We actually woke up in Linz, the third largest city in Austria, but soon after, we grabbed a bus bound for the fourth largest city, Salzburg. The ride took about two hours, but our guide, Suzanne, kept us very entertained with stories of Salzburg's past. Salzburg, literally "salt borough", was one of the first cultivators of salt. At that time, salt was very precious, so many Romans were paid with salt, which is where the word "salary" comes from. Salzburg is also the origin of the expression, "you are the salt of the earth," and, "you are not worth your salt." Basically, until 1756, everything revolved around salt. Then a little violinist changed Salzburg forever...but, we'll get to that later.
After a bathroom break at the most picturesque rest stop I've ever seen, we were only minutes from Salzburg. Suzanne pointed out a certain abbey, which brings me to the next order of business, the Sound of Music. As you're probably aware, this movie was filmed in Salzburg. The abbey she pointed out was the church where Maria and von Trappy tied the knot. Suzanne also mentioned that no one in Austria even watches that movie, but people everywhere else love it.
Keeping with the same theme, our first stop in Salzburg was Mirabell Gardens (see the wiki link above). It didn't ring a bell to me, and I'm guessing you're having the same reaction. Just think of Julie Andrews and Company wearing those awful drapes and singing in solfege while dancing around a garden. Ding ding ding...Mirabell Gardens. I believe, but am not positive, that the von Trapp household was actually filmed inside the Mirabell Garden palace.
Next, we made our way across Salzach River to the old town and onto Getreidegasse, a famous street dating back to Medieval times. Early citizens were illiterate, so shop signs were used not to say the nature of the shop, but to show it. Getreidegasse has continued with this theme, and even the McDonald's sign makes you feel like you should arrive in horse and carriage. The McDonald's is an exception, however, and most of the shops are local, or high end; not to mention the numerous cafes and gelato parlors.
The best part of Getreidegasse, however, is the infamous birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. I mentioned how important salt was for Salzburg, but if the city capitalizes on anything, it is Mozart. Everywhere you look there are Mozart chocolates (which are pretty tasty, I must say), Mozart umbrellas, Mozart pretzels, Mozart t-shirts, etc., etc. Almost as bad as Durnstein with the apricots (see "There Are No Kangaroos in Austria"). Anyway, 253 years after Mozart's birth, he's still more alive than ever in Salzburg. During our free time, Papa and I took a tour of the birthplace, which was pretty cool. I'll spare you the nerdy details, but will mention that they had on display one of Mozart's violins, a harpsichord, and a clavichord. Pretty cool. Of course, I couldn't leave without dishing out a few Euros in the gift shop.
Beyond the Getreidegasse, we found plenty of old palaces, castles, and churches. One church, the Salzburg Cathedral has a pretty interesting history. Much of it was bombed during WWII, and Mozart was baptized here, as well as the poet who wrote "Silent Night, Holy Night." The annual Salzburg Festival begins at the end of July, so we saw all the preparations in action. Temporary stages and pieces of art littered the streets that lead us to St. Peter's cemetery, the small cemetery dating back to 600 A.D. Mozart's sister is buried here, as well as some other important people.
On the other side of St. Peter's, we found the University Square, which was full of fruit stands, pretzel stands, cafes, and the like. Our tour ended here, and we found a nice place for lunch, Cafe Mozart (I told you he was everywhere). After lunch, we continued to roam through the busy streets, sometimes window shopping, sometimes actual shopping. After a stop at Mozart's house, it was time to meet Suzanne again and head back to the bus.
Now that I can upload pictures, here are some from Friday.
Mozart's violin:
Pretzels, to say the least:
Market:
A pretty cool band with the beginnings of the Salzburg Festival in the background:
Mozart's birthplace:
Shop signs on Getreidegasse:
The Old Town from across the Salzach:
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