Surprisingly, Matt was still energetic after this quick trip back to San Francisco last week (we think he/his body never fully changed time zones) so we decided to take advantage of this and make the 5-hour drive to Salzburg on Friday. The drive wasn't too bad, and it was sunny the entire way! We got in about 4:00 PM and went straight to the old town and up to the Festung Hohensalzburg fortress built way back in 1077 and perched on a cliff overlooking the city. It was free to just walk around the grounds (it was after-hours so the rooms were closed). From up here we were treated to stunning views of the city and mountains as well as a gorgeous sunset.
We then crossed back over the Salzach River and went for drinks at the posh piano bar at the Sacher Hotel (apparently you can still smoke inside in Salzburg, shocking indeed). Next, we headed to the brew-house Die Weisse ("the White") although the logo was a witch on a broomstick. The place was huge, crowded and served big portions of Austrian food along with its own brand of beer. We ate in the bar at a communal table. Fun place!
On Saturday the great weather continued and we started our day with a self guided walking tour a-la Rick Steves. The town is pretty small, so it didn't take long to hit all the top sights, from Mozart's birth house to the Cathedral, (Dom) St. Peter's Monastery and Cemetery, the Residence and old market. Some of these attractions were featured in the Sound of Music but we didn't take a tour or seek out all the places from the film (not sure I'd recognize them actually as I get caught up in the singing!). Apparently, not many locals have even seen the movie and perhaps think all the film-location-seeking tourists are a wee bit crazy.
Salzburg is a gorgeous little city and one thing we noticed and really loved were all the old wrought iron shop signs along Getreidegasse, the main shopping street (even the new stores had wrought iron signs). There were also a lot of fun shops, high end boutiques and Trachten (traditional clothing) stores here. We found a really good sale and outfitted Matt from head to toe in lederhosen! He looks so handsome! Wish we had this when we went to Oktoberfest, but hindsight is 20/20, I guess. Although I tried on several dirndls, I didn't have any luck with the fit or price-tag. At least one of us was successful and I got to practice my German with the sales lady helping us, win-win.
After our shopping frenzy, we headed to Stiegl for a tour of a local Salzburg braurei. We had the place pretty much to ourselves as everyone seemed to be celebrating at a local Fasnacht parade! It was a very informative exhibition and the best part, redeeming our samples at the end!
Continuing with our braurei theme, our penultimate stop was at the awesome Augustiner Braüstübl, a huge beer hall in a brewery run by monks of the Kloster Mülln (abbey founded for Augustinian hermits in 1605). To get your beer: (1) pick up your stein mug (.5 liter or a full liter), (2) go to the well to rinse out the mug, (3) go to a cashier and and pay for your beer, and then (4) queue for the beer that's on tap in barrels. Good thing Matt read about this place and knew what to do as there were no signs giving instructions or anything. There's also a food market section with stalls selling various fare, from pretzels to ribs to schnitzel to strudel. After getting your food and beer, you pick one of the beer halls and find a seat. We ate and drank like kings here and we even brought home some souvenirs (small for Kate, and large for Matt; or is that large for Kate and small for Matt?).
After dinner we gave in to our sweet tooth cravings and splurged on a Sachertorte and carmel torte at the Sacher Cafe. Mmmmm good!
After Matt's photo shoot at Mirabel Gardens on Sunday morning we headed back to Basel! Yay, we weren't sure if we'd make it to Salzburg as it seemed a tad too far to drive just for a regular weekend and the trains/planes took even longer. So glad Matt took Friday off and we were able to visit!
After Matt's photo shoot at Mirabel Gardens on Sunday morning we headed back to Basel! Yay, we weren't sure if we'd make it to Salzburg as it seemed a tad too far to drive just for a regular weekend and the trains/planes took even longer. So glad Matt took Friday off and we were able to visit!
 |
| Gorgeous eggs at one of the boutiques |
No comments:
Post a Comment