Salzburg is a romantic little town that sits in the foothills of the Alps. I have heard so much about this city so was pleased to have a chance to meet up with our good friends Gulay and Ian for a wintery weekend getaway in Salzburg

In addition to its natural charm, Salzburg gave us Mozart AND The Sound of Music. Both of which I am incredibly fond of, however, The Sound of Music was a particular favorite movie of mine growing up.




During the afternoon, we stopped at Cafe Tomaselli for some tea and a small pastry dessert. Dating from 1703, it is the classic Salzburg coffeehouse. Evidently Mozart used to come to this cafe often. The waiters were all men who wore fancy suits and took our orders for drinks and food. Seperatly there is a pastry lady who comes around with a tray of AMAZING looking pastries for you to choose from. Word of warning you will not be able to say no to the pastries, and they taste as good as they look! You pay for these items separately, which I found kind of odd.

The cafe obviously does very well in Salzburg and was buzzing with customers while we were there. What stood out to me was that none of them were looking down at their cell phones or any other devices for that matter...I thought that perhaps we had found some kind of magical place where cell phones and social media had not yet reached, but then I noticed the NO CELL PHONE sign hanging on the wall of this 300 year old building and had a sad thought that no where is "safe" anymore...

Our weekend in Salzburg flew by with some wonderful new memories made with some special friends.

One of the highlights of Salzburg for me was our beautiful Hotel Sacher accommodation. Due to the fact that it was off peak season we were able to get a very good rate for our room and we were even upgraded to a room with the view of the river. Later I learned that the 2015 rates for the hotel were 700 Euros per night! Yikes!

We selected the Hotel Sacher for the location and, if I am honest, because the Trip Advisor breakfast reviews were incredible!  It is directly across the river from the old city and within easy walking distance of all the key areas in Salzburg.

Even with the glowing reviews buzzing around in my head leaving quite a high standard to live up to...I was incredibly impressed by the morning breakfasts. They even served gluten free bread for Kingsley and I, though I have to admit I cheated later by indulging in their non-gluten free world famous chocolate torte. It was worth it! We had fresh squeeze grapefruit juice with a splash of champagne, omelets, cheeses from all over the world and so much more and everything was delicious.

I am a big tea drinker, some might even say a tea snob, and have been known to bring my own tea bags when we travel just in case the selection is limited wherever we are staying. Hotel Sacher scored even extra points from me by having the most divine tea selection. I especially enjoyed their Althaus green tea and without fail woke up each morning obsessing thinking about it to the point where ordering a pot of it via room service was required to pacify me.

Before vacationing in Barcelona I’d never heard of Gaudi, a Catalan architect considered a master of Modernism. If you’d asked me what Gaudi meant to me, I would have said it meant “excessively showy” (as in “gaudy”, which ironically is not related to Gaudi since the use of the term, “gaudy” dates back to the 1500s.)
It has been called "A great petrified wave". This building was commisiioned by Pere Mila and his wife to be used as apartments and a family home. This was built when Gaudi was 54 at the height of his career and was declared a UNESCO Heritage site in 1984.

What makes Casa Mila a genuine architectural masterpiece is the fact that there are no load bearing walls; the building, including the façade, is supported by a structure of columns and curved iron beams surrounding an open courtyard from the lobby to the attic.

Almost everyone I know who has been to Barcelona has raved about the La Sagrada Familia and after going there myself, I can fully understand why.  I am typically a tepid enthusiast of history and architecture but this building captivated both Kingsley and I.  I especially recommend getting the audio guide as you go through the church.

Some interesting facts that I learned:

The foundation stone for the cathedral known as La Sagrada Família ("The Holy Family") was laid in 1882. A year after the project started, the original architect resigned because of disagreements with the cathedral's developers, and the commission was given to the renowned Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, who abandoned the original neo-Gothic design envisioned for the building and set out to create a more monumental and unique work, packed with symbolism, detail and extraordinary artisanal craft.

Gaudí worked on the building until his death in 1926, devoting almost all of his time to the project in the last years of his life.  After Gaudí's death, work proceeded under the management of his close associate, Domènec Sugrañes, and would pass through the hands of others who knew the master.





Current estimates suggest that construction will not be complete for another 15 years. Gaudí himself seemed unconcerned about the amount of time it would take to finish his masterpiece. "The master of this work," he once famously said, "Is in no great hurry."


In my opinion, the interior of the church is actually even more beautiful than the exterior.  The windows are a focal point of the construction, with some stretching more than two stories high. They are designed to draw the eye upwards and inspire meditation on the divine.  The roof is held up by a forest of extraordinary angled pillars. As the pillars soar towards the ceiling, they sprout a web of supporting branches, creating the effect of a beautiful forest canopy which was exactly how Gaudi intended it to look.