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verona – Basilica di San Zeno Maggiore

just go visit this place. It’s so beautiful and has such an amazing history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_San_Zeno,_Verona

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_San_Zeno,_Verona

The original bronze doors
St Zeno is here.

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Salzburg – walking around

it’s all about salt.

The walkway to the castle
Inside the castle
The model of the city
This is how I would have dressed at that time long ago
He was so surprised to become a night
The shows the different bishops (initially) and later emperors and kings. Remember from your history that a bishop was very much a political appointment.
Next to the castle and built right into the side of the hill
This is an old mill and the wheel is still working
This is a really big game
I went to talk to one of the horses and meet one of the apprentice trainers/keepers
Did you know that Mozart was a chocolatier? Some tourist shops would have you believe that
I was surprised to find Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart
This interesting restaurant had a waiter that spoke no English,. No menu and somehow was unable to serve the beer they were advertising
I would never have guessed
I did not know that this was the home of the von Trapp family of the open “sound of music” fame
An amateur orchestra giving us a very relaxed atmosphere at the botanical garden
Somebody obviously has an opinion
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verona – around town

if you have ever heard of Shakespeare and his play called “Romeo and Juliet” then you have heard of the city of Verona in northern Italy not far from Venezia.

This is supposedly the home and the balcony of Juliet. I say “supposedly” because this house is not where she lived. At least this house, if you believe she ever existed, was not owned by the family at the time. And it is questionable the Shakespeare ever saw this house . I have been told by Verona residence, good friends of mine, that the house owned by the family was actually downtown and is now a shop.
You’re supposed to touch the boob. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s an Italian thing.
This is just a neighborhood bar and coffee shop where some Verona friends and a friend from Lake Garda gathered for a spritz and a glass of wine.
https://www.visitverona.it/en/poi/statue-of-camillo-benso-count-of-cavour

MUSEO CIVICO DI STORIA NATURALE below

It look of waking up early in the morning
This is a huge mosquito

MUSEO DI CASTELVECCHIO below

This is the tower which you can climb for the view
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Salzburg Austria – the city of salt

now from the title you know how the name of the city came about. You can visit these ancient salt mines the Celtic people used to grow their influence throughout this part of Europe before the Romans ever thought about kids being raised by wolves (Roman history). At the time, salt was more valuable than gold since it was the main preservative for food. This is one way these Celtic people expanded their influence throughout this part of the world.

We had to get our proper gear on before we could go down in the mine
We sat on a large wood piling which speeds down inside the mine
Our guide gave very good presentations along the way
Even though we were not going much downhill we were entering the mountain from the side so we wound up in a deep area
This was mostly for fun. We sat in groups of two and we speed down to the bottom on a small wooden piling. It’s great fun. The kids loved it, adults also.
He gives us an explanation how to ride down into the deep area
This is used to dig holes so water could be pumped in and then drained out after it had absorbed the salt. The salt is then extracted from the water..
Images of the past. These minds have been used for thousands of years.
Underground we are passing into Bavaria and then back again into Austria.
Rails were also used in ancient times to bring the salt out of the mine as well as the rubble from digging
The simulates what they found in the mind, the remains of people who died down here more than 1500 years ago
These rocks are filled with salt
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Salzburg – the sound of music

before arriving in Salzburg there were a number of things I didn’t know about the city. This is where the von trapp family lived and were some of the movie for the musical “the sound of music “was made. The story played out here and we were lucky the famous UNESCO recognized marionette Playhouse in the third generation was giving a performance, “the sound of music”. Being one of my favorite musicals I had to go.

Here are some photos of the inside of the marionette theater which is 111 years old
Some Indonesian representations
Old billboards of their performances
At the end of the performance the puppeteers take a Bow. They received quite a few ovations. It was such a wonderful experience if you enjoyed the musical. The singers were relief fantastic.
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verona – a gentleman visits

Verona is very crowded with tourist but there are also some uncrowded places you can go which I was fortunate enough to enjoy with my friends from Verona and Guarda.

