The Hills are Alive!

Saturday we went to Salzburg - home of The Sound of Music - with the students!

We visited the tunnel at Mirabell Gardens...you may remember it from this scene in the movie:

We spent the afternoon at Hohensalzburg Castle...which you may remember from this scene:

It was our first time going up to the castle and we loved it!  The views were absolutely amazing!

Construction of the castle began in 1077.  According to Rick Steves, it is the largest and best preserved Medieval Fortress in Europe. 

Our day trip to Salzburg ended with ice cream on the river!  

We've really got to teach Francis which end of the cone to start with ;)

Dirndls & Lederhosen

The first weekend with the students here was 'picture perfect'!  Here are a few of the pictures - featuring Ellie and her friends in their dirndls and Francis' debut in his lederhosen!

Today we joined the students for their excursion to the monastery in Melk (about an hour away)...

And then up the river to Durnstein. 

We are excited for this Fall Semester and all God has in store!

Exploring Gesäuse National Park

Yesterday we took a family trip to Gesäuse National Park!

The center of the Park is a little over an hour away, which is the perfect amount of time for Francis' morning nap. So after 8am Mass, we packed a picnic lunch and headed out. 

The Gesäuse is a rugged mountain landscape of limestone - very similar in appearance to Yosemite National Park in California. It's famous for its breathtaking beauty and remoteness. The Enns River has carved deeply into the mountains creating a steep valley. Brian and I hope to return sometime soon to go white-water rafting. 

On this trip we visited the Weidendom (Willow Dome) and then hiked the "Wild John" Discovery Trail with little activities along the way for the kids. 

We loved being down by the pristine water of Johnsbach stream, even though it was a little tricky making sure the kids didn't get swept up in the current!

We timed our departure perfectly so that both kids slept while Brian and I took in the beauty of the drive home!

Upon arriving home, we had the RAs over for dessert and now we are preparing for all of the other students to arrive at the end of the week!

Have a blessed Feast of the Assumption!

Day on the Danube

Two weeks after arriving back in Austria, we're readjusted to the time change and ready for a little travel.

We took a short trip to the beautiful Danube River about 45 minutes from Gaming.

We started in the town of Emmersdorf where we got on a boat.

We got off the boat in the town of Spitz - where we saw a castle!

We enjoyed lovely views of the Danube as we hiked up to the castle.

We made it to the very top of the tower!

Then back down we went to the train station.

We all loved the train ride back along the Danube - especially Francis :)

It's good to be back in Austria! :)