Mid-term breaks are a wonderful English school custom that are well appreciated by one and all. It means that we are never more than 6 weeks from a welcome break to enjoy places further afield. Our initial planning was to stay south and avoid the Northern winter, but once we arrived and found ways to keep warm, we rethought (rethinked / rethunk?), um ... reconsidered instead to embrace the winter, not fear it. 
So, Elise and I took our first cheap flight, courtesy of Ryanair, and visited Salzburg. Meanwhile, Anne attended a life-changing musical visit to Kecskemét, Hungary, the original home of Kodaly music education. Cameron joined us for his last few days before returning home today.
Salzburg is an amazing place, famous for many things - Mozart, Maria Von Trapp, mining salt and mighty Red Bull. And as the tourist T-shirt reads - There are no kangaroos in Austria.
This city has miraculously preserved its Baroque heritage, and is a fine place to visit. As Lonely Planet amusingly says about Salzburg - "If it ain't Barok, don't fix it." We visited the birthplace of my favourite composer and attended a glorious Mozart concert / dinner, comprising a quintet playing opera excerpts from Magic Flute and Figaro, and of course Eine Kleine Nachtmusik just had to get some airplay.
Tours of the Sound of Music scenes and the Hallein salt mine (the salt mineral Halite takes its name from this town) are worthwhile, and we also managed to squeeze in a sunny day's skiing in mountainous Flachau.
These Hills ARE alive with the Sounds of Mozart.
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