Why It Always Rains at the Renaissance Festival (Homage to Mrs. F)

It’s raining today. There is something about rain and fog in cities that are as old as Salzburg and Florence. The weather carries the smells of years in a way that emphasizes their age and a certain degree of permanence. The city responds to the wet by saying, “I’m still here and won’t be quite […]

An Important Revelation

The conference is finally over and I’m officially on vacation. Of course, the day ended at 5 so I didn’t have any significant time for sightseeing. Basically, I got out and wandered around town a bit more before dinner. One thing on which I’ve yet to comment are the giant plexiglass pyramids they have erected […]

It’s Not a Dumpling, So It Needn’t Be Heavy

As it turned out, last night found me at dinner again with Jane, her husband Phil, and R (somebody from Cincinnati). We took the advice of their Rick Steves guidebook, and searched out a place called St Pauls Stube. It took some looking to find, after which we had to climb a stairway and go […]

Thoughts on Salzburg

I have two more evenings left in beautiful Salzburg. I’ve been at the conference most of my time here and haven’t really had an opportunity to engage in any tourist-oriented activities. No castles. No salt mines. No Mozart (other than Mozartkugel). No Sound of Music. You might think I would want to stay an extra […]

Comfort Food and Antlers

Yesterday, lunch was conference food. We will speak of that no more. Last night found me at the dinner table with an old friend, Jane from Cincinnati. She and her husband are really both wonderful people and I’m so glad I got to see them. We ended up at a tavern recommended in their Rick […]

A Wonderful, Magical Animal

Three meals have passed and I’ve typed nothing! How awful is that? After hours of flying to get to Vienna and a nice ride on the train (a railjet) I finally made it to Salzburg last night. It was 7pm, and of course the information booth at the train station was closed, so I was […]