Copping a latitude

“Traveling…leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”

– Ibn Battuta

Desperate to return our Lancia before the 3-day Easter shutdown, we race to the tiny car rental outpost at the Bolzano Airport and discover it shuttered. Perplexed once again by the predictably unpredictable, we conjure Plan B. Suddenly, the agent dashes from the adjoining café, greets us, and tells us to leave our car “anywhere” in the parking lot. Casually, he signs off on the rental papers and re-joins his friends for pre-Easter cheer – no concern for checking for car damage or fuel consumption. He smiles and extends a relaxed, Grazie, Buon Viaggio!!

Thus marks the South Pole of our transition north across the Italian- Austrian frontier.

A few days later, we board the db Bahn express bound for Salzburg.  Snoozing and sipping canned Illy cappuccino, we snake through snowy mountain passes and green wooded expanses, arriving at the impressive new terminal in Salzburg.

Now the vivid contrast of cultures is drawn in high relief. An efficient Hertz office across from the heavily-policed train station brightens with a cheery “Gruss Gott” from Kirsten, the blond attendant.  After endless formalities of the Austrian rental are explained, we are presented a list of existing “damage” of the car we are picking up (a sporty Volvo D40 diesel).

Outside, we examine our gleaming, spotless “ride”. Kirsten points out the recorded areas of distress – microscopic blemishes, almost impossible to detect. Daunted, we drive away anxious that we will add to the unforgiving catelog of wear and tear.

Suppression dissolves as we roll across the invisible threshold opening our next adventure, Salzburg.

Bloburger Hof, at the periphery of Salzburg, is our address for five high-spring days. Our hosts – fam. Keuschnigg-Santner – run a prosperous inn set against Bavarian peaks dividing Austria from Germany.

In this picture-book neighborhood, we are steps from dinner at three satisfying Gasthofs serving rustic Austrian fare (chicken crusted with almonds, mixed salad with potatoes and dilled cucumber, seeded breads, Stegl pils, and fruity Gruner Veltliner from nearby vines).

Each morning we bike on trails that separate villages, manicured farms, forests, snow-fed streams, and enchanting homes and rural businesses. Freshly fertilized fields have intoxicating charm – albeit an acquired taste.

One discovery, a former noble hunting lodge in a misty private park, has been converted to professional offices. Enchanted by the merger of centuries, we vow to set up temporary shop here – “someday”. Returning off-trail, Lisa bravely, perhaps recklessly, guides us through electric fences (current evidently off) that corral pastured horses intrigued by our trespass.

Excursions into Salzburg (10 min. drive) or tours of breathtaking alpine summits and forests occupy our afternoons. Hallstatt, an hour’s drive, is a perfect “sound of music” setting that always refreshes our souls (apparently this prestine lakeside village has been perfectly recreated in China). Berchtesgaden National Park (yes, that Berchtesgaden) just over the unmarked German border is instant access to ski runs, perfectly cut and piled wood, leather trachten-wear. We see Spring-break skiers coming off the slopes in 78-degree sunshine ready for beer and wurst.

In Salzburg we luxuriate over latte and Topfenstrudel at Café Bazar, a classic Austrian coffee house, where citizens linger with the daily papers. Jokingly, we calculate that after lodging, coffee is our biggest travel expense.

Walking across the Salzach River to an early evening recital, we sit within feet of a 12-piece chamber ensemble, in the residence of Mozart’s first patron. International musicians gather to refine their art in this exalted setting.  We focus individual sounds each instrument create, as well as the total exquisite baroque harmonies – vivid, exhilarating, memorable.

All photos taken on iPhone6s+

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