On the Way Home - Zurich to Salzburg
My Swiss tour was over, which meant that this wonderful European train journey was nearing its end. I was now on my way home, beginning today with the first in a series of four high-speed train rides. But I would not be taking the most direct route since there was another scenic journey through the mountains to Salzburg that I wanted to check out.
I woke up quite refreshed after perhaps the best sleep of my entire trip. The room had been quiet and the bed quite comfortable, but it also helped that I did not have to get up early. I do not sleep well before early flights or trains. Today I had plenty of time for a relaxed breakfast and a short walk to the train station.
This was a breakfast included stop, so I went down to the hotel’s attractive dining room. Like many of my hotels, the Adler had a coffee machine that made cappuccinos. At my other stops the guests made their own, but this morning a nice lady asked for my order. A few minutes later I saw that she was busy elsewhere, so I grabbed what I thought was my finished coffee from the machine. A minute later she came by and told (scolded?) me, "I was going to put chocolate sprinkles on top." I later ordered a second one and enjoyed some Swiss chocolate sprinkles. It was a good breakfast with fresh croissants.
I left the hotel just before 10:00 am, stopped a few times for photos, and still arrived within ten minutes, long before my 10:40 departure.
The Hauptbahnhof, Zurich Central Station, which opened in 1871, is the largest railway station in Switzerland and serves almost 3,000 trains per day, making it one of the busiest railway stations in Europe. It is especially well organized, which is not really a surprise since it is a Swiss station.
I found my track, and my train arrived a minute later. As with all the trains that I boarded in Switzerland, there was no boarding procedure. I just walked onto my first-class car.
My reserved seat for this train was on the left, the single row side.
Reservations had been necessary at the beginning of my trip but had not been required (or in most cases even possible) for my 16 different trains through Switzerland. But that part of my trip was over. I was back to high-speed trains and reservations. I pulled out my file with the printouts. At the bottom of the pile was one for the Eurostar from Brussels to London. I bought this one the day after I bought my rail pass. The other three trains came with “Reservations Recommended” warnings. I had heeded that advice and booked my seats many weeks ago.
The car filled up as we neared our departure time. There was a group of Americans who appeared confused to find that most of the seats were reserved. They left to find empty seats in second class.
This was the fifth high-speed train of my trip. My first high-speed train was the Eurostar from London to Paris. Then it was a French “Train à Grande Vitesse” to Munich. From there I took a German ICE train to Villach and later was on a Trenitalia high-speed train from Venice to Milan. This was a Railjet, the high-speed rail service operated by Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) and Czech Railways.
The ride was scheduled for 5.5 hours and was going over the route of the Arlberg Railway, which runs east-west through the Alps and is one of the highest standard gauge railways in Europe.
There was an announcement about an electronics problem on one of the cars, but we still left on time.
The conductor came by and checked my seat reservation printout and then asked to see my rail pass. This would have seemed normal at the beginning of my trip, but it was the first time that I had been asked to show the pass on a high-speed train. I never understood why, especially since the train fare is the expensive part of the transaction.
I was no longer under Swiss rules, so I was able to log into the train Wi-Fi. I was happy until I realized that I could not get a decent connection.
We passed through but did not stop in Lichtenstein. Can I add it to my countries visited?
As passengers with reservations boarded, there was a regular exodus by the passengers without seat reservations. They announced that part of the train was splitting off and going to Munich. We were advised to make sure that we were in the right car. I assumed I was okay since I had reserved.
After Innsbruck we went through the Arlberg Railway Tunnel (Arlbergtunnel). The tunnel is 10.2 km (6.3 miles) long. It was a major engineering feat that was finished in 1884.
I ordered a strudel and a cappuccino from the waiter but had to wait a long time for my order then was given a coffee with milk rather than a cappuccino. The strudel was good but very sweet.
I did take some photographs along the way even though it was cloudy and raining for much of the journey. The scenery was nice if not the spectacular ride that I had hoped for.
