Salzburg has the look of an enchanted folk story village whilst maintaining a buzzing city atmosphere. It is the combination of old and new which makes Salzburg truly special. Its Baroque styled domed buildings add to the city’s old world charm. Walking along the banks of the Salzach River it’s not difficult to see why The Sound of Music was partly filmed on location in Salzburg. The mountain cliffs, squares and gorgeous gardens all add to the beauty of this historic city.

I got to spend a day in Salzburg after leaving Hallstatt. It was a short bus drive on to Salzburg and the summer sunshine continued to shine. My tour group first walked alongside the lake and took a group photo. Then we all went to find a map of the city, which we got at Residenz Platz. After taking photo’s in the square which is well-known for its striking fountain we went on to go see Hohensalzburg Castle.

Horse fountain in Residenzplatz Square and Fountain

My travel buddies, which I made on the way to Hallstatt and I decided to skip the hike and took a funicular up to the castle. We all marvelled at the view, from the castle you can see the city below in all its splendour. I definitely suggest that you up to the castle to see the view. We all spent a lot of time taking photos from every angle that we could. Inside of the castle are different exhibits. There’s a Sound of Music section with puppets showing off scenes from the film. There are also artworks, antique items and an extensive exhibition which features weapons. There is a lot to see inside of the castle so we spent quite a bit of time inside. We left the museum exhibits and took a few minutes to sit outside in the square of the castle. It was a very hot day so the huge tree we sat under provided us with shade. We then made our way back inside of the castle to check out the Hohensalzburg Castles’ curio shop. I fitted on a fake crown, looked at the plastic swords and the soaps which looked like cupcakes and practised the art of restraint big time. But, I did have a postcard made with my photo on it as a memento. We then took the funicular down.

Cake or is it soap?

Walking along the cobblestone-lined streets we spotted street vendors selling food. I bought brotchen with sausage topped with mustard. It’s a popular Austrian and German street food meal that can be eaten on the go whilst walking. Our next stop was the Getreidegasse (Grain Lane) this is a shopping street which is full of activity. Mozart was born in this street at no. 9 specifically. I spotted the house since it’s clearly marked with a bright yellow facade. If you are under the age of 25 you pay less to enter the house which is now a museum documenting part of Mozart’s life. I got to pay less to enter because I looked younger than I actually was. The ticket officer just assumed that I was young so I went along with it. The house inside had a lot of exhibits with tons of information to read.

We then met up with our tour bus group to go on a guided walking tour. The tour took us across the river to see the memorial alongside the river, the house where Mozart lived, Mirabell Palace and garden, the University building and Salzburg Cathedral to name a few. I recommend taking a walking tour of any city you might visit since you get to see a lot and learn so much about the city with a knowledgeable guide. Just make sure to explore without a guide to that way you get to see more than just tourist sites.

With our tour done it was dinner time and we went to a very traditional restaurant close to the shopping district called the Golden Kugel. Some of the girls in my group ordered a traditional Austrian dish made out of cheese and noodles. I tried the German of this dish and didn’t like it so I skipped trying it again in Austria. The girls had me try a bite and I disliked it, and I also didn’t like the smell. It had a very strong cheesy smell , similar to that of pungent blue cheese. I did, however, have the Sachertorte cake. I had it when I went to Vienna and jumped at the chance to have cake for supper and eat this kind of cake again. With “dinner” done we walked along the streets at night and got to see the buildings lit up. I remember a lot of laughter and talking about the day as we looked for a place to have something to drink. We ended up having drinks at a trendy place; the waiter was very friendly and was an expat from Hungary travelling through Europe. We also spoke about the tea culture of Asian countries whilst we drank coffee and tea. My Salzburg day trip had drawn to a close and we caught our bus back to Germany. As we journeyed back I thought about how beautiful Salzburg is in the summer. I was grateful for meeting new people, seeing new places and for managing to get a great tan along the way.

For more information about Salzburg check out Salzburg’s tourist information centre.

Contact details:
Mozartplatz 5
5020 Salzburg

Tel: +43662 88987 330

Website

Email

Happy travels!

Nikki

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