Day 7 – Rain, Umbrellas, and a Bit of Mozart: A Family Day in Salzburg
Today marks one week since we began our European adventure—and somehow, it already feels like it’s flying by. Salzburg greeted us this morning with cold drizzle and a steady, soaking rain that lasted nearly all day. But we leaned into the quiet of the rain and moved a bit slower.
I started the morning solo with a short walk—just about 0.2 miles—from our hotel to a nearby laundromat. It wasn’t exactly a glamorous start to the day, but there’s something oddly satisfying about catching up on laundry while the world outside is wrapped in grey clouds. Plus, warm, clean clothes are a necessity.
Once that was checked off, we gathered the kids and braved the weather, heading into the heart of the Altstadt (Salzburg’s Old Town). Our mission: find lunch and track down an SD card for Jen’s camera. Simple goals, but in weather like this, they felt like mini-quests. Addison and I huddled under a giant red umbrella (on loan courtesy of our hotel), carefully zigzagging to avoid puddles. In contrast, Kate and Evan took the opposite approach—marching straight through puddles with full enthusiasm. Wet feet, all the more fun!
Lunch wasn’t traditional Austrian fare—we landed on sushi and miso soup—but after navigating the rain, it hit the spot and was exactly what we needed. From there, we made our way to the Museum der Moderne. The kids weren’t overly thrilled at the idea, but they were troopers. Art museums can usually be fun once we are inside, but they humored us as we dragged them along and told them it would be great. Turns out, it was great. And there were some surprises, smiles, and moments of curiosity. I especially enjoyed an exhibit by Rob Voerman who creates post humanist architecture and critique in a variety of mediums. Evan, Addison, and I huddled inside the cardboard house, complete with two-way mirrors to view the other patrons viewing us, and bright green and red acetate windows casting illuminated shadows into the space.
By the time we returned to the hotel, we were damp and chilly. We changed into warm, dry clothes and capped the day with a concert of Mozart and Bach in the beautiful chapel at Mirabell Palace. The setting was intimate, with only about 25 audience members, and the music was solo cello with piano accompaniment. The Bach cello suite and Mozart were lovely, and technically quite well performed, but the Dvořák was my favorite. I can’t listen to this without picturing Jacqueline Dupree, but it was powerful to hear the cello in the small chapel with only piano and not a full orchestra. I sat enraptured with every single note. I’m not sure if the kids were paying attention or if Jen was moderating, nudging the whole time (I think she may have been for at least some of the time), because I was so delightfully enthralled with the concert. For a little while, the rain outside didn’t matter at all.
Here is to more travel, smiles, puddles, and maybe a bit more Mozart.
