Salzburg

Friday, May 11, 2018

We awoke to fog on the mountains and there was a bit of a chill in the morning air as we headed for Salzburg.  In short order, the sky had cleared and our time in Salzburg was bright and lovely.

 

Salzburg is divided in two by the Salzach River, with the new town on the southern bank, the historic old center to the north, and towering above it all -- the fortress, Festung Hohensalzburg.  We spent the better part of the day walking around the old town, checking out its sights and attractions on various levels, from the river up to the fortress.  For part of our wandering, we followed the podcast of Rick Steves’ audio tour of a town walk; beyond that, we ambled on our own.  From Mozart Platz and beyond, throughout the old center, the presence of Salzburg’s favorite son lives on.  His likeness appears on chocolates, tote bags, tea towels and pretty much everything for sale in the city’s shops.  Of course, his music is on offer as well, with concerts, regular liturgical celebrations, and CDs all featuring his work. 

 

The old town was full of tourists, many in large groups, following their guides.  Despite the fact that the pavement of the Residenzplatz was being replaced and was an active construction site, we were able to pass through, stopping to photograph its monumental fountain and glockenspiel.  The neighboring Domplatz, dominated by the cathedral, is relatively bare; there is a Marian column in the center and the prince-archbishop’s residence on one side, but no commercial activity. 

 

Because Salzburg’s old town center is a really a lovely series of adjacent squares, moving from the quiet Domplatz to the Kapitalplatz next door was seamless.  An ongoing May festival of brass music is currently underway, and we were unable to resist the call of sausage, beer and music in the square – a pretty fine lunch, for locals and travelers alike.

 

The hike to the fortress was doable, but then again, there was the quick and effortless funicular ride to whisk us to the (almost) top of the battlements; you know we took the path (track) of least resistance! From on high, the city views were great, and they far outshone the fortress audioguide commentary we followed.

 

Back in the old town, we strolled through St. Peter’s Church cemetery (below “catacombs” dug into the rock face above) , which contains the remains of Mozart’s sister and (part of!) Haydn’s brother.  As in Hallstatt yesterday, we found the graves to be lovingly tended and meticulously maintained.  Today, we learned an interesting fact about such graves, that may explain their extreme tidiness.  In Austria, cemetery plots are not purchased, but subject to ten-year leases.  If the rent isn’t paid, the headstones are removed, so if you want to maintain your investment, you (or your heirs)  keep on planting and weeding!

 

We strolled through the busy market, with vendors offering sausage, Mozart chocolates, produce,  and more varieties of pretzels that we’d ever seen – or deemed wise -- apple strudel pretzels, pizza pretzels, Nutella pretzels, anyone??  We thought not, too!  From the market on Universitatsplatz, we used a passageway through a row of buildings and emerged on Getreidegasse, a busy pedestrian lane of narrow townhouses which was once the main street of the old city.  Mozart’s birthplace is on this street, as are outposts of modern chain stores familiar worldwide.  Despite the contemporary retailers, the street is lined with the traditional wrought iron signs indicating the nature of the businesses within.

 

Salzburg is worth more time than we had to give it today (We haven’t even mentioned The Sound of Music!), and would be a lovely place to linger for a few days – next time!

 

We decided to return to Gosau on a different route, so we could enjoy a sunny drive along the shores of more of the Salzkammergut lakes.  Mondsee and Traunsee were lovely, with white sails dotting the blue waters, and we were surprised to see many scuba divers along the shores of Attersee, the largest of the area’s lakes.

 

Our GPS warned us of a significant accident and road blockage on our route home and, less than three miles from our destination, we were stopped for quite a while.  Just as we were contemplating a very circuitous Plan B, an air ambulance took off in the distance, and things started to move.

 

Just as we arrived in Gosau, it began to pour and we enjoyed a thunderstorm – with patches of sun -- from our balcony.  Again, our weather luck has held, though things don’t look so great for the final week of our trip.  As always, we’ll see what tomorrow brings!