Travel Tuesday: The Hiiiills Are Alive! Salzburg Review 2

Lay ee odl lay ee odl lay hee hoo! Time for my Sound of Music Tour review! {Ooh, that rhymed. I'm good!}  So, as you remember from last Tuesday's travel Post, my brother & I spent a few days in beautiful Salzburg, Austria during his visit!  What a gorgeous city, famous for its beloved Mozart & for being the filming location of The Sound of Music.  It really is as beautiful in real life as it is in the movie!  So, hop aboard & see the sights with me!

Our lovely & very funny tour guide, & the building used for the back of the Trapp Family Villa!  Beautiful, isn't it?!

I didn't really sing in front of the gazebo, but it made for a very touristy photo, wouldn't you say?!

The only glimpse we got of Nonnberg Abbey, where Maria is late to Mass!  "How do you solve a problem like Maria?!"  Also, a look into our happy tour bus.  It took a while to get warmed up, but before long, we were all singing along to The Sound of Music soundtrack!  How fun!

Taking a break from the bus to enjoy the beautiful scenery outside Salzburg. My brother & I got a traditional Austrian drink that was a bit like sparkling apple cider! Mmm. Also, here I am in front of the Abbey that was used to film the wedding scene.

Here I am jumping between the trees that the Trapp children climbed in the movie!  Also, a photo from the wedding scene.

 The cute little village of Mondsee where the wedding Cathedral is located.  Don't you just love all the different colored buildings?!  My brother & I stopped for Apfel Strudel & ice cream.  And I bought a very cute pink Austrian apron!  Also, the interior of the Cathedral.  The ceiling was beautiful!  Not an inch forgotten!

Dancing with Maria in the Mirabelle Gardens, where Do-Re-Mi was filmed!

And there you have it!  The tour was so much fun!  And even if you haven't seen the movie in years {like me!}, the sights & sounds are enough to take you back to every scene!  So, if you're going to be in the Salzburg area any time soon {of course you are, right?!}, or if you are just interested in learning more about the tour & the movie's filming locations, head on over to the Sound of Music Tour's website!  I hope you enjoyed this little virtual tour :)  "So long! Farewell!"

Photos from myself, Frankly Cross Eyed, & Iowa Grasslands.

Travel Tuesdays % London Calling!

Welcome welcome to all of my wonderful new readers! It's lovely to have you here!

Next up in my European travels is London, & I'll be going there soon with my dear little brother {who just happens to be about 6'4"!}.  He's flying into Germany in a few days to keep me company for an entire month, & I couldn't be more excited!  We're going to have so much fun--I just know it!  He is two years younger than me, & we've always been very close.  Having him here to keep me busy & to liven up the house while Don is gone will be such a blessing!  And seeing London together will be fabulous!!  Here I come, fish & chips, double-decker busses, cherry red phone booths, afternoon tea & oh so much more!

We're going to be staying for 3.5 days, 4 nights--plenty of time to soak in London's sights & sounds!  I'm hoping {fingers crossed!} that we can also make our way down to Jane Austen's house in Chawton.  It'll take a train ride, a bus ride, & about a 15 minute walk to get there, but by golly, we can do that!  One of the hardest things for me about traveling is that you get so close to so many things you want to see, & yet...it's impossible to see it all.

 Have you been to London?  What must I make sure not to miss, dears?!

La Bella Italia + Pisa

Ah, the lovely Tuscan town of Pisa!  Of course,  I knew that I would be seeing the Leaning Tower here, but there were many things I experienced that I was not expecting at all!  In a very good way!  In fact, Pisa turned out to be one of my favorite stops during the entire trip.  I'm not sure what it was about it exactly, but I found it to be very unique, sweet, & even somehow untouched...  Anyway, onto my notes about my time in Pisa!  Are you ready for this?!

A beautiful panoramic view from Wikipedia

- The streets were lined with vendors selling everything from tacky David statue aprons to beautiful Italian leather purses.  I can hardly believe this myself, but I was quite the little bargainer!  I bought a beautiful large cashmere scarf for &euros;5!  I bought a print of an oil painting of the Tower, Cathedral, & Baptistery for &euros;4!  Maybe it was beginner's luck, but I would offer them a price & when they said it was too low, I'd just turn around & walk away.  It only took about 5 seconds before I heard their Italian voices beckoning me back, saying my offer was just fine :)

- You can easily see the entire touristy section of Pisa, where the Tower is, from one location.  And other than that, it's like any other small Italian town...many churches, quaint squares for markets, & beautiful flowers gracing every window & doorway.

- Andrea Bocelli went to school in Pisa!  Interesting fact!  Ah, his music is perfect for when I am cooking!  Makes me feel like an Italian chef!

A few of my favorite historical tidbits that I learned during our guided tour

 - The Leaning Tower has actually been "corrected" by more than two feet!  They used weights to help it stand more straight, dug out the earth around the building in certain places to ease the movement, etc.  So now, the Lean that we see is much less than it once was, & it's still very obvious!  For safety reasons, they can only let about 30 people into the Tower at once!  But look, I did my part as a responsible tourist to help keep the Tower from falling :)

I am SO Strong

- Galileo was born here, baptized in the beautiful old Baptistery, went to Church in the Cathedral Duomo, & was even inspired to find the Law of the Swinging Pendulum by watching a chandelier in the Cathedral!  How amazing to stand where such an important man stood, to see what he saw!

This is the chandelier that inspired it all.  Seventeen year old Galileo sat here, looked at this piece, & discovered the Law of the Swinging Pendulum.  Wow!