The waiter came by and asked me to pay for the strudel. Since I had not received my cappuccino, I did not remind him about the coffee. He would not accept my Swiss Franc coins, so I paid with Euros. He soon returned and asked me to pay for the coffee. I then complained about my coffee, which got me nowhere. He did not care. I paid.
We arrived in Salzburg a few minutes late at 4:10 pm.
It would have been an easy ten-minute walk to my hotel, Motel One Salzburg-Mirabell, if I had not been fighting with my suitcase with its little wheels that would not turn.
At check in I was asked if I wanted breakfast with my room. I inquired about the price and was told it was 16 Euros. I knew the answer but asked anyway, “Total for both nights?” It was for one. I declined.
I was pleasantly surprised to find four pillows on the bed. Most of my single accommodations on this trip had given me one lone pillow to go with one lone bath towel.
I made a list of the places that I wanted to visit in Salzburg and, based on a travel podcast’s strong recommendation, went online to buy an electronic Salzburg Card which would give me admission to all the attractions and transportation.
I decided that my first place to visit would be the Fortress Hohensalzburg where I could ride up the funicular and get a great view of the city. I left the hotel and joined many joggers, cyclists, and walkers along the lovely Salzach River. I could easily see my destination as the fortress towers over the city.
I walked through the Old Town.
I made a quick stop at the "Sphaera" in the Kapitelplatz. I would revisit the square the next day. The fortress was just ahead.
I arrived at the funicular station. I could pay for the ride up and admission to the fortress with my Salzburg card. I went to the ticket window first. The man told me to go through the turnstile, but the scanner did not recognize the pass. I thought that the card might need to be activated, so I stepped back and logged into their Wi-Fi. Lines on the app went back and forth, but nothing more happened. By then the room had filled with several groups. Many people had lined up to buy tickets. I left in frustration.
It began to rain. I walked for a few minutes and decided that I needed to find a restaurant or cafe. I headed for one across the square. I had no idea what it served. I just wanted to get out of the rain.
It turned out that it only served coffee and desserts, mostly ice cream dishes. It was not what I was really looking for, but I did not want to go back out. I ordered what I thought might be somewhat healthy with fruit along with my cappuccino. It was not cheap at 11 Euros. It was not memorable either.
I asked for the bill, and when I showed my card, the waiter presented me with his phone open to a payment app and said that I had a choice of different tips to add. It was partly the way he presented it, partly that the ice cream had not been very good, and finally that I was already in a bad mood, so I said, “No tip.” The waiter was outraged. He announced loudly, "No tip!" There were few remaining customers. No one even looked up. I doubt that they cared.
Things were a bit brighter as I left. The rain had stopped.
I had just eaten my dessert. Now I wanted supper. I saw someone eating a sandwich. I went into a little snack bar. There were several men crowded under a plastic cover outside and the few seats were full. I tried to read the menu on the back wall and figure out where I was supposed to order, but no one seemed to want to give me room. I left.
Then I found my place. The sign said Bosna. I had read about this Salzburg street food.
“Two long, thin pork bratwursts in an elongated bun of white bread, slightly toasted, served half wrapped in white paper, with final finishing touches including parsley, onions and a secret blend of spices.”
The man told me it would be good. It was great. I was happy again.
I walked for another hour, including through the grounds and into Mirabel Palace. A Mozart concert was soon to start. I had attended a Vivaldi concert in Venice. It would be cool to match that with a Mozart concert in Salzburg. I went upstairs to enquire. There were no tickets for the next two nights.
I passed the Mozart Residence. I would return here in the morning. The sculpture is the Caldera.
I walked up to the former Capuchin Monastery of Solothurn, which was founded in 1588. I got my view of Salzburg from there.
I walked back along the river.
I was soon back at my hotel where I did my final laundry of my trip, washing only a few things so that I had enough to get home. My Bosna was not quite enough for supper, so I ate one of my granola bars for a snack.
I had really enjoyed my evening walk but was still a bit annoyed about my Salzburg Card and wondered if it would work the next day. I sent off a complaint to the card site.
This featured blog entry was written by Bob Brink from the blog Searching for Magical Moments.
Read comments or Subscribe
