Sunday, May 3, 2026

On Sunday, May 3, 2026, we woke up in Vilshofen, Germany, and this was the morning we left the Avalon Passion. After a week of letting the ship carry us from city to city, it was time to go back to the less glamorous side of travel: bags, train tickets, connections, and figuring out what the schedule actually meant.

We had a hearty breakfast on board, then had our bags packed and ready to go by 7:30 a.m. so we could catch an 8:00 taxi to the train station. Normand had previously booked train tickets from Vilshofen to Salzburg, and on paper it looked manageable: about two hours by train to Munich, then another two hours to Salzburg.

Regional Trains and Missed Connections

What Normand had not quite realized was that these were regional trains. That meant they were not the fastest, not the most comfortable, and very enthusiastic about stopping. They stopped at many little stations along the way, which is charming if you are casually exploring Bavaria and less charming if you are hauling luggage and trying to make connections.

After arriving in Munich, we discovered an extra surprise: our second train did not leave from the same station. We had to take a subway four stops to Munich East Station. This detail had not been clearly listed on our documentation anywhere, which feels like the kind of thing transportation paperwork should maybe mention before a family with luggage arrives and starts looking around in confusion.

Our connection time was only about 20 minutes, so of course we did not make it. It took us at least 45 minutes to figure out where we needed to go, how to get there, and what we were doing. There are few things that make you feel more humble than standing in a major European train station with bags, children, a schedule, and the growing realization that your next train is leaving from somewhere else entirely.

Eventually, we made it to the correct station, and thankfully we were told our ticket was good on any train. So we boarded the next train toward Salzburg and tried to relax.

That lasted for about two-thirds of the ride.

Then an announcement came over the speakers in German. We did not understand it, but the tone suggested something had changed. Fortunately, Normand asked another passenger what was going on. The answer was not ideal: everyone had to get off the train because there had been an accident or medical emergency ahead, and the train could not continue.

So we all got off.

Then everyone started being directed toward shuttle buses. The buses took a long time to arrive, and it looked as though the rest of the journey would involve being moved in small groups to the next town, then possibly another train or another bus into Salzburg. It was one of those travel moments where the official plan dissolves, and everyone collectively enters a new activity called “follow the crowd and hope.”

Rescued by a Friend in Salzburg

But then came a blessing.

Normand’s friend in Salzburg, Daniel, who was picking us up, had been watching the train delay on his app. In fact, Daniel knew before we fully understood the announcement that the train would be rerouted and replaced by buses. He was about 40 minutes away and offered to come pick us up.

This was a beautiful moment. While everyone else was waiting for shuttle buses, we were rescued by a friend we had not seen in about 20 years.

Daniel picked us up and brought us to his place, where we enjoyed a leisurely afternoon and lunch with Daniel and Cheryl. After the stress of the morning, it felt wonderful to sit with old friends, eat, talk, and let the day settle. Travel is full of places, but sometimes the people are what make the place feel meaningful.

Later, Daniel and Cheryl took us to a viewpoint overlooking Salzburg. The city below was beautiful: church towers, domes, the Salzach River, the old town, and the fortress rising above it all. Salzburg has a unique kind of beauty. It feels musical even before anyone mentions Mozart or The Sound of Music. The city sits between hills and mountains, with pale stone buildings, elegant squares, and a skyline that feels both grand and intimate.

There was an elevator at the viewpoint because the upper area also houses a museum. Instead of taking the elevator down, though, we decided to walk down into Salzburg along trails that wound down the mountainside. The views along the way were gorgeous. Every turn seemed to offer another angle of the city, another church tower, another glimpse of the fortress, another reason to stop and take photos.

The Sound of Music Streets

Once down in the old town, we walked through many of the places connected to The Sound of Music. Salzburg is deeply tied to the film, and even if you are not singing out loud, the city has a way of making you feel like you might accidentally start.

We saw old churches, the catacombs, the big fountain connected to the opening scenes, and many other beautiful corners of the city. The old town felt alive with stone lanes, courtyards, church bells, tourists, locals, and the kind of history that seems to sit naturally in every wall.

We also found a little public water station where we could fill our bottles with fresh, cold water. Normand loves these old cities where springs and fountains still run with drinkable water. There is something wonderful about walking through a city that has been lived in for centuries and finding water flowing freely for anyone passing by.

We also saw two different horse washing stations, places used long ago to bathe and wash horses. They were built so horses could walk down into the water and come back out clean — basically an old-world car wash for horses. It is one of those historical details that makes daily life in the past suddenly easier to imagine. Not just kings, composers, bishops, and armies, but horses getting washed in town.

After wandering through Salzburg, we eventually took the elevator back up to the top of the mountain. It was a fitting end to a day that had started with regional trains, missed connections, a train disruption, and shuttle-bus confusion, but ended with old friends, mountain views, Sound of Music locations, fresh spring water, and Salzburg glowing below us.

It was not the smoothest travel day, but it became a beautiful one. Sometimes the plan falls apart just enough to let people step in and make the story better.