September 3, 2015

September 3, 2015

Last night we hopped on the bus back into Salzburg.  After another nice dinner in a basement restaurant, we walked to Mirabell Palace for a rendition of Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nacht Musik.  One part of it is very recognizable. The nice thing about Mozart is that the music is very melodic and easy listening.  Plus the beautiful palace setting with its great acoustics makes it a cool place to listen to this quintet of strings and piano. You could imagine being a royal and paying Mozart a pittance to come and entertain you after dinner.

This morning we returned to Mirabell Palace, this time touring the large and beautiful gardens. Several spots had cameo roles in the Sound of Music during the Do-Re-Mi scene. The grounds were mobbed with tour groups and their guides. We strolled the north side of the river climbing the ridge to get a great view of the Old Town and the towering Hohensalzburg Castle looming overhead.

After a tasty pizza lunch, we hike up the castle hill to tour Hohensalzburg.  This fortress complex is one of the largest in Europe and it was never taken by force. Not surprising to me. It is a steep uphill climb to the isolated peak.
Salzburg for most of history was an independent principality governed not by a king but by a prince archbishop.  Salzburg (Salt Castle) got wealthy exporting salt from the local mines. With all the riches, it was able to build large defenses and pay tribute for alliances with strong neighbors. Fortifications were enhanced when the threat of invasion from the Ottoman Turks was highest.  The Ottoman force was stopped in Vienna.

Hohensalzburg is a large complex fortress.  There are several museums.  A small one has displays of Marionette puppets popular in Austria.  Another has weapons of war and implements of torture. The last section through some of the interior requires an escort with audio guide.  It takes us through a prison room and then up to a viewing platform atop the castle.

After the castle tour, we catch the bus home but exit early at the Augustine Monastery. The monks also run a brewery.  On entering the building, we find the beer hall is enormous.  It is mostly self serve and very popular with the local population. We grab a stein off the rack, rinse it at a fountain, and then pay to have it filled. There are a dozen deli-type kiosks selling all kinds of food.  We grab a barbeque rib dinner. Interestingly instead of popcorn or nuts, shaved and salted radish is the big beer go-with.