Austria, an Untethered Turning Point

As my fingertips dart around the keyboard this morning all five senses come to full salivating alert in anticipation of reliving the exquisite taste, beauty and serenity of one of the world’s most grand and breathtaking countries - Austria.  A masterpiece for both its sweeping panoramic natural beauty and its seismic cultural, intellectual and artistic contribution, Austria exudes a brand of taste piqued by opulence, introspection and creative genius. 

Austria is a country that can boast about Mozart, Freud, and Klimt on one hand but is haunted on the other by the darkest of shadows, Adolph Hitler and World War II.  It is impossible to visit parts of Europe and not feel the suffering that was seared into the fabric of these communities by one of history’s most contemptible figures. But then again, it is impossible to visit any part of this world and disregard the impact man’s greed, lust for power, and pettiness has had on a country’s economy and its humanity.  And yet here even amidst circumstances so dire, travel can have a transformative impact.  Travel affords the curious, open mind an opportunity to give precious testimony across borders, generations and societal differences.  By actively partaking in the culture that inspired the change and progress needed to move beyond conditions of oppression and despair, today’s travelers can cultivate critical and continued momentum and hope.  

When I think back to my time in Vienna, I remember booking something very out of the ordinary for me.  I took in a performance of Mozart’s Requiem by Orchestra 1756 who play on period piece instruments from the alter of the historic St. Charles Church.  I can’t help but wonder now if that was at travel’s beckoning, a beckon I’ve since come to appreciate for leading me to places of expansive and transformative taste, creativity and mindfulness.  I’d like to think I answered travel’s call that evening to bear witness through the sound of music to Austria’s lasting and powerful perseverance and grace.

It's actually been an astounding seven years since I was in Austria almost to the day, and yet I still remember so many moments, so vividly.  There were long, sundrenched strolls through vast, pristine squares – the most memorable of which were the lively Mozartplatz, Kapitelplatz, and the Residenzplatz. There were inspired moments of reflection from peaceful respites like the gardens of St. Peter’s Monastery and the Nonnberg Abbey.  And despite the throngs of tourists taking selfies like wannabe Von Trapp children in the Mirabell Palace Gardens, it was an irresistibly beautiful place to take in the fresh summer air.  But perhaps, most memorable of all was the storybook charm and damn near perfect picturesque poise of Salzburg’s Old Town.  Pedestrian cobblestone streets like the Getreidegasse and Linzergasse were meticulously decorated with ornamental wrought iron signs that hung above every last upscale boutique, artisan craft shop and restaurant. Courtyard markets like Mayer Delikatesse stood up rows of stalls overflowing with fruits and vegetables, sausages and cheese, baguettes and pretzels many of which were perfect accompaniments for a train ride to Vienna.

 It was hard not to be struck by the size and scale of the Vienna’s monumental, historic buildings, squares and parks.  Like a lot of cities rich in culture and long in history, Vienna feels regal and refined with surprise bursts of chic and tech inspired modernity.   There is a savviness that saddles up alongside its idealism, a rawness that complements its elegance, and a softness that counters the sometimes harsh and limiting hard lines of the past.  It makes perfect sense that a city as spirited as Vienna would inspire one tour de force after another from creative giants like Mozart, Brahms and Beethoven.

As I look back on how this impulsive, solo trip to Austria over a Fourth of July weekend changed me and my travel trajectory, I can’t help but see it as a massive momentum maker and untethered turning point.  With only a global pandemic to slow me down years later, Austria armed me with the permission and confidence to see the world on my terms, at my own pace, and my way.  I credit a friend with recommending I go, and I think somewhere between being so blown away with a place not even in the top ten of my bucket list and being so blissfully liberated by this newfound way to travel at my own whim, I unearthed a relentless sense of urgency to see more as often as I could – after all what was stopping me?!

I make every effort to cater to and indulge four key stakeholders when traveling – my mind, my body, my soul and my gut.   When I consistently travel with these tastemakers and takers in balance and check, my time away from home is truly more fulfilling, rewarding and worthwhile.  And even though I wouldn’t have been able to articulate it so surgically when I was in Austria many years ago, I was already operating instinctively from this fourfold point of view. 

Every untethered trip thereafter, I would continue to habitualize moving through the world with a supreme reverence for local food, drink and lifestyle.  I realized with every step I took I was actively shaping my own taste alongside each destination’s gastronomy, art and design and culture.  Taste would come to mean more to me too than just what was coming out of the kitchen. When I fervently brought all five senses to taste-led travel and experienced taste through all four tentacles – mind, body, soul and gut – self-discovery became not only a desirable outcome but an essential traveling intention.

Over the years as my own tastes and preferences have evolved my playbook has remained surprisingly consistent.  I start by finding the local sometimes buzzy culinary hot spots and hidden gems.  Then I layout an itinerary that promises to deliver a captivating mix of flavor that will deliver against my taste or better yet evolve it.  If that means Asian in Finland and French in Hong Kong well… then there I sit.  I always make a point to try at least one Steak Tartare as my obsession for the dish has only grown across the 50+ I’ve tried across 20+ countries around the world. In Austria, I would come to try it in a mini ice cream cone at Carpe Diem’s Finest Finger Foods (sadly out of business). 

 The second play in the book is to set myself up to sip something creatively endemic from a barstool or comfy sofa where mixologists take pride in wickedly clever concoctions.  And lastly, I never leave a local dessert untried. And dessert in Austria? Wow.  There was a Sasher Cake, Apfelstrudel (Apple Strudel), Mozartkuglen (traditional Austrian chocolate confection made of pistachio marzipan, nougat, and covered in dark chocolate) Sheep’s Milk Ice Cream and Salzburger Nockerl (light and airy baked soufflé).    For as much as I brag about how much I can eat, I joyfully met my match hunched over a Salzburger Nockerl at Blauegans restaurant. 

 As all five senses drift reluctantly away from so many Austrian tastes and treasures, there is one sound that echoes through me still.  I am taken back to the storybook streets of Old Town Salzburg.  I’ve just had a hearty breakfast at Café Tomaselli under a bright blue cloudless sky.  I am approaching the birthplace of Salzburg’s most famous citizen the Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, when I begin to hear the faint voices of a children’s choir singing Edelweiss coming more into focus with every step. I’m sure the choir sings out here every day in the summer, but on this day, I am here.  And today seven years later, as I let the memory playback, travel invites me once more to bear witness through the sound of music to Austria’s lasting and powerful perseverance and grace.

Edelweiss...
Edelweiss...
Every morning you greet me
Small and white, clean and bright
You look happy to meet me
Blossom of snow
May you bloom and grow
Bloom and grow forever...

Edelweiss...
Edelweiss...
Bless my homeland forever...
Small and white, clean and bright
You look happy to meet me
Blossom of snow
May you bloom and grow
Bloom and grow forever...

Edelweiss...
Edelweiss...
Bless my homeland forever...

Composed by Rodgers and Hammerstein for the 1959 musical Sound of Music