Tuesday, June 28, 2011

"The Hills are Alive With the Sound of Music" (P*S*C* #38)

Once in Vermont, Penny suggested we make a trip to Stowe to check out the Von Trapp Family Lodge and Resort. I jumped at the chance! (If you know our family, you know that we have been known to break into songs from the musical Sound of Music at oddly random times, like on the dock of our cabin at sunset or on a couch on Thanksgiving night.) Recently, there have been on-site tours offered to talk about the family Von Trapp. Our guide told us the differences between the movie and real life. We were promised, at the end of the tour, to meet an actual family member. See the lodge building in the background? It is actually a rebuilt lodge as a fire consumed the original lodge.
As a tour group, we went into this area marked Private. Inside were the graves of Maria and the Baron, as well as several of their children. The couple had three more children together after the original seven. Most are now deceased.
This is the view one can see from the Lodge. It truly does remind you of their beloved homeland Austria.
All around the Lodge are pictures of the Von Trapps. I especially enjoyed this one that was used to promote their singing tours once they had left their country and starting singing tours in ours.
Closing the tour, we were given the opportunity to meet Sam Von Trapp - the grandson of Maria and the Baron and the son of Johannes. Maria was pregnant with Johannes, her final child, as she came to America. Sam is energetic, engaging, personable and now taking over the reins as
the Resort is expanding. He certainly charmed me!
Seriously, if you ever get to this area and are a fan of the singing Von Trapps, you must go to this beautiful place....your heart will be blessed, and you'll sing once more!

2 comments:

Libertyville History Blogger said...

Oftentimes, the younger generation feels the need to break away from family traditions, I'm so glad to know that Sam is holding the reins and keeping the music alive!

Shannon Henry said...

I just stumbled upon this while clicking the "next blog" link on the blogger tab above my own blog. How interesting! I didn't even realize The Sound of Music was based on a true story.