SALZBURG

Another of my favorite spots in Austria, was Salzburg, where we spent two days, and without a doubt, the Mirabell Palace and Gardens. During our two days, we kept finding ourselves back in these gardens again and again. The outside of the palace is stunning, but we didn't tour the interior, as much as I might not have minded seeing the Marble Hall. Mirabell dates back to 1606, when it was then known as, Altenau Palace. Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau commissioned the building as a token of his love for Salome Alt, his common law spouse. After Wolf Dietrich's death in 1617, his successor renamed the palace "Mirabell". The most famous room of the palace is the Marble Hall. It was originally the Prince-Archbishop's ballroom, but was also used as a concert hall where Leopold Mozart and his children would regularly perform. The gardens were a joy to visit, and considered to be one of the most beautiful Baroque gardens in Europe. Some of these pictures may look familiar for being in the film The Sound of Music, where part of the movie was filmed when Julie Andrews sang Do Ri Me to the kids.  But the Dwarf Garden gave me the willies. It is on an old bastion, a little removed from the main part of the Mirabell gardens. It features a display of misshapen dwarfs. It's believed some of these sculptures are people who were actually lived on the court of the Prince Archbishops of Salzburg. Creepy. But then I've seen to many horror movies where these things come to life and terrorize.

Seen in a shop window...

MOOD BOARD

 
It was a great weekend. I cooked a lovely dinner of grilled salmon and lobster for the mother for Mother's Day, while she enjoyed a lovely new fuchsia and rose bush for the garden I got her. It was our first of the season- cookin' on the grill, and man did it taste heavenly. A lot of the day was showing Ma, pictures from past trips, since we never seemed to have time. She loved seeing them as she is far from a traveler. Between worrying about plane travel, which she is terrified of, and the madness of the world, she says she is fine right where she is. And when I travel, especially abroad, she remains tense and worried till I'm back safety. She added, " Luckily the pandemic kept you home, and I gained two more years of life without worry." We enjoyed the pictures with a bottle of wine. She seemed enthralled with the pictures from Vienna and Buenos Aires, but for some odd reason the statues from Schonbrunn Palace she loved. They are a mood. Later today I'm returning back to the Casa du Borghese to tend to things there. It's been busy with freelance projects and a insane week at my friends floral shop.

VIENNA

Back in 2019 was one of the biggest and most opulent of trips I think I'd ever taken. To Vienna with Warbucks. It had been on the bucket list for some time, and I shared much about that trip, but it didn't even touch the tip of the iceberg. We walked from the museum district to Schonbrunn Palace, which was the main summer residence of the Habsburg rulers, located in Hietzig. The name of the palace means "beautiful spring." My history with Europe's palaces isn't stellar only having seen two in Amsterdam and one in Germany. But when in Vienna, the Hapsburg residences are unavoidable, and you should really go see at least one. We choose the Schonbrunn Palace, the most famous. Home to a very young Marie Antoinette, the style is pure Rococo, all pastels, portraits and the extravagance you'd expect. The general tour we took was a three to four hour tour inside. One can see most of the palace's rooms and take in the very informative tour. The exterior is just as spectacular. The weather gods were smiling on us that day, bright beautiful skies, as we explored the gardens, the orangery, the great Palm House and the 30 odd fountains which feature a different theme from mythological Neptune to Roman ruins. If one wants to just tour the gardens, that is free for all. And one has to walk  up to the Gloriette, for the best views of the palace grounds and surrounding Vienna. That was a hike from the palace. Certainly while downtown Vienna has plenty enough for it in terms of attractions and history, a visit to the outskirts and the Schonbrunn is a must...a whole day at a relaxing pace. Clearly it is one of the more impressive palaces around and a sheer joy to walk through, if you like architecture, gardens and sculpture.

It amazed me when we were there,  how many people took selfies, but then hardly took any pictures of the place itself. Im a huge picture whore, and took tons of picture, many just random pictures. We came back with about almost 900 pictures. I also noticed not many knew about or just bypassed  the entrance to the Imperial carriages that were on display there. I found it completely fascinating.

The Gloriette

But if you recall, the fun was getting there.... Warbucks Christmas gift to me that year was the trip, and the big surprise...the Orient Express, which you can read here. That will be one of my top memories of travel. Pure decadence. The craftmanship. Top notch culinary delights. Neat cocktails. Dressing up. This was not a sneaker, jeans, tee, or sweats affair. Chic dressing. The little cabin was more elegant then some hotel rooms I'd had. Very romantic and passionate sleeping at night.

I'll never forget it.