Breakfast on our second day at the Mayringerlehen was served by the lederhosen-clad Johann (Saabine's husband) before we packed up our things and left Germany and the dairy farm animals behind and headed back into Austria.
We picked up one last German pastry (apple strudel) before we crossed the border and drove into Austria. It wasn't too far into the winding, switchbacks-a-plenty mountain drive that Jackson dozed off. His poor, little head bobbed from side to side in his car seat as we rounded each curve. It was hilarious to watch him sleep through it and I caught the tail end of it on video, just as the road was straightening out.He did eventually wake though and had plenty of thoughts to share with us from the comfort of his plush perch in the backseat...
Soon we arrived in Zell am See, Austria where we visited the beautiful lake-side Grand Hotel. Before lunch, we toured the beautiful gardens.
Once we were ready for lunch we found a table right on the waterfront.
While Dan ordered some sort of fancy venison dish for lunch, I was the one to opt for dessert this time around. My coffee and chocolate mouse with marinated berries was AMAZING!
Jackson enjoyed a sampling of both of our meals.
After lunch we walked through the busting pedestrian-only cobblestone streets of Zell am See and did another round of Jackson Dress-Up just for kicks. He thought we were ridiculous.
Back on the road, we headed South again and back into Italia, the land of endless pizza and pasta. The drive South was definitely a scenic one. The alps are pretty much just gorgeous no matter what country you're viewing them from and castles perched high above our heads on cliff edges are always fun to spot as you're zooming down the autostrada.We made it into Verona just as dinner time was approaching and it took us awhile to figure out where to park and which direction to walk but eventually we found what we were looking for off of Via Cappello, la Casa di Giulietta - the landmark home of Shakespeare's fictitious fair maiden Juliet.
You can imagine how bummed I was to find out once we arrived that the entrance to the courtyard where Juliet's balcony is located was closed even though it was supposed to be open for another half hour. (Thanks, Italy, for your whenever-we-feel-like -it hours of operation.)
Thankfully, we found a loophole in the system. There was an unobstructed view of the courtyard and balcony from the back door of the embroidery shop next door. In fact, it was ideal because there wasn't a single tourist in sight - this is a big deal considering I've been told this place is jam-packed with Shakespeare fans all day long.
We did our best to get a self-portrait picture of the two of us in front of the balcony.
The same embroidery shop we'd wandered into is home to the Club di Giulietta, or Juliet Club, which daily answers the letters written by heartbroken and head-over-heels romantics soliciting love life advice from Juliet as depicted in the movie Letters to Juliet. This too was closed ahead of schedule.
Aside from things closing early, Verona itself was a delight. We did a little meandering and were pretty impressed by the Roman Arena in the middle of town. There was an opera performance just beginning as we walked by which only enhanced the romantic aura of the dimly lit city.
Phew!...three countries in one day is exhausting!
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