The arena is used often for opera and other events. It’s one of the older buildings in the city, more than 1500 years old.
At 6:30 in the morning when we arrived
We did not go up to the tower when the bells were ringing. It’s such a beautiful view from up here
I didn’t check this history out but it looks like a place where some bad people were hanging around
This is one of the palaces which is now a very interesting museum
Just imagine the people who painted the ceilings, lying on their back and getting perspective
I took this photo because this supposed kid looks like he’s 40 years old
It’s important to know the history of this guy. He not only influenced the Christian concepts of suffering, redemption and hell but he also standardized the Italian language.
This is Dante in Stone
From google map description: “The Arche Scaligere, located in Verona, are a monumental funerary complex in Gothic style of the Scaliger family intended to contain the arches (tombs) of the most illustrious representatives of the family.
The tombs are enclosed by a wrought iron enclosure in which the pattern of the staircase, a symbol of the house, is used, while the sarcophagi are located on the ground or on raised floors.
The arches are:
the ark of Cangrande I Della Scala
the ark of Mastin II
the sarcophagus of Albert I
the hanging ark of Giovanni della Scala
this is such a beautiful shop front for sausage, salami, olive oil and other necessities of Italian life.
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Landshut – a few notes

Landshut is a very interesting and beautiful place to visit. The old buildings, the rivers and all of the services that make it a very livable place as well. Here are just a few parting notes.

You can tell from this I like wheat beers in Germany. This is a very nice one
I found this brewery to be exceptional
On the way to the castle, going up the steps, you will pass Ristorante Rossini. It is exceptional food and the service is more than you could expect from any restaurant. Just look at the fresh basil picked from the garden. In addition they are growing basil on the table so you can pick it off and put it in your food. This pizza was very delicious and the Vegetarian ravioli with the beautiful cream sauce, almost like a four cheese, was very rich but not overly.
Even here you see hang gliding
The pizza at Pizzeria Pomodoro & Mozzarella is also exceptional. We ate here three times it was so good.
The neighboring town of Freising had some amazing history associated with one of the popes, the retired one, along with some important political stories for Bavaria.
There is constant improvement in the city. It’s such a nice place to walk around.
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verona – romeo and Juliet

so I think you understand the story of Romeo and Juliet. But now you are going to hear the rest of the story. This famous building, I have not conclusively determined, may or may not have been the building Shakespeare went to in describing his play. What I hear from local people is that Julia was a real person but lived in a different house in another part of town which is now a shop. But this is a nice tourist attraction where everyone is supposed to go to the bronze statue of Juliet and touch her boob. So you can go visit a house that Shakespeare may or may not have visited to try to experience a story that may or may not have happened. But the building ownership records are clear. Go to Verona and dig more for the rest of the story.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romeo_and_Juliet

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Pride Munich 2024

The Pride March was right in the center of Munich. It was interesting to see the first parade since the Phuket vegetarian festival when people stuck sharp things in their bodies (1995) and the first stage event since Tony Bennett in 2000. No, wait, Dinah Ross in 2017. There were tens of thousands of people and kilometers of people in the parade. It was quite a fun event.

Some famous german singer
Another famous german rapper
See the tin warrior?
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Euro 24 Soccer

in a few days the final game in this European soccer championship will be played and there will be a big party in the winners country. I visited when the games were in Munich. Here are some photos.

The scouts were all ready in their kilts and some and some were Pipers. They love German beer.
A sign in the subway station
The BMW museum is here at the Olympic Stadium area. Here is one of their iconic classics
The Scotts were everywhere and friendly with everybody
As you know BMW owns Rolls-Royce
You put some money in the machine and a robot makes your coffee for you and possibly serves you a snack
Beach volleyball along way from the beach
The Olympic swimming pool is now for Public use
The glockenspiel
Romanian fans were having a great time and singing their fan song
The Scot’s were competing with their songs and pipes. The Scots drew the biggest crowd
Hofbrau house was packed with more than 1000 customers
I didn’t know they had sales for police cars
It was nice to see a new lotus in the showroom. I remember the Elan from “the avengers”.