Singing in Salzburg (Day 2)

A view from the bridge on our walk.

June 29: Our day started with a traditional Austrian meal in the hotel breakfast room.

Immediately following breakfast, Cindy and I packed all our dirty laundry into one suitcase and set out for what was apparently the only laundromat in all of Salzburg. It wasn't very close, so we had a good walk along the river, into the newer part of the city. On our way, we came upon this bicyclist looking cool:

Radfahrer / Lotte Ranft, 1992

We didn't stop to pass the time of day, as we had an important mission: clean clothes! With that noble goal in mind, we kept walking, and finally arrived at the cleanest laundromat either of us had ever seen.

And how easy it was to use! We found a machine that washed and dried in one grand cycle. Paid our money, which included the correct amount of laundry soap, and started it up.

Once the wash had begun, we went off in search of a toilet. A couple of blocks beyond the laundry, we found a fabulous bakery that had the requisite tea and coffee--and toilet, and so we settled in for a long rest and some good people watching.

When we returned to the laundromat (isn't this exciting??), the magic machine was almost done. Unfortunately, it didn't fold our clothes, so after spending some time on that task, we headed back to the hotel. The return walk seemed longer, simply because the temperature had risen considerably by then. But we enjoyed the opportunity to sightsee along the Salzach. We had plenty of time before the afternoon rehearsal, and we found some interesting artwork on the way, along with another Stolpersteine.

Statue of St. John of Nepomuk--a Bohemian martyr caught between two warring religions who was thrown into the River Vltava from the Charles Bridge in what is now Prague. He is the patron against calumnies; seems he's someone who should be invoked in our country at this time. He also protects from floods and drowning (I guess that somehow by dint of having not survived his own drowning he's qualified to protect others from the same fate?). At any rate, having his likeness next to the river must seem like a good idea.

Perhaps he's a good protector for this family of ducks:

Back at the hotel, I wheedled an iron out of the manager so that I could prepare our freshly laundered clothes for...repacking...

Outside our window Linzer Gasse had become a hotbed of activity, with a lot of beer and other supplies being unloaded from trucks. Apparently there was going to be a big weekend festival on the street. (Oh goody...)

Then we were off to lunch and our first rehearsal at the Kollegienkirche.

This is the only glimpse we got of Edie that day, as she was quite busy prepping and working with the organizers of the tour that was built around this choral festival.

The end of rehearsal meant a break to go back to our room, get some dinner, and then head to the Dom for our evening rehearsal. So we finally got into the Dom and were able to see the organ that Mozart played--very exciting.

This is what 196 singers look like gathered together for a concert; closest in this picture are the sopranos. The altos are wa-a-ay over on the other side, under the organ that Mozart so often played.

Cindy returned to the hotel early, so once rehearsal was over I walked back across the bridge alone. It was a beautiful evening, and I was tempted to join the early evening revelers outside of the hotel. But I figured I probably needed rest more than a beer, so off to bed I went.

We discovered that night that having windows open to the street below could be problematic, much as we loved the fresh air. After the late-night partyers went home, there were a few hours of quiet, but at some ungodly hour in the early morning the godly bells of St. Sebastian's, right across the street from us, began ringing. And they showed no inclination to stop. Then the delivery trucks arrived. Morning had arrived, and it was clear we must get up.

And that day will be the next chapter. I promise it will be more interesting than the day we've just finished. 😘😇