Salzberg

I went for Mozart.  This viola player was dying to see the hometown of one of the world's  greatest musicians.   I timed my visit for the end of the Salzburg festival,  when there would be music throughout the city.  It was all about the music.

But once there,  I found so much more.   No,  not 'The Sound of Music' though that was fun.  I found medieval castles and mountains.  I found pastries and art.  I found church bells and sunsets and a wonderful 48 hours. 

I bought the Salzburg pass, which included entry into many sights and transportation on the city buses. It was a great investment.  I got €112 worth of entrance fees plus transit out of a €36 pass.  Plus,  I went to more because it was free, things I probably wouldn't have paid for individually. 

I started with the Rick Steves's walking tour,  which led through the platz and churches that make up the old city.  I followed the streets past the restaurant where Charlemagne ate and the theater where the von Trapp family performed.  I ended up on the old shopping street with fancy hanging pictoral signs for each business.  Mozart's birthplace was on that street. It was amazing to see his childhood violin. 

After the tour and a pretzel for lunch,  I rode the funicular up to the castle.  It was a phenomenal site up on the hill,  imposing and grand.   From the ramparts were endless views of the valley.  You could see the rain coming in from the distance.   I took the audio guide,  not realizing it included a climb to the top of the tower! It was a pleasant if exhausting surprise.  The views were even better and you could see why this castle was never conquered.  I got some great diagram pictures of castle construction from the museum.  I also saw some medieval weapons and torture instruments. 

After the mountain I dodged some rain storms  and took shelter in the cathedral excavations, where you could see ruins of old Roman tile floors and earlier structures. The guy who checked me in left me alone there,  which was pretty creepy....

  I took in a harpsichord concert at the New Residence. Harpsichord sounds a lot like midi NES video game music.   I then went through the DomQuarter museum,  which had great views of the cathedral and some pretty Baroque art. Dinner,  of course, was weiner schnitzel, and it was amazing. 

Day two started at the colorful Mirabell Gardens, full of fountains and flowers.  Next was the Mozart Residence, with a great audio tour featuring lots of music and a chance to see several more of his instruments.   I really enjoyed this one.   Then,  because I had the pass, I took the elevator to the modern art museum for the view from their terrace. I didn't go in, having had enough of modern art for a while,  but I enjoyed the view! 

I wandered though the Salzburg Museum in late morning,  loving the interactive musical instrument exhibit. They had headphones and touch screen videos of people playing the instruments on display.  I spent most of my time there,  but they also had a traveling exhibit of drawings from the Louvre, so I got to enjoy some Michelangelo and Raphael. 

Noon brought an organ concert at the main cathedral,  a chance to hear some old and new pieces in the church where Mozart once played.  It was fantastic, just what I wanted from Salzburg.

After another pretzel based lunch,  I headed out of town to the Hellbrunn Palace and gardens.   I ended up on a tour group with a camp group who loved getting wet from the fountains! They were very cute but loud and the guide didn't give nearly as much info in English as she did in German.  So much for bilingual tour.  It was pretty warm and though the Gardens were pretty there wasn't much to do. Rather than take the bus back to town,  I decided on an adventure. I rode the bus in the other direction to the Untersbergbahn, a cable car to the top of a mountain.   It was breathtaking, and a little nerve-racking, heading up to the top. It was even more alarming walking up to the summit from the station (no guard rail!) but the views were great.  I definitely hadn't expected to be on top of a mountain that day,  but that's the joy of the pass, you get to do unexpected things.  

One last adventure came in the evening, with a lovely sunset cruise along the Salzac river.  It was the perfect end to two wonderful days. 

I wish I'd had one more day to go to Hallstaff but overall Salzberg was just about perfect.