Salzburg #1 Childhood happiness

I don't know if it’s the crystal waters, the silver peeks or the flower balconies. Maybe, it’s the friendliness, the peace or the air, but Austria is probably the calmest, yet roughest country I know that’s only a 1-day drive away. It’d been 10 years since I last visited the favourite holiday country of my family, a time where I already enjoyed the outdoors but did not yet appreciate and value it the way I do now. Whereas Norway was the original travel plan for the autumn holidays, I couldn’t’ think of a better replacement to fill these 5 days with, than the mountains of Austria. Planning a holiday in the middle of a pandemic isn’t the easiest, but I also don’t think we need to put our lives on hold totally and go on the adventures that are still offered to us. A rental car was not only a perfectly safe way of travelling, it is also incredibly comfortable and it makes you feel as if you can go anywhere, which thinking about is, is the truth. So the plan was made, in the quiet chilly night we drove off with the brand new Peugeot that for now was our trusted guide and best friend. The final destination was one that’d been lurking at the top of my bucket list for a little while now, presenting the whole region of the north of Austria. A small part of the city had managed to preserve what was left of the old days and all that came together on top of a hill, a hill filled with towers owned by churches or castles. An emerald green river flowed within the city, colder and clearer than the waters I’d known. The city itself was locked away safely within worlds prettiest jail: a mountain valley. Green bottoms, yellow, orange or red in the middle painted by the trees turning to autumn, and silver on top where the everlasting snow never lost a battle: that’s the city of Salzburg.

Hostels, they make it or break it. But Wolfgang’s AO hostel made it, with is cleanness, modern vibe and central location; we were 4 happy girls. By the time we’d arrived in Austria sunrise was past us and the boost of energy we got from seeing the sun after hours of driving in the dark, was enough. We didn’t want to sleep anymore, we didn’t want to waste a second of these precious 4 days ahead of us, in the valley of Salzburg. Yet none of us could stand the idea of driving any further, but after accepting for some proper mountains we couldn’t exactly hike our way out of town, we got a short-driving distance tip: Gaisberg. This beloved mountain of Salzburg actually is visible from the cities on, but due to curvy roads passing by colourful balcony homes, you still had to crawl your way upwards. The mountain was a solid 1287 meters high, rising up above the autumn colours with a shade of red-orange-yellow. The fun that awaited us, was a challenge for each Dutch driver, maybe even one of these roads you see on a scary road show. Small, filled with curves, and a merciless escalation without any breaks. My sweaty hands cramped themselves around the wheel and I think I held my breath until about halfway up the mountain. I know it’s a saying people hold their breath by the sight of something unreal, but for me it feels like I can breathe for the first time as I feel more alive than ever by the realization that what is ahead of me, is real. The luxury of staring however wasn’t mine now, my eyes only wanted to leave the road for 0.2 milliseconds max. But whenever the sight appeared, it was pure magic. A valley made of the greenest green steeply crawling up against the rocky side of the mountain, creating this wall of knives climbing further and further to its tops. The whole view seemed to have been painted but nothing was more painty than the tops: silver knives.

The valley protected Salzburg and made it look so desirable and innocent I wanted to be it. you could even watch the river flow in slow-motion and the cars hardly getting forward. It’s my favourite thing about heights; life below you stops and seems so small, as you ascend into the clouds, clueless where they take you, eager to know. And finally the endless climb did come to an end and my ears started to let go of the pressure, my hands started to let go. And my mouth started to smile, or maybe my whole face did. As if I’d ran a marathon, exhaustedly, I parked the car, feeling proud at myself for concurring the road of which, during family holidays, I said ‘dad I do not understand how you drive those roads’, and I realized I really missed Austria these last 10 years. I felt like the kid I was back then as we ran out of the car towards the grass platform that offered the magnificent view we didn’t dare dreaming of yet; the top of the mountains. It almost seemed like a gathering of ice peeks, upside down. Reflecting the rays of sunshine creating an overwhelming glow of white, surrounded by the overprotective clouds that did not want the mountains to reveal its true self just yet. It preserved the mystery the mountains are so eager to present, making us wonder what’s hiding in between their tops. Making us realize we don’t rule the world and concurred it all, as the mountains will always remain to be earth most invincible creation. It truly created a different world, and with that a different climate too: a freezing wind floated through the sky and turned my nose red, yet breathing in the air was like breathing in gum: fresh, pure and real.

As tempting as it was to take the road upwards, through the deep green hills up towards the autumn trees, we were starving. In fact, we already did, as by now we passed the stage of hunger onto the stage of emptiness, filled by the impressions around us. Luckily one cannot possibiy ignore the Austrian vibes: a white stone farm, decorated with massive wooden balconies surrounded by flowers and outdated tractors & wooden carts around. It looks like a house which indeed suits the hospitality and warmth of Austrians and their Swedish-German (that’s how I like to refer to it after sadly accepting my basic German didn’t help me here) and when entering, smells overwhelm. A fireplace in the corner, a cosy beer-bar at the side, and wooden tables filled with colourful foods by the windows. Everything is made to look cosy in Austrian homes and this usually is boosted by the amount of wood, black-white images and essentially: unforgettable views. By the time the lady came to take our order she was facing our hungry backs that still didn’t check out the menu: we were checking the view. It’s funny how the stillest images are the most interesting ones, as if they remind us our busy world that’s constantly on the move, is not the only world. Needless to say, coming from the country of flat fields, seeing these icy kings will never grow to bore me. Out of pressure-panic I ordered a salad whereas my body was craving for something salty, so I ate half of my friend’s food. But it fulfilled, and we were back to head into the fresh mountain air to see where the road would take us.

A little gravel road started by a yellow wooden farm, that still maintained the Austrian vibe because balconies, and the indispensable decoration such as random cart wheels, barrels and wheelbarrows at the compound. A lack of growing up in the early 2000’s, is the confusion created when several signs appear, with their distances and directions all differing. But we refused to use technology for anything else than taking pictures as we descended by the little farm that again looked like its door was wide-open to receive us. The path curled its way up surrounded by little autumn trees that could hardly keep their skinny heads up in the ever-lasting mountain breeze. But their colours made them look powerful, participating in the seasons and therefore deserving of their spot on the mountain. As a beautiful reward for a climb that exhausted me more than I expected, we got a little higher above the same view we had before which allowed us to witness the complete snowy roofs of the mountains. even the clouds moved aside for a little, so we could truly witness the top of the world. The cutest thing was how these tops always descended into valleys, where the little wooden homes fell under the protection of the giants and looked so magical in the silence. Our hike was hijacked at the moment we discovered a playground, which we approved of.

- It's an amazing life