Day 12 Linz and Salzburg

Cold and clear day.  I think we made it into plus territory today - it was forecast to reach 1!!  It was nice out but quite cold in the shade.

We had an early start today, catching the bus to Salzburg at 8.30.  It was about a 2 hour drive.  There was fresh snow everywhere and it was like driving through every snowy Christmas post card you've ever seen with lovely little villages, and forests and open fields.  We did a walking tour that lasted just over an hour around the old town.  We visited the 15th century cathedral and also the graveyard they used as the model for the Sound of Music.  We then had a couple of hours on our own and we caught the fenicular railway to the castle overlooking the old town.  There were fabulous views of snow covered landscapes in all directions, and also of the town itself. We had some nice warming soup for lunch and browsed the Christmas Markets and also the main shopping area in the old town before heading back to the bus and driving back to Linz.

We drove through the old town of Linz on the way back to the boat.  Then crew were waiting with hot chocolate and a warm towel as we came on board, and that was very welcome.  We were about 2 minutes walk from the Christmas markets so we rugged up again and headed out to inspect them.  They were very crowded with lots of locals at all the food stalls and it was a bit hard to get around.

One more day to go and we got all sorts of instructions tonight about when we have to be out of our rooms, etc etc, so the end is nigh.