When we were first married, I imagined celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on a romantic vacation, if we were fortunate enough to be together on our special day. Although the Army obliged and allowed Andy the weekend off, it wasn’t quite as romantic as we pictured, with a little 19-month-old tagalong joining us on our trip to Salzburg 😉
The Makartsteg footbridge in downtown Salzburg is also known as the “Love Lock” bridge because thousands of lovers secure a lock (often inscribed with their names or initials) onto the bridge and (allegedly) toss the key into the river to symbolize their undying love. While I’d like to say that we participated in this romantic tradition, we did not. We never did find a lock! Instead, we used the bridge as a backdrop to take a few cutesy photos of just us. (Remember when I posted cutesy photos of us all the time when we were dating/engaged/newlyweds? Those were the days….)
We also used the love locks to teach our son different colors – he was enthralled with the locks, especially the “spinny” ones. If we were trying to get over the bridge quickly (such as the day I was running out for breakfast), I had to walk in the very middle or he’d lean out of his stroller and grab the locks.
I was excited to find a second “romantic” activity in Salzburg. The Liebesgrotte, or “Love Grotto,” is at the bottom of the funicular (cable car) that takes you up to Fortress Hohensalzburg. A sign at the Liebesgrotte claims that paying 1€ for a kiss in the grotto ensures everlasting love. It’s 110% a tourist trap designed to rip visitors off for the price of approximately $1.25 USD, but since we were there on our 5th wedding anniversary, we couldn’t take any chances 😉
I know they say Paris, France is the city of love, but Salzburg, Austria is the “city of love” to me. Maybe someday we’ll finally have a family member or close friend come visit us in Germany and volunteer to keep Drew overnight so that Andy and I can go on a much-needed couples trip? Maybe someday….
