Weekend in Salzburg!

On the Saturday after Mauthausen, Roshni, Lindsay Kiyama and I all headed to Salzburg by train. Upon arriving we checked into our lovely hostel (called the YoHo!) and immediately set out to explore the city. It was a bit rainy and damp, and we were starving from the journey. We stumbled upon this really cute little family-owned Italian restaurant which a local told us was the best in town. They didn't even have a menu, they just had 3 or 4 options and you choose one, along with a glorious antipasti selection of meats, cheeses, fresh bread, and loads of vegetables. We stuck with ordering different pastas and some wine. After lunch, we walked all over town and got a feel for where everything is. We discovered that Salzburg is obsessed with Christmas (or holidays in general?) because there are tons of little Christmasy shops selling handmade ornaments, christmas decorations, and anything one could possibly want to get in the Christmas spirit. They also had a similar shop for Easter, full of painted eggs that were beautiful and sparkly with pastel spring colors and scenes of Springtime like flowers and fuzzy little animals. We decided that we definitely need to come back around Christmas time at some point in our lives, because the town seems to go all out, and it would be so beautiful covered in snow with lights and decorations everywhere- and great skiing nearby too!

We headed back to the hostel when it started getting late, ate some pizza for dinner at the restaurant/ bar in the hostel, and got a good night sleep to prepare for a packed day. On Sunday we woke up early and went on the Sound of Music tour. I was especially excited for this because I've grown up watching the movie, and i know every scene and song. The other people on the tour were just as obsessive as me if not more, and even though it was kind of hoakey (we had Sound of Music sing-a-longs while driving from place to place) it was still really fun and cool to see all the places that were in the movie. I especially enjoyed going out to the lake district which is a beautiful area outside of Salzburg with 17 different lakes scattered all around, in valleys below the alps. We went to this really cute town called Mondsee where the church that Maria and the Captain got married in (in the movie) is located (in real life, they got married in the abbey where Maria was a nun which is in Salzburg.) The tour finished by dropping us off at the Maribel gardens where a few clips from the Do-Re-Mi scene was filmed (by the Pegassus fountain and on the steps.)

Afterwards, we got a bite to eat, then headed up to the old military fortress high up on a hill. From the top of the fortress there was a spectacular view of the whole city of Salzburg and the surrounding alpine area. We took an audio tour and then checked out all the exhibits that the fortress had to offer (one on artillery and uniforms, the fortress' role in various wars and battles, an exhibit on torture devices used, historical musical instruments, and more.) We spent a good 3-4 hours at the fortress, and after a long day headed home where we once again grabbed a cheap bite to eat in the hostel and got another good night sleep. On our final day in Salzburg we woked up early and rented bikes to check out the countryside. We rode along the river then cut through town and found ourselves a bike path that wound us all around these green fields, tree-lined avenues for bikers and pedestrians only, and through the poshy suburbs where there are huge gated estates (one even had a mote!) We ended up finding Hellbrunn Palace, and we rode our bikes all through the grounds on the paths that take you through the gardens, past fountains, and into a wooded area all on the property of the palace. We stopped for a little while at Hellbrunn and ate sandwhiches that we had made from our hostel breakfast buffet. We played on the sweet playground, and especially got a kick out of the zipline. We continued on our way following random roads, one that even took us into a densely wooded forest ( I was the self-appointed leader, so if we got lost it would be my fault but luckily we didn't and i get to take credit for finding some great little paths.) The foresty road led us to a path that followed alongside a creek which eventually led us to the lake where the Sound of Music house is located. From here, we navigated back through town, and were sad to exchange our bikes in for our luggage to head back to Vienna.

I absolutely LOVED Salzburg! The people are helpful and friendly, the location nestled in the alps is beautiful, and the town is big enough to have lots to do, but not too big where you don't feel overwhelmed. I really prefer Salzburg to Vienna for many reasons. It is way more my type of town, because in Vienna I feel judged for not being a local, lost and forgotten among so many people in a hectic, urban city, and claustrophobic being surrounded by a constant sea of concrete, and buildings. I guess it comes down to the fact that im not as much a city person as I am a nature person, who needs open spaces and an outdoor playground to explore. Salzburg is definitely a place I want to come back to and spend more time in, and im really happy we chose this town for our weekend getaway.