Austria – Salzburg

A great day today. I went on a Sound of Music tour today. There were only 3 of us so it was fantastic. My wifi isn’t cooperating so I couldn’t add more photos but oh my goodness the scenery was absolutely amazing!! I am spoiled with all the beauty I’ve seen in the past couple of weeks. 

The tour guide did a great job of showing us all the locations filmed in the movie as well as the picturesque village of Hallstatt. On the way back to Salzburg she played some songs from the movie. We were out for almost 8 hours. A perfect day. :)

Austria – Salzburg

 
I had written instructions before I left home how to take the bus to my hotel but I had had enough of public transportation for the day so I grabbed a taxi. I couldn’t have cared less how much it cost. It was $15.00 Euro to my hotel. The taxi driver asked where I was from. He said, oh Canada good country, America not so good. Another point for us Canadians lol.

My new hotel is very nice. It’s just at the edge of the historic district. I walked and grabbed something to eat nearby. Roast pork with dumplings and a cabbage salad (which was more like sauerkraut) It was yummy.
Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Salzburg

 
He was traveling from Zagreb. He was a professor and was going to Salzburg to present at a conference regarding immigration issues. It was so interesting talking to him. He had a great sense of humour and we laughed a lot too. Running into him really made the day. Once we arrived in Salzburg I told him thank you so much for your help and kindness. He said “I am a gentleman and I’m from Central Europe, what else would I do.”

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 9

 We had an hour and 45 minute wait there before catching our next train then another train ride before having to get off again. Then onto a bus for an hour then another train to Salzburg!!

The man on the train turned a potentially awful day into a very pleasant day. He stayed with me the whole way, loaded my suitcase numerous times onto the overhead bin and even bought me a coffee. At one point he offered me some of his sandwich. I said oh no but thank you and he said in his broken English, no please. So I had some of his sandwich. :)
Shawn (to be continued) 

Lublana, Photo: Janin Maj

 

Lublana, Photo: Janin Maj

 

Lublana, Photo: Janin Maj

 

Lublana, Photo: Janin Maj

 

Austria – Slovenia 8

 I walked to the train station in Ljubljana and boarded the train. I thought I have 4 hours to sit, relax and enjoy the view. About an hour out of Ljubljana the train stops and the man is telling everyone to get off the train. At least that Was what I thought since I didn’t understand a word he was saying. The man sitting across from me spoke pretty good English and explained they must be doing work on the track because our train was changed. He came in with me to the station where they printed us off a new timetable, in German lol.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 7

 He said they are still experiencing a lot of growing pains. Government contracts are often given by favouritism instead of price or qualifications. It was an enjoyable day spent around the city.

Well I made it to Salzburg but what a trip it was lol!!  It started to get overcast and a bit of rain on the way. Tomorrow’s forecast is looking alright but the next day a really good chance of rain.
Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 6

 It lasted a little over 2 hours. Slovenia has only been a country since 1991. They were formally a part of Yugoslavia. In 2016 they earned the title of Europe’s greenest city. They are in the top few (I can’t remember the exact ranking) of Europe’s cleanest cities and with the most forest. 

I am really impressed with this city. It is a university city. School started at the beginning of October and you can tell. There are a lot of young people out and about. University is free here. He said students also get big discounts at restaurants. They can eat cheaper than the working families.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 5

 We all agreed the language barrier can be a problem at times but our both speaking English made for a really nice afternoon. For supper I went to a place nearby recommended by the owners here. I just had an appetizer of mussels in a cream pea sauce since the orders are so huge here. It was delicious and just enough.

This morning I had breakfast at a cafe on the river. I remembered that the British couple had told me about a free city walking tour this morning at 11 so I walked over and joined that. It was really interesting.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 4

 They have done a lot of traveling and shared many stories. The man said yesterday in Ljubljana he was walking back to their apartment and at a cross walk there wasn’t any traffic so he crossed on a red. Well the police called him over and accompanied him to their apartment to get his passport info and he got a $20.00 euro fine. Good to know!

I asked them where their favourite holiday was and they said Canada actually. They went to Lake Huron. He said it’s the one place where he didn’t want to go home from.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 3

 
What a beautiful city! I strolled around a bit then walked to the bus station and went out to Lake Bled. Beautiful!! 

I had some of the famous Bled cake which was very good but I was bombarded by sparrows trying for my cake lol. On the bus back I was seated by a couple from just outside London. We had such a fun visit we ended up going for a walk together once back in Ljubljana and then for a coffee. I really enjoyed visiting with them.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia

 It started raining just before the train arrived so I was a bit wet when I reached my B&B. It is walking distance from the train station in the historic centre of town. They said the building is over 300 years old. My room is so charming. The floors creak and the bathroom is a step down from the bedroom. I have a cute little balcony and even a kitchen of sorts. After I checked in I went for a bite to eat and my usual cappuccino. It’s been a rainy evening so I’m just going to relax in my room tonight and go exploring tomorrow. It looks really pretty here.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Austria – Slovenia 1

i caught the train this morning to Ljubljana without any problems. The train station in Vienna is new and so much easier to navigate. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking!! I wish I could have taken more pictures but I was too busy admiring the view.

A man on the train said it was the semmering train (spelling??) which has been written about because of the view. The parts of Austria and Slovenia that I saw were so beautiful.

Shawn (to be continued) 

Ljubljana 009

 

Ljubljana 059

 

Ljubljana 057

 

Lju 031