Salzburg, Austria

Salzburg. World renowned as the place in the classic movie “The Sound of Music”, Wills “favourite.”

We had a three and a half hour train trip from Vienna to Salzburg arriving around mid day and grabbed a local bus to our hotel. On arrival we were pleasantly surprised by a large comfortable room with a modern design…not quite what we are used to.

We dropped our bags and headed off for a wander into town. Wow! We walked just twenty minutes then through a tunnel and found ourselves smack bang in the middle of an amazing city.  We wandered along the truly bavarian streets with their quaint wee shops and cute signs, shops selling reindeer inspired crockery, hand painted water eggs and even rubber ducks that look like Mozart. Yes Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart and because of this fact music is everywhere. We walked around the historic city centre admiring the amazing buildings and churches before we found ourselves sitting in the sun eating gelato and listening to an amazing classical violinist. What a lovely way to spend a beautiful afternoon.

The next morning we slept in a little before heading yet again into the centre of the historical city. We decided to explore the Hohensalzburg fortress which sits high above the town square and gives amazing three hundred and sixty degree views of the city and surrounding countryside.

After contemplation (of a whole two minutes) we decided to pay the extra €4 and get the tram up the steep slope instead of walking. The tram took all of thirty seconds to shoot up the steep incline. Our tram ticket also included access to the fortress, medieval castle and museum.

As we wandered through the cobbled hallways you got glimpses of the city far below over the top of ancient cannons. The fortress dates as far back as 900 years ago and a variety of architectural techniques have been used on the palace, Church and stables. The fortress seemed small but well worth the effort for the stunning views.

After returning to earth we ambled back through the streets along the river until we found a nice beer garden for a pint and a spot of lunch.

Feeling refreshed and a little ambitious we headed up the steep incline to yet another church. This time we had views across the river to the fortress. We wandered through the forest feeling like we were miles away from the bustling city far below.

Now with all this exercise we felt we deserved a treat and when we spotted a sign for coffee and apple strudel we knew we had to stop. There is something devine about hot apple strudel and vanilla cream 🙂

With our bellies full we quietly wandered back to the hotel for a quiet night in and some packing.

Next stop Munich, Germany.