My Most Exciting Travel Moments of 2014

Making it to Ait Benhaddou. It was one of my dreams to travel to this citadel at the edges of the desert. It is featured in so many movies that when you arrive there it induces a feeling of déjà-vu, and still you can't believe that you're actually there, staring at this most exotic of the exotic places in North Africa. Our young guide with a blue turban, the alleys of this ghost town made of sand and straw, not to mention the incredible light will be impossible to forget and are one the highlights of my trip to Morocco. 
 

In front of Ait Benhaddou, in Morocco

 

Trying new food and finding out unexpected gems. As I'm sure it is for you, food is always a big part of my travel experience. This year I tried food in Morocco, Portugal, Germany, Austria, Spain and, of course, Italy. Between finding out about the vibrant Asian food scene in Munich and trying out knoedels, gulash and Bauerngroestl in Austria, the German-speaking countries I visited this year were a real surprise in terms of taste buds, and not at all boring, as some people will make you believe. 



Asian food in Munich, Germany

Ticking off Neuschwanstein Castle from my bucket list. As cliché as it may sound, I have a bucket list of fascinating and enchanted places that I really want to visit, and this fairy-tale castle was at the very top, together with Lake Bled, which I visited in 2013. The trip I took to some of the jewels of the Bavarian Alps - Neuschwanstein Castle, Linderhof and Oberamerggau - revealed to be jam-packed with magic. I loved learning about Ludwig and his crazy romantic ideas!

Checking out Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany

Seeing the Sahara desert. I also have a bucket list of landscapes that I want to see at least once in my life: an ocean, a desert, a rainforest, a volcano up close, a canyon, a mighty rainfall, a geyser, and so on (it might be a never-ending bucket list!). Riding a camel, sleeping in a tent in the desert, eating a meal prepared by Bedouins, climbing a dune: I had the opportunity to do all of these when I was in Morocco earlier this year.



On top of a dune in Erg Chebbi

 

Riding tram n.28 in Lisbon. What would Lisbon be without its yellow trams? My last day in Lisbon started with a ride on this old tram. I managed to find a seat next to the window - not an easy thing these days, since the tram is one of the main tourist attractions of the city - and watched Lisbon unfold in front of me, as the tram went up and down the famous hills of the city. 
 

Women enjoying Lisbon and tram n.28

 

Moving to Barcelona. When I decided to move to Barcelona almost on a whim last July, I  didn't know what to expect. Will I find a job? Will I like the city? Will I have the time to explore more of Catalonia and Spain? Yes, yes and yes. Barcelona is pretty exciting by itself, but since I arrived, I have been to Tarragona, Sitges, Montserrat, Zaragoza and Girona. My favourite place outside of Barcelona? Probably Montserrat, a breathtakingly beautiful mountain with a monastery tucked onto a rock - a place that should receive a lot more recognition from international tourism.



The mountains near Montserrat

What were your most exciting travel moments of 2014?

The beauty of Salzburg: between music and gardens

" You know what?" my Austrian friend Kat confessed, "Most Austrians don't know what The Sound of Music even is".

I was relieved to know this: that film is not nearly as famous in Italy as it is in English-speaking countries. As a matter of fact, I've watched it last year for  the first time, while I was staying at a friend's place in Paris. Salzburg - where the film is set - is also the birthplace of Mozart, and of Mozartkugel, a curious rounded chocolate whose name translates as "Mozart's Ball".

Postcard stand in Salzburg

 

I arrived in town in the middle of the morning, after a comfortable two-hour journey on the train from Innsbruck. Perhaps it wasn't a great idea to see Salzburg the day before Easter: it was really crowded, especially in the main shopping streets.

Don't worry, though, because I managed to enjoy the town anyway. I just loved the wrought-iron signs that indicate shops and restaurants. Before visiting this part of Austria, I thought that they were only used for traditional pubs and restaurants, but I saw that - especially in Salzburg - they use them for international brands too! 

Shop signs in Salzburg 

During my first stroll in Salsburg, I passed in front of Mozart's birthplace, a yellow house situated in the busiest of the streets. After seeing that the entrance fee for this house-museum is 10€ I decided to skip it. Usually I don't mind paying to see a castle or a museum, but birth houses are only worth it if you really are a fan of the person who lived there, so that you can be excited about the desk where he used to write or the bed where he used to sleep.



Mozart's birth house, now a museum

Salzburg really acquires in beauty when you see it from the other side of the river, or from atop the Hohensalzburg, the fortress that overlooks the city. This is because the blue domes and roofs of baroque churches and buildings dominate the landscape.

Roofs and clock towers in Salzburg

The thing I loved the most about visiting Hohensalzburg is the view. Not that the fortress isn't interesting in itself. You access it through a cable car, and then you have several areas to explore, like the viewing terraces or the torture chamber. The price is not exactly budget-friendly, at €11,30, but you can avoid a few euros if you don't take the funicular and walk to the fortress.

