Munich, Germany and Salzburg, Austria
September 8th to September 14th, 2001

So, we decided to go to Europe.  I really was interested in Salzburg alone, but it made sense to fly into Munich and see that town as well.  I had never spent much time there - overnight once to see an Eric Clapton/Joe Cocker concert, and that was in a suburb of the city.  So I didn't know what to expect.  

We left for our trip from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport on September 8th, connecting via Philadelphia, and arriving in Munich the morning of September 9th.  Upon arrival, we were about 6 hours ahead of home.  It would prove to be an exhausting day, since we couldn't check into our hotel room until later that afternoon. 
 

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The next morning we got up, had breakfast, and headed for the train station to catch a ride to Salzburg.  It was about a two-hour trip, and we passed some of the most beautiful countryside along the way.  It's exactly what you think of when you think of Germany/Bavaria - rolling hills and pastures and Bavarian style homes.  My first glimpse of Salzburg after all those years was just as I had remembered it.  The first thing you see as you come around the bend is the fortress overlooking the entire city.  (You can just make it out in the top of the picture of Mark at left.)   We checked right in our hotel and were overwhelmed at the hospitality of the people.  There was more of a "small town" feel than we had experienced in Munich.

We set out right away to explore, and cut through Mirabell Gardens (photo above right,) made famous in the movie, "The Sound of Music."

In the photo at right, you can see me and a long view of the Getriedegasse, one of the most famous streets in Salzburg.  As you can see, the shopkeepers are very careful to maintain the "old" look of the street, with wrought iron signs and well-kept store fronts.  Leading up the hill at the very back is a cable car - the shortcut to the fortress for those who don't want to walk.

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At right is another great view of the Austrian landscape.  The Fortress is like an enclosed city, with many buildings and courtyards inside the enclsoure.  This photo was taken from the very top of the Fortress itself.  You could really see for miles!  

After our tour of the interior rooms, we headed back down the path, passing Nonnberg Abbey and St. Peter's Cemetery (both used for scenes from "The Sound of Music,") then stopped for dinner at the Stieglkeller.  This is where we heard about the attacks that had happened in America just a few hours before.  A waiter who had just started his shift had seen it on the news before leaving for work.  He called it a "Great Tragedy."  Naturally, when he said a plane had hit the World Trade Center, we were shocked, but we thought it must have been a small, private plane - an unfortunate accident.  Then, when he said another plane hit the Pentagon, we assumed he was exaggerating, or that some of the information was confused in the translation from English to German.  After all, a plane could never hit the Pentagon, right?!?

Instead of rushing home to watch CNN, we headed to the Augustiner Brewery for a few beers in their stone liter mugs.  I had spent many nights at this place during my summer in Salzburg, and the place brought back wonderful memories.  They say the beer there is still made by the monks who live in the monastery - and it's still one of the best deals in town.  

When we left, we headed back toward the hotel, stopping at a bar a few blocks away.  It was around midnight in Salzburg, and they already had some of their early edition papers out with photos of the attacks plastered on the front page.  We scooped up a copy and I did my best to translate - there were plenty of words I had never learned in any German class - (the words for "suicidal terrorist," for example) - but it was clear that the bad news we'd heard earlier was all true.

We watched CNN in our hotel room for several hours that night.  It was live coverage from New York City and Washington, so although it was after midnight for us, we watched the story unfold at the same time most everyone in American did.  We called home to see that our families were okay (we actually felt that we were safer than them at the moment.)

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The next morning we slept in.  It was overcast and we were naturally very depressed.  Part of the news we had watched the night before indicated that all air travel was suspended indefinitely, and there was no way to predict whether our Friday flight would be cancelled.  When we finally got up and around, we decided to head out to Hallwang - the village in which I had lived during my stay 10 years ago.  We took a bus, stopped for lunch, then walked up the hill (it didn't seem so steep when I was 20!) to the Pension where I had lived and worked.  We learned that it had closed as a hotel several years ago, and was now used as an apartment complex.  We walked back down the hill to catch a bus back into town.  On the way, we crossed the train bridge, stopping to get a picture of Mark with the village in the background (at left.)  I had a great time during my summer here, but I was often homesick.  Never in a million years did I imagine I'd be back someday with my husband (a man I hadn't even met yet!)

