Salzburg in a Day

Tips from 5-22-13:

When packing remember that when there are no escalators or elevators you will have to carry your bag down and UP the stairs …

You may not be able to check in to your hotel until 3 pm
Don’t EVER use the maps app on the iPhone, download GOOGLE MAPS ONLY (when it says your destination is getting farther away, something is wrong…)

And sometimes trust the opinion of one member of the group…they may actually be thinking more clearly than the group

On Wednesday (5/22) we began our sequence of trains before Rome. We planned to get to the train station in Munich (Munich: HBF) 30 minutes before our train. We probably needed more time to get there. You really can’t plan how long the subways are going to take. Sometimes you miss one and you have to wait 15 minutes. So we ended up getting there a little pressed for time but we made sure and validated our passes and we found where our train was.

I’m with Sheldon Cooper on this one, trains rock! You get to see the countryside between the big tourist cities. I looked out the window at the blue mountains rolling by and various farm animals popped up like cattle and sheep. Behind every hill that went by, a small town lay behind it and usually had an ornate church. I began to notice the signature red roofed houses everywhere. Listening to the soundtrack from the Pride and Prejudice movie hit the spot. ;)

We arrived in Salzburg slightly later than the predicted time but it was still only 11:15 am. So then we had to get to the hotel. We knew that it wasn’t that far. However, there is a big difference between knowing the general idea of where something is and navigating with a map. So we found where we were with the maps app because fortunately Anne bought a data plan for her iPhone. I suggest getting data even though it’s expensive. There are times when you will get in a tight spot and you won’t have a map or won’t know how to ask somebody how to get somewhere and just having that exact location of where you are can make a world of difference. So I’m not exactly sure if I just navigated us the wrong way or the apps map was showing me that we were going the right way when we weren’t but all of a sudden the hotel was not near our location anymore and we had went the completely opposite direction of the hotel for 20 minutes. So, dragging our 45 lb bags through Salzburg we had to double back all the way to the station and then walk to the hotel which wasn’t that far away originally. I have never been so happy to see a hotel. Of course, we couldn’t check in when we got there but fortunately they let us put our bags in a room while we went and found FOOD.

Then we wanted to head to the old town but we weren’t sure what street to take. Mark said, “There’s only one way guys…” and Anne and I were like, “no we don’t know which way it is!” Then all of a sudden we saw the giant fortress of Hohensalzburg on top of the hill and we were like, “Oh.” We continued to have a lot of laughs that day. The old town is so spectacular. We crossed the river and saw lots of classic old buildings. And of course because it was the home of Mozart there is a statue of him in the city. We got to take the lift up to the top of the hill that the fort is on and it was the perfect thing to do since we were only in the city for one afternoon because when you get up to the top you get a gorgeous panoramic view of the city of Salzburg. On the tour of the fort we learned that “Salz” means “salt” which makes sense. It was really important to have in the city and there was a room in the fort called the “Salt Room” where a ton of it was stored. There was a torture room too and we learned that they used to drop this wheel on parts of people’s bodies to break them…they had lots of forms of torture because they had to get a confession before they could be convicted. The fortress contained many rooms and towers, and I have no idea how they found their way around there at all because I kept getting turned around. There were so many ornate doors too with really cool handles. I wish I could have one in my house one day.

After we left the fortress we decided to grab a snack before we headed back to the hotel. We saw a stand with a ton of giant pretzels. Wow, he had chocolate, sugar, apple, raspberry, pumpkin, pistachio, sesame, and one Mother of All Pretzels. Guess which one Mark got…the MoAP. It was such a JOKE. It was probably as big as his body and it was 6.50 euros and I quote, “It was the best 6.50 euros I’ve ever spent, a multifaceted purchase.” Everyone around us on the way back to the hotel was pointing and laughing when Mark wasn’t looking and Anne and I were just cracking up the whole way back. He looked like such an American. That was probably the best part of the day.

We all had a blast today. We’re really getting the hang of traveling together. We had delicious Austrian food that night too. Anne and I got pork “Vienna Style” which is breaded and served with potatoes. We also shared the Sachre Torte which is a chocolate sponge cake soaked in apricot jam and topped with chocolate sauce that originated in Vienna. It’s really good! The people in Austria are really friendly. Our waiter was cracking jokes with us and there were a lot more shared smiles. We still stuck out like sore thumbs with our jeans and t-shirts but at the end of this crazy day we just wanted to be comfortable and fed. Success!

We also went around a garden that was nearby and it was rainy but so darling. The weather really held off for us today. It only rained when we weren’t looking out at the view or taking pictures or walking with our luggage to the hotel. Thank goodness! We all really enjoyed the city for the brief time we were there and couldn’t wait to see how Vienna compared to it.

Really cool door at the fort.

Not sure what this is...but it's the three of us reflected upside down in it.

Unicorns

Salzburg!

View from the top of Hohensalzburg

Anne!

Part of the museum in the fort.

Mark looking out at the view of Salzburg.

Statue of Mozart!

Hohensalzburg Fort

The wheel they broke people's bones with.

So much beauty!

 

**This is a photo of our group of friends we made at the tour of Neuschwanstein in Munich* (L-R) Anne, Julie and Margret from Austalia, and me and Mary on the bottom**

The Mother of All Pretzels

The Traveling Trio