View of the city from the Hohensalzburg

Don't leave the town without paying a visit to the Mirabell Gardens: they are free to visit, beautifully tended, and relaxing, not to mention colourful. I loved exploring these gardens!They were first built in the 17th century for the mistress of a bishop, and then used by royalty. If you are wondering where the DO-RE-MI steps are, they are right here.
 

Mirabell Gardens

A statue at the Mirabell Gardens

Salzburg is small enough for tourists to walk everywhere. It's really tourist-friendly, with museums if you feel inclined to a bit of culture, cute corners, and nice restaurants to try.



Horse and carriage in Salzburg

As a bonus, there were beautiful Easter decorations for sale in the open markets around town. I would say that Salzburg is the kind of town that is definitely worth a detour, but I'm glad I only spent a day here, as there are only a certain number of blue domes that you can take at one time. Oh, and don't forget to check Knoedlerei for lunch!



Have you been to Salzburg? What did you enjoy the most?

This is just how cute Innsbruck is

Before learning that I would be attending a 5-day conference in Innsbruck, I only knew this city was in western Austria, and not many kilometres far from the border with Italy, and in particular with a German-speaking region called South Tyrol. I had no idea of what the city looked liked, though.

Well, it is this cute.

This is how cute Innsbruck is

My culinary discoveries in Germany and Austria

1) Knödels

 

One of the most memorable meals I had during my short trip to Germany and Austria was at Knödlerei in Salzburg. This place was a suggestion of my friend Kat, an Austrian friend who was so kind to drive all the way from Vienna to meet me for lunch and have a stroll around Salzburg afterwards. Knödlerei is a lovely and informal place next to the university building, and offers many kinds of dumplings, from the traditional ones to some creative varieties, with wasabi or salmon. I had tried the signature dish of this part of Europe before, and was disappointed. After trying Knödlerei, however, I understood that, when made by expert hands, knödels can  be very very tasty. I chose a selection of different traditional knödels, served with onion sauce and sauerkraut, and tackled my sightseeing in Salzburg with a full belly. Guten appetit!



Yummy knoedels dish at Knoedlerei, courtesy of knoedlerei.at 

My next trip: Austria & Southern Bavaria

In April I will be attending a conference in Innsbruck, Austria. I thought that it would be nice to have a look around the area, before and/or after the 5-day conference. I've already been to both Austria and Germany, but there are many places I haven't visited in both countries, including this Alpine town famous for its ski facilities. 

Innsbruck

The Austrians in Venice

So, I'm going to Austria next month. By the way, did you know that Venice was occupied by Austria in the 19th century? But what did the Austrians do in Venice? I guess that they didn't just sit and stare at the beauty of the town.

In 1797 Venice was invaded by Napoleon, after more than 1000 years of independence. Napoleon gave it away in the peace treaty with Austria. The Austrians were never really accepted in Venice and in 1848 the city organized a rebellion against the Habsburg Austrian empire that resulted in the formation of the republic of San Marco, which lasted a year. Venice and its territories remained Austrian until 1866, when the former independent Republic was annexed to the newly unified Italian kingdom.

• The spritz.

The origins of spritz are unknown, as it is the case with many of Venetian dishes, included tiramisu, but it is believed that the Austrian soldiers stationed in Venice created this drink, by watering down Venetian wines with sparkling water because they found them too strong. Later, other "corrections" were added, and nowadays spritz is mostly made with either aperol, select, or bitter, all aperitif drinks. There are endless variations to the spritz, also changing from city to city. The spritz is now popular all over northern Italy, and it's spreading to other parts of the country, as well as to other cities. I've seen it in London, for example!

Holding a spritz

• I Nizioleti

"Nizioleti" are the beautiful squared frescoes that indicate the names of calli, bridges and campi in Venice. Sometimes they have funny names, like Ponte delle Tette ("bridge of the boobs"), or Sotoporgego del Casin dei Nobili ("close of the noblemen's casino"). The former indicates an area that was supposedly inhabited by prostitutes, who showed their "merchandise" from the windows. The latter also reveals the libertine past of the city, as it recalls a casino frequented only by noblemen. The nizioleti were adopted during the Austrian domination. Before that, only the number on a street door could indicate that you were at the right address, and people knew the name of the streets by heart. As a matter of fact, in Venice houses are numbered within districts, not streets, so that your address could be simply San Marco 3567. Even today, when you give a Venetian address, you give the name of one of the six sestieri, the neighbourhoods, and the door number, but never the name of the street. 

Me pointing at a 'nizioleto' displaying the name of the town where I come from, Treviso



• The railway bridge.

The Austrian emperor, Ferdinand I, decided he wanted a railway connection from Milan to Venice, the two biggest cities of the Lombardo-Veneto. In 1842 the first part was inaugurated: it was the third railway ever constructed in Italy. At the beginning the railway connection arrived until Mestre,  in the mainland, and from there people had to take a boat to reach Venice. In 1846 the railway bridge that connects Venice to the mainland was inaugurated. You still cross that railway bridge if you arrive to Venice by train or by car. It is very scenic because you can see all the lagoon in its beauty.





What you can expect to see from Ponte della Libertà (photo by Marco Trevisan)