Despite the obvious emotional setback caused by the bad news from home, we were trying to enjoy Salzburg while we had the chance.  The Austrian people made it that much easier - they were so sympathetic and compassionate.  The news anchors kept saying it was a worldwide tragedy - an attack against humanity - and from our perspective, it was true.  Many Austrians had friends or relatives in America, or simply loved our country so much that they felt as much shock and hurt as we did.  We were definitely in good company.

I had the chance to revisit just about everything in Salzburg, but I still hadn't been back to the youth hostel.  It was another one of our haunts during my summer there and I really wanted Mark to see it.  We stopped at a little bar for a rest and the waitress refreshed my memory on how to get to the place.  (She also took our picture, at right.)  We found it with no trouble and stayed for several hours.  We had a blast!  The place was packed with students, many backpacking across Europe.  We met a handful of Americans, a few Canadians traveling on business, and a rowdy bunch of New Zealanders feeling no pain!  It was just what we needed - a night to forget everything that was going on in America, stop worrying about our flight Friday, and just have fun! 

We truly loved our stay in Salzburg - the town was beautiful, the people were friendly, and I knew my way around, which always makes you feel more at home.  Unfortunately, it was a little cold and rainy during our stay, and the events at home made it hard to feel completely carefree.  We decided that we'd come back someday, under better circumstances and during a warmer season, so Mark could really get to know Salzburg as I remembered it - hot and sunny, teeming with backpackers, outdoor cafes crowded with patrons, and open-air markets swarming with residents and tourists alike.

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Toward evening we stopped in an Italian restaurant located in one of the towers that marked the main entrance to the "downtown."  We stayed for several hours, talking with the owner, who was behind the bar most of the night.  He was from Italy but had lived in Germany for the past seven years.  He spoke no English, so the conversation was lively as I translated between him and Mark.  We discussed the World Trade Center attacks at great length, and learned that he has an aunt, uncle, and cousin in New York that he wasn't able to contact.  It truly was an attack felt by the whole world.  His solution was to send the mafia in to get Osama Bin Laden - making the motion like he was shooting a machine gun, he said "Zehn minuten, alles weg."  ("Ten minutes, all gone.")  It sounded reasonable to us.

He gave us several shots of Limoncello, an Italian liquor, then poured more than half a bottle to send home with us, and the cook even let Mark into the kitchen for a picture (above left).

The next morning, September 14th, was our last day abroad.  We got up, still not quite trusting the Internet site's indication that our flight would leave on time.

I headed down to breakfast, and spoke with several other Americans who said their flights had been cancelled and rescheduled for the following week!  I was prepared to stay an extra day or two, but not four or five! I was feeling very negative as I finished breakfast - wondering what I was going to tell Mark.  I rang for the elevator to go back to the room, when a woman came bursting out with all of her luggage.  I learned she was scheduled to fly to New York on Delta and she had been able to confirm her flight.  I decided we were going to go to the airport and camp out if we had to!  

The airport was packed, with a line backed up all the way to the entrance.  As it turns out, it was the line for our flight, so we had come to the right place!  While in line, we heard our names called over the public address system!  It turned out to be Sabine, a friend of a friend.  Sabine and her husband lived in Munich and were calling to see if our flight was leaving on time, or if we'd need a place to stay.  We told her we were fine, but it was good to know we had a friend in Germany, just in case. 

The security was unlike anything we had experienced before.  There was a checkpoint with some basic questions before we even reached the regular check-in desk.  We got through that, then moved on to the next desk where we answered more questions before checking our luggage.  Next came our first metal detector.  We waited in a long line to get through it - then proceeded through the airport to our gate.  Our flight was one of two headed to America that morning, so we were all headed to the same place, two gates right next to each other.  The section of airport we walked through was completely empty - no one in the shops or the restaurants.  We rounded a corner to another line and another metal detector.  No one seemed to mind - everyone was grateful for the extra security.  After passing through this checkpoint, they searched every bag we carried and everyone was patted down!  The screener checking my carry-on politely insisted on taking a picture with my camera to make sure it really was a camera!  (That's the photo above right.)

We finally boarded the plane, and despite some intense worry, we made it through the next nine hours!  At Philadelphia, we decided we couldn't bear to go through the security clearances again, so we bagged our flight to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport and rented a car instead.  Needless to say, after all of that, we need a vacation!

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