St. Peter’s, inspired the Hollywood cemetery set in the Sound of Music.
I decided today would be ‘KFB’s Highlight Tour of Salzburg’s Old Town’, which is nestled in between the River and Mönchsberg mountain. My commentary started off at Mozartplatz near the statue of Mozart, and took in the horse-drawn carriages, pink Church of St. Michael and Dom cathedral; moved through the Residenzplazt with its beautiful horse fountain; then on to the Kapielplatz and the 18th century horse bath, giant chessboard, golden orb with man on top sculpture, musicians and marketplace. Towering above us was the ever-present Hohensalzburg Fortress on the peak of Festungsberg, built in the 11th century. Our tour took us around the old waterwheel and through the gate into St.Peter’s incredibly beautiful cemetery. The ultimate in final resting places, we were quite taken with the incredible flowers, and how each grave was marked with a magnificent miniature garden and unique marker. The cemetery in the Sound of Music movie, although built in Hollywood, was inspired by this one.
We saw the cliff over the cemetery that housed medieval hermit monks as well as the Gothic chapel built a year before Columbus sailed for the New World. A visit to Universitätsplatz and the open-air market resulted in some fabulous goodies purchased lunch for later in the day. Our oversized pretzel sandwich, Wiener Schnitzel sandwich and oversized sugar-pretzel proved later to be my husband’s favorite meal of the trip (so far). A stroll down Getreldegasse completed our tour.
My tips were not as expected!
In the afternoon, we took a tour to the Bavarian Mountains to experience a little of the beautiful countryside. We followed the Salzach River into Germany to King’s Lake (Königssee) and were surprised at how commercial it was. Nearby is a large bobsled training facility. On the route in, we traveled through the lower part of the Obersalzberg, and could see Hitler’s retreat ‘Eagles Nest’ on top of a peak in the distance. We also saw the cute alpine town of Berchtesgaden before our drive back to town. Traffic was heavy and the clouds and rain returned; we were glad we weren’t driving.
After a light dinner in the casual, comfortable hotel bar, we called it a day!
One of the many beautiful signs on the Getreldgasse.
Up at dawn and off to the train station for our earliest morning of the entire trip (and I’m glad it’s just one). We had some pretty scenery today as we rolled towards Hitler’s birthplace of Linz, Austria for our first railroad quick-change. It all went off without a hitch and we traveled the last hour into Salzburg smoothly. We knew the main train station in Salzburg was under construction and it is a major maze of wooden ramps and barrier walls – what we can see of the new station looks extremely modern and beautiful.
Our historic Hotel/Villa is off the beaten path in a lovely, leafy neighborhood. Once there my husband and I set off for some exploring. We walked down Linzer Gasse, the pedestrian-only (almost) street close to the Kapuzinerberg (mountain) that leads all the way over the Salzach River and into Old Town. We did a quick stroll through parts of Old Town and spent some time looking at, and photographing, all the amazing wrought iron signs on Getreldegasse. What a fun and charming street.
Back at the Villas, we picked up Mom and went into Old Town for dinner – settling to dine outdoors on this beautiful, warm, dry evening, at Zum Eulenspiegel, literally in front of Mozart’s birthplace and childhood home. Our food was excellent and Fred loved his Wiener Schnitzel and German potato salad.
I was out-voted for the evening’s entertainment, and so we attended the ‘Sound of Salzburg Show’ at the very oddly decorated Sternbräu Inn. I will say the guidebooks were right when they reported a “hardworking quartet and piano player” and there was some real talent there; but the production value left a lot to be desired and, personally, I’m not all that into the ‘audience participation’ thing. It was a small but very international audience (from China, Scandinavia, Italy, Portugal and Malta, besides all the English-speaking countries I expected to see) that joined us to enjoy listening to songs from the Sound of Music, Austrian operettas and classic folk tunes as well as a little Mozart.
I still say: Do ~ Re ~ Me ~ Fa ~ So ~ U Must Be Kidding!
Historic sign marking site of The Three Violins, now a restaurant.
OK, now we’re warm . . . . not Florida warm, but nevertheless in need of peeling off layers of clothes. We did not have rain today thankfully, despite the predictions, not one drop; although it was very cloudy on and off.
We started our day at the Old Town Hall and mingled with the crowds from around the world gathered to watch the Astronomical Clock strike the noon hour. Bells chimed, doors opened and figures emerged and a rooster crowed; it was fun to see and hear the live trumpeter blowing his horn from all four sides at the top of the tower.
