Salzburg ist Gemutlichkeit

This morning 50 out of 56 kids rented bicycles and are either headed to the mountain the Austrians call Untersberg or are tooling around the Sound of Music do-re-me streets. The other six are hiking. As mentioned before, we love it when these kids get up and challenge themselves. They think they have free will, but it is the city, three days new, that wakens them. The smaller cities embolden a sometimes-false confidence in the girls and a faux braggadocio in the boys. Fine. Let them feel capable. But we are in Hansel and Gretel country. This city drops crumbs.

Salzburg counts as a small city. It is lovely. It is safe. It’s gemutlichkeit. It beckons and whispers, “Explore.” Kids sense the zeitgeist of the city and comply unwittingly to the 500 year old sensibility. My view, as I type, is your view. What do you think? You will not rot in your hotel room today. The river knows your name. The Augustiner calls your bluff, and the fortress carries you up into exulted heights.

Last night Emily, Maerjon, Cleo, Kevin, Daryl, Eric W., Bryant W. and Lonnie K. experienced the dulcet sounds of a string quartet plus a piano in this fortress, called Hohenstein Schloss and today many more will go. Who’d a thunk we had such a highbrow group? They dressed up, ate dinner and fell into a lovely sleep--no trance—as the musicians finished with the piece de resistance Mozart number, “Eine Kleine Nacht Music.” – Oh, those Deutschlanders sure do the internal rhyme well. My favorite “I licht dich nicht.” = I like you not. (OK, I like the sound not the sentiment.). Anyway, you know this Mozart vignette. It goes like this: dump, da dump, da dump da dump da dump . . .(now accelerando) dump de dump de dump de dump de dump. Brrrumpta da dump de dad a da, Brumpta de dump de dad a da.” I doubt it was as good as the performance we witnessed two days ago in Salzburg Altstadt. A man playing Ravel’s Bolero on water-filled wine glasses mesmerized us. I had to explain to the kids why this piece goes on and on—17 minutes, in my memory. They were not old enough to know the movie 10 with Bo Derek and Dudley Moore. Sorry if I’m corrupting their youth.

I don’t have a picture of the concert but this group (plus Daniel L.) was lucky enough to have dinner in Paris at the historic Chartier with Coach Hall and LV. Here are some pictures. It looks like Kevin is watching the waiter draw pictures on the tablecloth, but he’s merely sizing up the math. I guess those Parisan proportions were not enough as they all crossed the street to nab the vender’s crepes.

Coach Hall has made this Europe trip for 12 years in a row and he has his favorite “Magic Crepe” stand in Paris as well as his “Magic Bosna” stand in Salzburg. The way he describes the wunderbar taste of each bite at both places elicits ohhs and ahhs and long lines. The price is right and the taste is, again, gemutlichkeit. ( I’m not sure what gemutlichkeit means but it is my favorite German word and alternative-country, bluegrass singer Robbie Fulks uses it in his song called “I’m Gonna Take you Home (and Make you Like me).” I'm quite certain it’s the first known use of the word in a country music song. Per my waiter: use it when a group of friends is sitting around and having a nice conversation. Es ist Gemutlich. Put the omlaut over the u, too.

It’s 2:35 now and the forecasted rain has held back. The bike-dreamers shall survive. Yesterday was a beautiful warm day. After our glorious tour of the Salzburg Mines and Hell Bruin, the castle with trick water fountains, we broke up into bosna groups and many ended up at the Augustiner to play cards. In the pictures, notice Liz Liz dodging the surprise water guns. Her body language captured the unsuspecting fun of the day.

We have more kids playing in the hearts tournament this year and are practicing—and practice they need—for the real tournament on the cruise. The Augustiner Church has a beautiful food court and garden. The Marzen they serve has religion trapped in the tiny carbonated bubbles escaping upwards. At one time we had five tables of hearts going—and the snitzel wasn’t bad either. LV, merely studying the obvious tendencies of the players in his group, let Forest win, with Eric B. and Erik K. tying for second. Coach Hall shot the moon twice in a dramatic comeback win over Tyrone, Brad and Amanda.

This just in: rain and pictures from Untersberg featuring Casandra, Shaun, Kevin, Aaron, David, Matt M., Erik K, Brad G., Colby and Nick.

Truly but wryly,

LV