Monday, January 26, 2015

My Favorite Things

The Sound of Music was one of my favorite movies as a child. So it was a dream come true when my friend and I visited Salzburg in the spring of 2008 and toured the original film locations.


The lake where Fraulein Maria and the von Trapp children's rowboat capsized.


The romantic gazebo which made female viewers wish they were 16 going on 17 again...Now if a guy told me that I need someone older and wiser, telling me what to do, my response would be: "So long. Farewell. Auf Weidersehen. Good bye."



Maria and the Captain's wedding scene was filmed at St. Michael's Church in Mondsee, a picturesque lakeside town located 20 minutes away from Salzburg.


The beautiful Mirabell Gardens where Maria and the children frolicked and danced while learning the notes to sing. And yes, I had the "Do-Re-Mi" tune stuck in my head for days afterwards!


On our own time, my friend and I visited Nonnberg Abbey, where Maria resided as a young novice and puzzled the other nuns with her eccentric ways. The real-life Maria--who was the inspiration for The Sound of Music film--lived in Nonnberg Abbey and later married Baron von Trapp at the Abbey church.


As you all know, one of my favorite things is tea, a drink with jam and bread. Over the years, I have amassed quite a number of tea pretties that I enjoy for different reasons. To determine which ones I love the best, I asked myself: If I had to flee my homeland and can only bring a few of my precious teawares with me, what would I take? I shared my favorite teacup last week.


My favorite traditional teapot was a 35th birthday present from my parents. Royal Albert's Old Country Roses design is the blockbuster musicals of china patterns. I had been aspiring to acquire a Royal Albert teapot for years so I was thrilled (insert Liesl's ``Wheeeeeeeee!`` face) to finally own one of these beauties. The classic design of Old Country Roses makes it perfect for any occasion. I particularly cherish this teapot because it symbolizes the awesomeness of my parents who have guided me through so many good times and bad times.


My favorite modern teapot is the Le Creuset's "Soleil" (ray, a drop of golden sun!) teapot given to me a couple of Christmases ago by my brother. This stoneware teapot comes with a stainless steel infuser and is extremely durable (it survived an airplane flight in checked luggage). The cheery yellow colour uplifts any mood and every time I use this teapot, I think of my brother.


Edited to fix photos.


I am joining the following parties this week:

18 comments:

  1. I bet this was a marvelous trip! I'll be singing the rest of the day ... "tea with jam and bread" !!!!! Lovely teapots! I can see why they are your favorites. Happy Tea Day!

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a wonderful adventure you had to Austria, Margie! I'm so glad you shared your memories with us today. I received my OCR teapot as a birthday present from my family and it made the trip on my lap from one coast of Canada to the other. I cherish mine as well. And it was my father's favourite china pattern too so I really do love it for several reasons. The yellow teapot is wonderful too. I enjoyed all your little phrases from the song throughout your post but I will be surprised if I don't go to bed tonight with one of them going through my head. Thank you for joining me for my Tea Party today and have a wonderful week.

    Blessings,
    Sandi

    ReplyDelete
  3. How fun! I have loved my visits to Austria as well. Such stunning vistas and glamorous cities. Love your teapots.How can one not love Old Country Roses! Thanks so much for linking to Tuesday Cuppa Tea!
    Ru

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a wonderful trip to Austria, Margie! I would love to go and see all those sights. Both of your teapots are lovely and hold such special memories from loved ones.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love that movie! Austria would be beautiful. Great teapots!
    Sherry

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Margie,
    You know, I have never watched ALL of The Sound of Music, I know I really need to though. :) Old Country Roses is a favorite of mine, I have the tea cups and saucers in that pattern.
    Thanks so much for visiting my Winter Blues post.
    Have a great week,
    Gina

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a fabulous trip! What a wonderful brother to find you such a charming teapot. Definitely a ray of sunshine!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Nice trip to Austria. Royal albert OCR is my first teapot and I really love it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Margie! I'm visiting from Sandi's place and I agree--Old Country Roses is a perfect pot. I have a trio in that pattern, but not the pot yet. All your pictures of Sound of Music locations are great! I'm glad the properties are well kept. European countries really steward their historical buildings and landscapes more than I see happening in America. Love history and the story of place . . .
    Joy!
    Kathy

    ReplyDelete
  10. Beautiful tea pots! I love the Sound of Music too....Christine

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a wonderful visit. You are so lucky. I would have love to see those great places. It is one of my favorite pictures. Have a wonderful week. Blessings, Martha

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Margie! I had Do Re Mi going through my head most of your post. I really enjoyed how you mixed music lyrics in with the gorgeous pictures from your trip. Your teapots are both so pretty, esp. OCR of course! Family are the best for feeding pretty china addictions.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a cleverly written post, and so fun to read. Your trip must have been wonderful. The OCR teapot is such a gorgeous classic, and the yellow teapot must be an every day, cheerful favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  14. O.K. Now i'll have "do-re-mi" going thru my head all day. I thoroughly enjoyed this post and the way you wove the Von Trapp family throughout.

    What a good question to ask when de-cluttering or planning for a move ~ what would I take if I had to flee ?

    I like both of your teapots !

    ReplyDelete
  15. What a fun post! I love that film, too, and admire how you wove the tea theme into your trip and the songs.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Love the colour of the Le Creuset teapot - so unique and yet subtle.

    ReplyDelete
  17. It's great post! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  18. What fun ... I love Sound of Music and was in Salzburg where it was filmed with my girlfriend back in the late 1980's. We had so much fun.

    And Old Country Roses -- that's my mom's set and I just love it. We've poured many cups of tea for her pot. I love your Le Creuset's "Soleil" (ray, a drop of golden sun!) too!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to visit and leave a comment!