Wandering around the winding narrow streets of the Staré Město was interesting and fun (probably more for Mother and me than my husband, since we ducked into a few stores). Our walk led us down by the river and eventually back across the Charles Bridge. The Bridge had more of a fair-like atmosphere today with musicians, artists and puppeteers entertaining the crowds. We were also all able to touch the cross commemorating the death of St. John of Nepomuk’s death in 1393; it is said if you make a wish while touching the cross, your wish will come true.
Eventually, we made our way into the Malá Strana (Little Quarter) in search of some of the historic house signs used to identify buildings prior to 1770. Many of the original signs had alchemical significance and therefore used allegorical symbols. Some simply defy understanding. The biggest concentration are on Nerudova Street – so that is where we headed.
Our first order of business was to find a comfortable spot for a light lunch – that’s easier said than done since many of the restaurants serve the heavier, typical Czech food midday as well as dinner. We were lucky to find “U tří housliček” (The Three Violins) a site of one of the famous original signs because the building was once the home of a family of violin-makers. Legend says it is also haunted and you can hear a demonic trio on moonlit nights. We all had salads and got back out on the street to continue our hunt for signs. Some of my favorite were: The Red Lamb, The Golden Key, The Green Lobster, a Turnip and the head of Medusa. If I lived in Praha (Prague) in the 1700’s the Medusa would be on my house.
We took our time and eventually made our way back to our hotel in the late afternoon for a rest and re-group.
After a simple pasta dinner at the nearby Phenix restaurant, my husband and I set off for a Ghost Trail tour. It was a fairly silly, amusing journey around the Old Town Hall and nearby streets. Our young guide, Martin was really cute and funny, his Czech accent alone made for a good ghost story. It was a perfect night for strolling around the Old Town and we extended our walk a bit to get some night shots of the dramatically lit buildings and have some gelato. From the Charles Bridge we were pleasantly surprised by a nearby fireworks display over the Vltava River.
Turning in early for a very early wake-up call.
Prague Castle.
55 ~ all day. Drizzling off and on. Gray skies prevail.
But, in spite of it all – we love this city!
I knew Prague would be amazing, and frankly I wanted to see Budapest first because I figured if we visited Budapest after Prague it would be a disappointment (and I was right). Today, because the weather forecast was so dismal, we amended our original plans and decided to take a very comprehensive tour (called ‘The Ultimate Tour’). Although tiring, it proved to be a great experience and really helped us understand the complex history of this charming city.
Much of the tour was walking, but we did have a few respites along the way. We managed to see New Town (Nové Město), Old Town (Staré Město) and cruise the Vltava River before walking through the Josefov Jewish Quarter, having lunch in Old Town and walking across the Charles Bridge (in our heaviest rain of the day) to the Little Quarter (Malá Strana), where we caught a tram to the Prague Castle. We definitely hit the highlights including Wenceslas Square, St. Vitus’s Cathedral, Old Town Square, the Old Jewish Cemetery, the changing of the Guard at the Castle, the Old Town Hall with its beautifully ornate Astronomical Clock and much more. We managed to hit many of the ‘Top 10’ on my list. I’m glad we did this, because it was mighty tempting to head back to our spacious suites, and read-away the afternoon.
Crowds were crazy, particularly in the afternoon, and navigating the sea of umbrellas was often difficult and hazardous. A couple of Australian men managed to become separated from our small group and were missing til our guide went back to search for them. Otherwise, they could still be wandering the streets of Old Town. Of course it’s a busy time of year to visit Europe and on a Sunday the weekend visitors are in; but apparently they have had some really awful weather here with torrential rain, and today people may have just needed to break-out.
Even in the gray drizzle, this town is magical: the beautiful colors of paint on many of the buildings; the bright gold accents on monuments, buildings and statues; the cleanliness and sense of order; as well as the endless charm of the narrow streets and structures built during the last 1000 years. I am amazed at the intricate and varied stone patterns on the sidewalks, with seemingly endless designs, each one a work of art. At every turn you feel like you have turned another page of a fairytale.
Hopefully, tomorrow we will be able to retrace some of our steps at a more leisurely, and drier, pace.
Dinner was at Old Town’s Restaurant Rainer Maria (R.M.) Rilke, an absolutely charming, candlelit, cozy spot where we all had a fabulous meal of veal paired with soup or salad. The mushroom soup I had was the best ever and as a bonus, I was finally warm for the first time today.
I don’t think any of my pictures will do this city justice.
By the way – let me elaborate about our unique, lovely hotel. We are staying in apartment/suites carved out of the Baroque Palace of Count Jan Josef Pachta, built in the 18th century. Mozart and his wife were regular visitors, and it was here that Wolfgang had his only encounter with Giacomo Casanova. Beethoven was among the many other composers who also visited. We are located in Old Town just across from the Vltava.
Wish the walls could talk!
