I booked a shuttle between Céskŷ Krumlov and Salzburg. That was a saga in itself, but the booking was finally confirmed and I was picked up at 7:20am and joined 7 others in a maxi car. The drive took about 2.5 hours and was very scenic. We wound through river valleys and up and over mountains. Along one section, small cottages propped beside the creek. Most lay dormant but some had smoke curling out of the chimney as a sign of life. A guide in Prague had spoken about the cottages. During the Communist era the Czechs could not travel for holidays so many families built a little cottage, where they would go on weekends and holidays, and most are in forests or by rivers because the Czechs are very fond of mushrooming, canoeing and fishing. She didn't own one because it was 'another house to look after' but her children were the only ones in the class who didn't. They are called chata and the ones I saw seem to have been built to a standard model. A small A-frame with perhaps one big room or two at the most downstairs and an attic which I assume has the beds. There are more luxurious versions I'm sure. My Spanish friends from Madrid also had country cottages. Perhaps living in apartments encourages a little 'house and garden'.
I also saw some 'commons' in towns we passed. Exactly like the English commons, they are plots where vegetables can be grown. Most were lying fallow of course.
As we wound up into the mountains I could see snow on the peaks in the distance and occasional patches in sheltered areas. The early morning sun was glistening on the frost.
We passed through the border into Austria. The building seemed unattended; it reminded me of the ski control points on our mountains in summer. The only evidence we were in Austria was the change in language on the signs.
We wound back down into another valley and as we hit the main highway we were encased in mist or fog, and the temperature dropped significantly.
Fortunately we had one more set of mountains to cross and we arrived in Salzburg to beautiful sunshine gleaming on the snow capped mountains in the distance and the spires of the buildings in the 'old city'.
I'm only in Salzburg for a day so I chose a hotel near the centre. I walk though a tunnel under the hill and I'm there. The old city was busier than I expected. Perhaps because the central area is smaller than Prague, or it's a weekend leading up to New Year, but in some of the streets I could barely move. I decided to head up the hill to the fortress since the clear day would offer some lovely views, which it certainly did. The fortress was interesting and very photogenic, but had few information boards, and although they had signs suggesting audio guides were available I never saw them or any people using them. The museum was mostly devoted to military displays and there was little in the way of English explanations. I know it's a German speaking country, but English has become the universal tourism language and the many Chinese tourists would not have understood the German either. However, the views were fabulous, both of the city and the mountains.
At the other end of the hill is the Modern Art Museum. For me Modern Art is hit and miss, sometimes I am fascinated and spend hours, other times I wonder why they bothered. I experienced both today. The one that fascinated me was a series of 'portraits' where the artist, Chuck Close, had deconstructed the face and presented it in different forms. He uses different printing techniques, and different materials including paper blobs, felt circles, and tapestry. A good article that shows some of his techniques is here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/museums/photogallery/chuckclose/chuckclose1.htm
There was an elevator back to the city level, and being in Austria I decided I should indulge in a sweet treat. The old city is full of little passages, not quite big enough to be called arcades, and in one I found a little restaurant. I sat 'outside' not realising that it meant 'smoking area', but fortunately wasn't bothered until I was nearly finished. The waffles with fruit came with blueberries, grapes in little bunches and mandarin segments. Not what I expected!
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