06.12.06 - Austria: Home of yodelers

On the train going through Germany into Austria, I couldn't help but note the similarities this landscape has to home. No wonder so many Germans settled in MN! Then I look out the other side of the train and I see mountains, or as I like to think of it - Colorado!
The woods here are right out of Little Red Riding Hood or Hansel and Gretl. You'd think a woods is a woods, but no. These have a certain ambiance to them I haven't sensed anywhere else in Europe, but that I have at home.
Once off the train in Munich, I bought a pretzel before I hopped on another train to go to Salzburg. I love this pretzel. This pretzel is huge, and it blows the socks off any other attempt at such a scrumptious food in the U.S. I'm already sad I won't have anything like it when I get back!

I also noticed the people are averaging a bit larger than in other parts of Europe, as are the cars. I feel right at home. :) But I do feel like I look more like the people here. Maybe it's all in my head, but I like to think it isn't.

________________________________________________________________________________

06.13.06

Today I took the official and original "Sound of Music Tour." If you want cheesy, here it is, folks. But it was 4 hours and really a fantastic tour of not just Salzburg, but of the mountain and lakes region, too. The hills really are alive, guys. It's incredible here. Soon I'll head back to the hostel for some Wiener-Schnitzel (sp?) and other Austrian stuff.

It is a totally different culture here than in France, Italy or Spain, and I absolutely am loving it. I feel at home here. Mom, Dad, family --- you're coming here. You know you want to!