austria – A travelers odyssey

December 03, 2025

We decided to go on the Danube tour because Melissa wanted to see the Christmas markets. My sister and her husband had gone on the Danube tour several years ago in late November and told us when they took the extension the Christmas markets were already in full swing. We booked a tour that left on the 25th of November (two days before Thanksgiving) and ended on the 1st of December. We arrived two days early to overcome the jet lag that can accompany overseas travel (and did for us!). That also meant we did not have to plan anything for Thanksgiving, a meal that is always difficult for two. A (somewhat) traditional meal was served on the ship with turkey (sliced white and dark meat), mashed potatoes and stuffing (sort of), and cranberry sauce with pumpkin pie for dessert. I have had potatoes and stuffing at other meals on board and while ok, the consistency is much different than I am used to in the US. The extension included four days before we fly home on December 6th. I noticed the extension was called the Sound of Music Tour, but I was not ready for what that entailed.

When I went online, I found the Sound of Music is a 1965 musical film (Rodgers and Hammerstein) based on the 1949 book by Maria von Trapp. The story is set in Austria on the eve of the German annexation (Anschluss) and tells the story of Maria who takes on the job as governess of the large family while she decides whether to become a nun. She falls in love with the seven children and eventually with the widowed father, Captain von Trapp. A former submarine captain, he is ordered to accept a commission with the German navy but opposes the Nazis. The captain and Maria decide on a plan to flee Austria with the children. The family left by train to Italy, then traveling to London and the US. The film version made the escape more dramatic by having the family hide in the cemetery before escaping over the mountains to Switzerland on foot. Many of the songs have become standards, including the title song, “The Sound of Music”.

Our Sound of Music tour started with a panoramic coach drive through the mountains. At every stop and turn we were told about how the movie had used such and such location for filming, even though it had nothing to do with the von Trapp experience. The scenery was amazing and at one stop I saw several dozen lake trout, all about 18 inches (45 cm) long, swimming along the shore (that was not included in the musical). As we passed several locations the guide played appropriate songs from the movie over our bus sound system. Many of the guests sang along, some becoming very animated. On arrival in Salzberg we saw the façade of the villa used in the film (not the von Trapp villa) and the gazebo used in the film (“I am 17”). The gazebo was from the film but not the von Trapp villa and had been moved several times because tourists were harassing the owners. The tour continued the following day as we passed four or five Salzberg sites used in the film but were far removed from the family. The church where the couple were married is still an active convent.

THOUGHTS: While the tours were focused on the Sound of Music, we also passed the birthplace and several residences of Wolfgang Motzart. These were of keen focus in Vienna but seemed of only passing interest (to our guide) in Salzburg. We did get to the cathedral of St. Peter and its large Christmas market. They had amazing pretzels. It was interesting to see many Chinese tourists poising and dancing and singing the screenplay of the movie as they passed through the film locations. Like so many things, we give the customer what they want (or we think they want). When telling the difference between reality and what we would like to be, the facts seem to be harder to discern. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.

November 28, 2025

Yesterday we continued our trip along the Danube River to Bratislava, Slovakia. Bratislava is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. The city has deep historical ties to Hungary and served as its capital and coronation city for centuries and is now the capital seat of Slovakia. Bratislava borders both Austria and Hungary, making it the only national capital in the world to have land borders with two other sovereign states. After the Ottoman conquest in 1526, Bratislava (then Pozsony) became the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1536 until 1783. Eleven Hungarian kings and eight royal consorts were crowned in the city’s St. Martin’s Cathedral. “Bratislava” was adopted as its name following World War I (1919) after it became part of Czechoslovakia. After an afternoon walking tour of the city and a lively evening of entertainment (dancers and operetta), we departed Bratislava late last night and continued our way up the Danube River toward Vienna.

When I went online, I found Vienna is the capital and largest city (2 million inhabitants) of Austria. Its larger metropolitan area has a population of nearly 2.9 million, representing nearly one-third of the country’s population. Vienna is the cultural, economic, and political center of the country, the fifth-largest city by population in the European Union, and the most populous of the cities on the Danube River. The city lies on the eastern edge of the Vienna Woods (Wienerwald), the foothills of the Alps that separate Vienna from the more western parts of Austria. The city sits on the Danube and is traversed by the Vienna River (Wienfluss). Although surrounded by Lower Austria, the city lies 31 miles (50 km) west of Bratislava, Slovakia, 31 miles (50 km) northwest of Hungary, and 37 miles (60 km) south of Moravia (Czech Republic). The Romans founded a fortress (castrum) at the site in the 1st century CE called Vindobona, which was elevated to a town (municipium) with Roman city rights in 212. In 1155, Vienna became the seat of the Babenbergs (976 to 1246) and was granted city rights in 1221. The Habsburgs succeeded the Babenbergs during the 16th century and Vienna became the seat of the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, a position it held until the empire’s dissolution in 1806. With the formation of the Austrian Empire in 1804, Vienna became the capital of the Austrian and all its successor states.

Our morning in Vienna began with a panoramic (bus) tour of the major sites of the city followed by a walking tour of the interior. This tour took us from the old city gates (no longer in existence) toward St. Stephen’s Cathedral. We had toured St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Bratislava, but this was named for Stephen I, the first king of Hungary reigning from approximately 1000/1001 until his death in 1038 CE. Although his parents were baptized, he was the first of his family to be a devout Christian. Stephen led the Church in Hungary to develop independently from the archbishops of the Holy Roman Empire and encouraged the spread of Christianity by meting out severe punishments for those ignoring Christian customs. He became the principal patron saint of Hungary. St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna is named for the first martyr of Christianity according to the Acts of the Apostles (Chapter 6). During the modern era, Vienna has been among the largest German-speaking cities in the world and host to major international organizations. In 2001, the city center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

THOUGHTS: One excursion in Vienna is a concert by the Vienna Residence Orchestra that features some of Vienna’s most beloved music, including Strauss waltzes and Mozart’s The Magic Flute. This is a bucket list for Melissa I am grateful to share. Sharing each other’s expectations and hopes bonds relationships. The more the better. Act for all. Change is coming and it starts with you.