Carol loves the musical, “The Sound of Music,” so much that we planned a European trip around it. We flew to Prague on the first lap of a wonderful trip. Prague is an extraordinarily beautiful city. We visited all the important historical sites and the Baptist International Seminary which has now moved to Amsterdam. The people of Prague were welcoming and happy to have visitors from the states. Unfortunately we left too much of this city unseen. We took the train to Vienna.
Our small hotel was a short block away from the Opera House. We were enchanted with all the sites. There is music everywhere. We visited the Webster University campus and received a royal welcome. I could live in Vienna. We took the train to Salzburg.
What a beautiful place. We wandered the streets. Got lost in a rainstorm and didn’t mind a bit. Everyone sang along with the music on the, “Sound of Music” bus tour. We got off at every stop. The scenery is spectacular. We went down in a salt mine. You should have seen us on the slide that took us to the bottom where we boarded a barge to cross the underground lake. We ate ice cream in Berchtesgaden. It was time for our train to Munich.
Munich, unlike Prague, was bombed during the Second World War. Everything has been rebuilt or restored. Never-the-less it is a beautiful place. Of course, we visited the soccer stadium. We ate in sidewalk cafes and took the tours. We flew back to Prague and home.
On a later trip in June of 2007, we visited the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont for a few days. Earlier we met a nurse in Middlebury who attended the real Maria von Trapp when she was hospitalized in Morristown. The lodge is beautiful. The views are spectacular and the flowers are glorious. We took a tour of the villas and dreamed of winning the lottery. We could not turn down another viewing of, “The Sound of Music,” showing in the basement.
I am telling you this story because Carol no longer remembers it. November 28 is National Day of Listening, a day set aside to tell and record family stories. Learn from our experience. And share your family stories. They are important.
