SALZKAMMERGUT DAY TRIP (Saturday)

WoW...it's already Saturday! Time for the Salzkammergut Day trip....a wonderful day (especially if the weather gets nice...I'll be crossing my fingers). The group arrived on time and ready to go...complete with rain gear because it was a rather cold and drizzly morning. Trip departure 8:30AM...our guide for the day was Steffi Kinz, who I have known for years. Steffi is the niece of Frau Helga Kinz, who owned and operated the hotel and restaurant GOLDFASAN back in our Lehen years...meaning that CSA's program has been in Groedig now for 13 years, but our program has been going every year since 1963 (45 AMAZING YEARS!!)...so prior to being in Groedig, we were in the district of Salzburg called Lehen! Steffi is my age and she is so peppy and enthusiastic...I was so excited to have her guide the group. Bill checked everyone off, all in an accounted for, the group (with our trusty Reinhard in the driver's seat) drove away....but not before the entire bus sang "Happy Birthday" to David Ferrazzoli...this was his 18th birthday!!!!

First the group went to the Berchtesgaden salt mines ("...A very good place to start...") which is a wonderful and very exciting place for the students to learn about the importance of Salt (which was more valuable than GOLD) and made the area in and around Salzburg so important! And what fun! They got to dress up in miner suites and slide down the same chutes that the miners used so many years ago! The full tour takes about an hour and 15 minutes and it is very exciting. Even Gail survived...and she is very claustrophobic! The students took turns holding her hand...and she did it! When they got out of the mines they found the sun out to greet them...it was going to be a sunny day after all!

Then on to the picturesque village of Hallstadt for lunch...and what an delicious lunch they had! Hallstadt is a village literally squished up in a very small area of land between a mountain and a lake and it is so incredibly beautiful that it almost seems unreal. After lunch and some time in Hallstadt (and a visit to the Bone Chapel where the bones of the dead are kept after being underground for several years....because of lack of land and space for a cemetery this is the way they do it in Hallstadt, and the students get to SEE and learn that it is not scary, it is just the way this town deals with a lack of land situation).....and on to St. Wolfgang...luckily, the weather continued to hold and the views of this Alpine lake region were spectacular!

Last stop, Mondsee, to see the church and yet another beautiful lake and perfect little Austrian village...but oh no....torrential downpour!!!! Rain so heavy Reinhard could hardly see the road! The group ended up waiting it out a bit on the bus before making a mad dash for the church....worth it, of course because it is beautiful inside....then back onto the bus and a return 'home' to groedig. Now, unknown to the group I made a call to Steffi and requested that she have Bill announce to ALL the participants that I had a very important announcement...and the group would have to disembark the bus and come directly into the school to hear it........

Meanwhile, a day to run around and get some things done for me and my "Spunky Sidekick" Stephanie a.k.a. "Peanut"...we had several important things to accomplish on this day! First I worked in my office in the school during the morning and then caught up with Steph with our first stop being Der Tortenmacher....THE best shop in all of Salzburg for birthday cakes.... I actually had never physically been in there before, but have enjoyed cakes from there many times....well....when Steph and I entered we KNEW it was not going to just be a cake-pick-up stop..we would HAVE to enjoy some coffee and their second specialty hand made chocolate bonbons!! As if it would even be possible not to try them. What a lovely little neighborhood cafe....so many locals coming and going...we really enjoyed it...and the chocolate? Well...we tried the Dark Chocolate, Amaretto, Tiramissu, Hazelnut..... Um, YES...we'll be back... And yes, the cake....BEAUTIFUL!!


Then on into the city to get a copy of "The Sound of Music" DVD PAL version (my version from the States would not work properly in the European machine....only PAL system DVDs will!!). We parked in a spot that well, was not actually a spot (just a quicky stop, and hey, we followed a Police car in to the area...just in the Mozartplatz!!)...ran into the Tourismusverband and got the movie and then got out of there quick! Then on to MaxiMart for the paper plates , forks and napkins. Then we went and took the cake back to the school and put it in the fridge...and got a few more errands done....and before we knew it, the group was just about an hour away...so we started preparing the cake (with sparklers)....and we didn't have to go to the Restaurant Rossini for a knife...we found everything we needed (including some adorable little children sized aprons) in the school's kitchen class room!

Then we waited for the group....when they arrived some of them asked "Are we in trouble?" and others were just happy to run in and use the restroom! So we got them all settled into the same room we used for the Orientation and then Stephanie and I went to get the cake.....HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!! It was a great surprise for David. (18 is a big deal1)...and everyone was so happy! A great way to end an incredible day touring the amazing Austrian lake regions....and the cake? DELICIOUS! Sachertorte always is...and everyone got a taste!!!


Another great day. Tomorrow would be Sunday Church in the City...and fortress in the afternoon...everyone would get their sleep this night I knew....they were so exhausted!

LuLu update....she is doing well, she had a good sleep and is on the mend...still happy as ever to be with her Grandma and Grandpa! Right now she is a 'three-legged" dog and does not use the one that was broken, which is good, the Vet does not want her on that leg for 4 weeks! It's fine... the Lenz family was known for having Buffy, a three legged dog, one of two in Slippery Rock (one of my bestest friends Anne's family had the other, ToTo). But LuLu is going to be fine!