 - I really liked seeing the Baptistery.  Its construction began in 1152 & was completed in 1363.  Can you imagine having generations of your family help to build this one beautiful building?  Originally, the domed ceiling was opened to allow the rain to fill the baptistery inside.  The symbolism here was beautiful.  Three steps up to the baptismal area to symbolize the Holy Trinity.  A straight walk from the entrance to the door of the Cathedral.  And perpendicular to these two buildings were built the hospital & the cemetery.  All four buildings representing four important stages of life: birth, life, mending, & the final rest.  And not only that, but the buildings create the shape of a cross.  Beautiful!  Thank you, Giovanni, our tour guide!

Beautiful, isn't it?  And yes, I took all of these photos myself!  Well, not the one of myself.  Thank you, Hayley, for that!

- And finally, although I could go on but I know you would get bored, is the interior of the Cathedral, the Duomo.  I already shared the photo I took of the famous chandelier, but here is a photo that shows more.  The construction of the Duomo began in 1064 & The design has a lot of Byzantine influence as could be seen in the many mosaics & decorations.  The columns along the facade are all completely different & they were brought back to Pisa as war trophies.  The gold ceiling, which replaced the wood ceiling after a fire in 1565, was created using gold from Mexico.  Mexico!  That was very surprising to me!  And beautiful!

The interior of the Duomo.  I was so happy that I bought the scarf, because I had bare shoulders that needed covering in order for me to enter!  A very nice tradition, I think.

And so, in a nutshell {complete with photos!}, that was what I thought of Pisa.  I would love to go back & explore the rest of the town, especially after reading up on my history of the place.  As with any new place that I visit, I always appreciate it more when I know the history.  Just to think about those who made the beautiful buildings, what they symbolize, & the important people who lived there makes me so appreciative that I can see these wonderful things with my own eyes!  What a fantastic blessing!

Up next in my Italy travel reviews: Lucca!  I may write about this tomorrow, but chances are good that it will be Thursday.  This is a lot of writing for me!

Enjoy your Tuesday, my lovely readers!  ♥

Travel Tuesday: Prague!

I love saying this: Welcome to all my new readers! ...Are you all joining up to make me smile? Because it's working! And your comments sure are sweet too! Thank you all!  ♥  Don was able to call last night {hooray!} & we got to talk for about 10 minutes, maybe a touch less. I must admit that I didn't do too good at keeping my cool. In fact, last night was by far the peak of my crying since he left. But after a nice chat with my Mom, I was calmed down & feeling better. Let's hope that's all over with now!

I've decided that with all the traveling we {I} do, I should start posting about it once a week! I definitely have enough to cover! So henceforth, Tuesdays shall now be Travel Tuesdays!  Sound good?  Good :)  I will talk about & share photos of places that we have been already, or I will list some places that I'd really like to travel to next!  So stop by on Tuesdays to read about my adventures past & yet to come!  {Ooh, that sounds like the ghosts from A Christmas Carol!}

A gorgeous view of the famous Charles Bridge

First up: Prague, Czech Republic.  For those of you who've been reading my blog for a while, you know that Don & I have been there not once, but twice!  Prague was actually the first trip that we took when we arrived in Germany.  We didn't even have a car yet, so we took the train.  {Driving to Prague: 2.5 hours.  Train to Prague: 10 hours.  The trains in Europe aren't as fabulous as we're lead to believe!}  The second time we went was in April with my parents!  Both trips were fantastic, but the second was especially nice for two reasons: 1} I wasn't sick, & 2} Don & I had already run around the city like chickens with their heads cut off trying to see all the sights, so we were able to stroll around & get a better feel for the city's personality & not just its tourist spots!

Again, the Charles Bridge & the beautiful statues that line its walls.

Thoughts of Prague {or Praha in Czech} often bring about images of beauty, romance, peace.  And although the city itself is full of incredible architecture, I'm afraid to say that in order to find the true beauty, romance, & peace you must stay up late & venture out after all of the tour groups & travelers have gone back to their hotels.  This, I believe, is when the city becomes itself again.  The street lights turn on, the musicians come out to play their violins, & you feel right in place strolling down the cobblestone streets while holding your sweetie's hand.  This is the Prague I love.  Not the "everything is under construction" Prague or the "hurry up & get in line to see the cathedral with 800 other people" Prague.  So if you ever have the blessing of being able to visit this spectacular city, take my word for it: go out again after your delicious dinner & experience the beautiful romantic peace.

The Old Square.  This is a fantastic spot, one of my very favorites!  Our second hotel was just a block away.  {All photos above from WeHeartIt.Com}

One thing that Don & I did on our last trip to Prague was entirely unplanned: we went to a beer spa.  Yes, you read correctly.  A beer spa!  And let me tell you, it was worth every penny!  You can read all about this spa here & as ridiculous as it might sound, take it from me {& Don!}, we wouldn't hesitate to go again the next time we visit Prague!  {Don was so relaxed that he even fell asleep in our cozy bed of oats!  Yes, this all sounds strange, but you'll love it!}

See how much they love it?  Imagine sitting here in your bath of hops, enjoying a beer from your own tap!  A very un-girly but equally relaxing spa experience! { Photo from Prague-Stay.Com  No, I'm not one of these girls!  No photos were taken while we were there!}

And so, my dear Travel Tuesday readers, that is Prague in a nutshell.  I cannot wait to travel here again!  Apparently, they are famous for their garnet {as well as their crystal} & so I think that I need a garnet ring before we leave Europe :)  If you should choose to travel to this city, I can recommend the hotels where we stayed during our trips!  Both were very clean, in good locations, had wonderful breakfasts, & the prices were unbeatable!  The Hotel Metamorphis & Andante Hotel.

On Friday, I am leaving for almost a week in Italy!  And so, next up on Travel Tuesday, although it will have to wait until two weeks from now, will be news of that delightful trip!  Until then...dream of your own future travels!  Where would you go?!