Austria 2010: Day 4 - Salzburg

Wednesday 18th August 2010.

The Hills are alive with the sound of Music ........

An early start and we were down in the Breakfast bar at 8am. Yep, told you it was early. We walked up to the Wes

tbahnhof (being rebuilt as are a number of Austria stations) to catch the fast RailJet train over to Salzburg which left at 09:20. Just before departure on climbed the "Great Unwashed" or students as some people called

them complete with sleeping bags, crates of beer and a lot of noise. Apparently there was a music festival in St. Pölten. The kids amused themselves with various things including the screen in the carriage with the train speed on it! RailJet is a great ride and hits speeds of 200km/h. It's clean fast and impressive. Now what on earth is going on in Austria? Sudbahnhof is demolished, Westbahnhof is being rebuilt and on arrival at Salzburg we found that station to be a construction site!

We left the confines of the station area and headed to the old part of town and the bridge over the Salzbach and round to the base of the mountain the castle is perched upon. We stopped at the Kleinbahn shop for a quick look. Walking round you can see how little Salzburgs old town area has changed over the years. On arrival at the Dom (Cathedral) we went past it and into the square to one side where they have market stalls. Both Kayleigh and David's eyes almost popped out of their heads at the sight of the huge Pretzels of which two were bought! we went to the castle entrance and the funicular railway that takes you up to it. Sarah and I were astonished at the sheer cost of it to get up and have a look around. We turned round and went back to the Dom and the kids lit a candle for my Dad. Inside a group of young children (9-12 years old) began to sing and filled the cathedral with such beautiful music. Outside we visited the horse fountain featured in the 1965 film 'The Sound Of Music'. Of course photos of the children were taken.

Round the corner from the Dom was a nice little sweet shop and of course they all got sweets. Then on the way back through old town we passed the birthplace (Geburtshaus) of

Back in Vienna we grabbed a snack as the kids were hungry and headed indoors!

Austria 2010: Day 3 - Wien

Tuesday 17th August 2010.

Whilst Kayleigh ate bits of this and that, David ate more than ever. This time it was SEVEN trips to the Kraml's breakfast bar. Once we managed to pry him away from the food, we gathered our

bags and and walked down the road to the bus stop to catch the 13A to the Belvedere and its

lovely gardens. The actual bus stop is at the old Sudbahnhof where Sarah and I had travelled in

and out of many times, so we were both shocked by the total and utter demolition of the station

and it environs. We crossed over the road to the

Belvedere. Inside there are items of art but we couldn't see the kids looking at those, so we opted for a leisurely walk around the gardens. David was in his element armed with camera and his imagination. Kayleigh went running ahead and exploring the flowers, fountains and gardens that make such a beautiful assault on the senses. We visited the gift shop and were somewhat disappointed at the poor selection of items on sale that were about the Palace. Everything (almost) was on Gustav Klimt, who whilst talented is not my cup of tea.

Back to the bus stop and back on the 13A to somewhere David and I wanted to visit - Der Fan Shop! David wanted to get a Austrian National Shirt, but the cost was way too high for him at €60. He did however get a seriously great baseball cap with Austria on it in Red and White.

Walking round the corner the kids saw a toy shop and we were in there for a little while. Then just up the road we found a lovely quiet park with a childrens playground in it. It was in here that Kayleigh met her match. A little austrian girl and Kayleigh started playing together and she was a mad as Kayleigh.

Leaving the playground we took a tram then the U-Bahn to Alte Donau so we could visit the Donau Park and the Donauturm. The tower rises to 827 feet (the tallest structure in Austria) and gives a superb view of Vienna. To get to the top there is a lift (no I wasn't prepared to walk!) which has a clear roof so you are able to see the top of the towere rushing towards you. . We walked round the windswept tower's observation deck and as its our luck it began to rain. So inside for a bit of shelter. Once down we walked round the gift shop (very good I might add) and then back to the U-Bahn.

Jumping off at Stephanplatz was a very good idea as we were in rush hour and the trains were getting somewhat full. We strolled up past Stephansdom, Kärntner Straße to the Ring, then on to Mariahilfestraße. Close by our Pension is the Schnitzelhaus so a visit was made to quench our hunger before heading back.

An early night was taken as it was off to Salzburg the next day!

Austria 2010: Day 2 - Wien

Monday 16th August 2010.

Awake far too early, but then again sometimes that can be a bonus, On this occasion it was ... tiring. Down in the Kraml they have such a wonderful selection for breakfast (Frühstück) and David made the most of it with repeatedly visiting the breakfast bar and eating as much as he could! Kayleigh managed the learn some German "ein Apfelsaft bitte" which is "And apple juice please". In fact that was her first German and the one thing she used the most!

Walking up from the Kraml, we headed for the U-Bahn on line U3 to Volkstheatre then the U4 line to Praterstern. the to the world famous Prater. As kids are, ours wanted to go on everything they saw, but we took them round first to see what they wanted to REALLY do! Before we let them have their rides, we took them on the Prater Wheel (Riesenrad). It was featured in the 1949 film 'The Third Man' starring Orsen Wells. The wheel takes some time to complete a full circuit and is ornate and classic (or old as kids call it now). After plenty of oohhhs and ahhs from Kayleigh, we alighted and made our way round the huge funfair.

Of course Kayleigh found what she dreamed of The Horse Riding arena. She took to it so naturally and was not in the least scared. In fact the other children we had seen were all given extra straps, but Kay was allowed not to. (see the photo). Usually I worry about the state of the horses at this sort of place, but these were very well cared for and seemed pretty happy. After a few rounds of the arena, the dismounted and we looked for something for David to do. Go Karts was his choice and he and I queued together but no... Denied! Too short apparently. So the hunt was on for another one, round the corner was another set of karts and off we went. He did well and came second out of two! LOL. On to the next ride which happened to be a "fun House". Sarah and I grabbed a seat and David being the loving brother he is took her round it 'For Safetly' he said! Then on to The Bash Cars! aka Dodgems. Kayleigh joined me and I was instructed to "get David"!!!!!

We headed to one of the Schnell Imbiss in the Prater and a couple of Frankfurters each and a beer :) went down well. Following the food we alked round and jumped on the Lilliputbahn that runs up to the Stadion and back again. After catching the U-bahn back to Westbahnhof to look up the trains to Salzburg we sought out evening meal and then decided an early night would be in order.

Tuesday would be the last day for our Weinkarte so we wanted to use it some more.