the evolution of the monarchy over the past 200 years.  The second palace of the day was Rosenburg, which is set up to show how royalty lived in the 16-1700s. It had all the beautiful old details and hidden delights one would expect in a renaissance castle. 

Copenhagen is made for wandering, so the long walk back to the hotel each night meant forrays down pretty pedestrian streets and picnic dinners with grocery store salads or Tic crackers, fruit, and cheese.  The city was full of people- it's both Pride and the IronMan this weekend. 

There are more than just pretty streets and palaces here.  I spent last night at Tivoli Gardens,  an amusement park right in the city.  It was gorgeous with all of the lights and rides whirling.   Even on a rainy night,  it was a so much fun to walk around. The rides were intense! 

There is also the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, a cool art/history museum right next to Tivoli.  I loved the ancient statutes and that they showed one repainted as it originally was. 

Copenhagen was the perfect start to this long trip.  I can only hope everything else goes this smoothly. 

Adventure on the horizon

I'm less than three weeks from leaving on a year long sabbatical around the world.  It's getting really really real,  and really really scary.  I'll have more coming soon,  and a website at nyaclassroom.com with more info.  This will remain my primary blog,  but there are other things up on that site abou the trip.

Montreal, en francais

Somehow I ended up chaperoning a student French trip to Montreal this April vacation.  I don't actually speak any French. I'm still not sure how this happened. 

Thankfully, the kids are delightful and the trip is full of fun. We started with a walk around Old Town yesterday, taking in the cobblestones and nineteenth century architecture.  There was a stand with delicious maple cider there. Afterward, we went ice skating at the Atrium.  I made it around twice without falling! Too bad that was all it took for my crippled get to go numb.  The kids were much better than me.

Dinner was in the old city, a delightful little boulangerie.  Then back to bed. Our room is right next to the elevator. It's noisy.

Today started with history, at the Basillica Notre Dame.  We had a little explanation and time to explore. Then on to the city history museum, which was fantastic. A great multimedia show followed by a guided tour really gave a sense of the early city and how it's changed.  The museum was fantastic, with lots of interactive displays and varied information boards. I was very impressed and definitely recommend this for visitors.

For lunch we had a cooking class. It dragged a little long but the food was delicious- meat pies, poutine, and maple candy! It was in a grocery store so I got to pick up some candy too.  :) They have maple Mars bars!!!

The afternoon was spent at a circus school. Circus was practically created here in Quebec so it's a good fit for the trip. The kids LOVED it.  I loved it, who am I kidding.  They got to try tightrope, trapeze, silks, trampoline, tumbling, and juggling. It was adorable. 

Dinner was at a fancy Italian restaurant, then the kids did laser tag.  We ended today walking down Rue Sainte Catherine  to see all the fancy stores.

So far Montreal hasn't disappointed!

When Things Go Wrong...

Sometimes trips go perfectly.  The hotel you chose is lovely, your flights are on time and smooth, the food is good, the sites are all open when they promise to be, and there are no crowds.  When that happens, travel is amazing.

And sometimes things don’t go so well.  The weather is miserable, your credit card doesn’t work in another country, you get sick, you get robbed, or any other number of tragedies occurs.  All of these have happened to me or to my travel companions, and it has the potential to ruin even the best-planned vacations.

London started out as one giant headache.  

When I got to the airport, my bags were overweight.  They’d given me fair warning, I’d just read the premium column, not economy.  It was either pay $65 to check a tiny carry-on suitcase, OR…. stuff everything into all of my pockets and hope for the best.  That worked, but it seemed like such a silly exercise.  In the end I wasn’t taking less on the plane, I was just carrying it on my person instead of in my bag.  Thank heavens for deep pockets in puffy coats.  Lesson learned: I can easily travel in a carry on bag.  I cannot travel in a carry on bag with a 10 kg weight limit. At least not in the winter.

Then, on the flight, I’d taken out my contacts and realized that I’d forgotten my glasses.  No problem, I was just going to sleep.  I had a wonderful seat in the front row with lots of leg room, so I stretched out to relax, only to hear a couple of children a few rows behind me begin to chatter.  Reaching into my toiletry bag I went to grab my earplugs.  Instead, I grabbed my razor, and sliced off several layers of skin.  Gushing blood, unable to see, I stumbled over the people next to me from my window seat to find the flight attendants, begging them for a band aide.  Of course they were in the back of the plane.  Eventually they got a few for me, which stopped the bleeding if not the pain!  I was in a bandage for most of the week.  

Once we arrived in London, things went fairly smoothly.  We went to the Victoria and Albert museum, then rested for a bit before dinner and a show.  On the tube back from the show…

Feathers.  Feathers everywhere.  

Somehow my coat had ripped and was shedding down throughout the Piccadilly line.  I grabbed hold of the ripped section and walked awkwardly back to the hotel, where I was able to safety pin it back together.  Thankfully, the hotel had a lovely amenities list where I was able to get a sewing kit.  We’re talking multiple colors of thread and pre-threaded needles!  A little home ec and my big puffy coat was no longer molting in the tube.  

Overall these were minor things.  On my first trip to London, my hostel reservation never went through and there was no room at the inn, beyond the first night.  I survived, cobbling together hostels and hotels for the rest of the week through a few lucky breaks and a few long-distance phone calls back to my parents.  Twice, travel partners have been robbed in Italy.  My luggage got lost going to Turkey and it rained the whole time we were there.  Sometime between my trip to Montreal and Quebec, my bank decided Canada was a separate country and denied access to the ATM without a call first.  And it was 3 PM on a Saturday when I learned this, meaning no access until Monday.  You get the idea.  

Anyway, the hiccups subsided after the first few days and London was a perfect vacation.  But I tend to write about all the highlights so I thought a reminder that things go wrong might be due for balance.  Because no travel is as perfect as it seems on TV, and there’s never a handsome man to save you like in a Lifetime Movie.  

Open Borders, Open Minds

I travel.  It’s my passion.  Some people follow sports teams and spend money on tickets and teamwear.  Some people craft and spend money on glue and glitter and fibers.  Some people bake, some people work out, some people do home improvements.  I travel.  

So, when I heard about the president’s executive order banning travel from seven countries to the US, my stomach churned.  People who don’t travel probably don’t understand how much those of us rely on free and open borders when we are outside the country.  People who chant “America first” don’t realize how threatening that is to Americans abroad.  I rely on good international relations between my country and the rest of the world in order to pursue my passions.

More than that, though, I believe in open borders and free movement because that’s what makes you a better human.  I believe that we only grow when we are exposed to new ideas and the best way to do that is to travel.  I stand in strong opposition to walls, bans, or any other attempts to keep people apart.

The past two weeks have been tough because they have shaken the very foundation of my world view- that we are all citizens of Planet Earth and therefore all equally worthy of happiness and love.  I hope that recent court decisions will show the rest of the world that the majority of Americans are not xenophobic nationalists and I will once again be able to travel comfortably.  

 I hope.