| Set in Austria, the Sound of Music is an epic film | | | | the lake. As we closed in on the far shore, a small |
| spurring dreams of a heavenly land in every child | | | | town began to take shape. Swiss chalets, swans, |
| that sees the movie. In truth, they should have | | | | cobble stone streets, outdoor cafes andno cars. |
| filmed the movie in Halstatt, Austria. | | | | None. |
| Halstatt | | | | Halstatt turned out to run about a mile along the |
| I had been in Salzburg for four days and was | | | | shore of the lake. It was like something out of |
| growing restless. The city was an eyeful with | | | | heaven. It is amazing how quiet things are when |
| beautiful garden areas, architecture and plenty of | | | | there are no cars, mopeds, trucks and other |
| sites to see. At the end of the day though, it was | | | | vehicles. Frankly, it was surreal. |
| still a city. And an expensive city at that! | | | | I rented a room in a chalet directly on the shore |
| Flipping through my guidebook, a local I had made | | | | of the lake. My window looked out over the lake. |
| friends with suggested I take a day trip to the | | | | As the evening wound down, it was hard to |
| little town of Halstatt. As I looked under H in the | | | | imagine a more peaceful place in the world. The |
| index, he told me I wouldnt find it in the book and | | | | morning was more amazing. |
| I should just trust him. Off to the train station we | | | | Halstatt is located at a very high point in the Alps, |
| went. | | | | which had a surprising effect. Lying in bed, I |
| Sitting on the train, I soon met a fellow traveler | | | | stared out my window into what looked like a |
| heading to Halstatt. We chatted as the train | | | | television set gone bad. It was totally grey. |
| puttered up into some of the most impressive | | | | Walking to the window, I was stunned to realize |
| mountains Id ever seen. Soon we were running | | | | we were so high the clouds had settled roughly |
| between the face of a mountain and a deep blue | | | | 20 feet above the lake. Words fail me, but it was |
| lake. The train stopped and he indicated this was | | | | one of the most incredible things Ive ever seen. |
| our stop. There was a small shack, but no other | | | | There was total silence, a slowly swirling cloud |
| buildings much less a small town. I began to | | | | cover being reflected by the lake and swans |
| suspect my buddy in Salzburg had pulled on over | | | | floating around. Truly a site to behold. |
| on me. | | | | Halstatt is a difficult one-day excursion from |
| Out of nowhere, a small ferry pulled up to our | | | | Salzburg? The difficulty lies in leaving. I stayed for |
| shack. On we hopped and off we went across | | | | a week! |