A Day in Salzburg

Last weekend, my mother gave me the most amazing idea ever - to go to Salzburg for the day.  I hadn't realized how close the Austrian border is to Munich, but after a short two hour train ride I arrived in Salzburg last saturday morning, ready to hunt down every shooting location from The Sound of Music (I had watched it the night before in preparation - I like to think of myself as a method traveler).

From the moment I stepped into Austria, I could feel something amazing in the air, and even though the weather was rainy for most of the morning, everything I saw was magical.  Salzburg is the perfect city to visit in a day, because it is small enough to walk everywhere.  Although, I would have liked to stay forever if I had that choice.

I traversed the northern part of town from the train station, and the first incredible thing I saw was Schloss Mirabell and its gardens.  (Part of "Do Re Mi" was filmed there, fyi.)  The manicured hedges and beautifully colorful flowers were a wonderful contrast against the cloudy skies, and in the distance, the hills and Alps framed the picture.  There was what I at first thought to be a huge tour group of Chinese kids running around the garden.  But after hearing a hauntingly beautiful harmony of Do Re Mi (I actually thought I was going happily insane), I followed the sounds and it was the tour group!!  It turned out they were the Hong Kong Children's Choir, and they were adorable.  And taking millions of photos, of course.

I headed across the river to the Old Town, where I saw a lively food market, and sat out the rain at a cafe, reading the newspaper with a hot chocolate and some of my favorite "Mozart" brand marzipan chocolates.  Then I continued to explore the old churches, Mozart's Birthplace, and the beautiful squares.

One of the most exciting parts of the day was hiking up one of the city's hills to the Fortress - Festung Hohensalzburg - where I had a view of the entire city and the Alps in the distance.  It was breathtakingly beautiful.

Austria is a country I will want to return to soon - the people were so kind, and I eerily felt at home there, like I had been before.  I knew I had some Austrian in my blood but maybe there's more than I thought.  I love Salzburg!!!  For MANY more photos, check out the link to the album, on the right!