Salzburg, Austria

Upon arrival it seems that Salzburg is a busy, big city with a river through it...but its charm revealed itself especially once we got into the "Altstadt" the old city, and once we saw the night views.  

We drove across the river and found our "villa" to stay in, the Villa Trapp.  This is the original house of the Von Trapps (not the one in the movie).  (I realized after Dad's skeptical comments that he did not at first believe it was the authentic home, just a gimmick.  I think I convinced him though.)  

Here is a cool website with lots of information about the movie, the real story and you will see a picture of our villa on the first page: http://www.the-sound-of-music-guide.com/von-trapp-family.html

Villa Trapp from the gardens, our room had this third level balcony

The Von Trapps moved up to the 2nd and 3rd floors and rented out the first floor.

Our room was their living room.  Dad's room was one of the girl's rooms (he got the bathroom).

beautifully decorated

The main living room.

There were many pictures of the Trapp family like this.

We toured an old fortress/ castle in the old city by first taking this "lift" that is a cross between a metro and a ski-lift.  (It is similar to what we took to get up to the Heidelburg Castle.)  It is called the REISSZUG.  

  

(This picture was copied from the internet.)

 The fortress we toured (with an audio guide) is called the "Festung Hohensalzburg" or "Hohensalzburg Fortress".  It felt like a castle to me...not sure why it is called a fortress.  It was transformed over the years from castle to fortress I guess. http://www.visit-salzburg.net/sights/hohensalzburg.htm

 view from a canon portal

Yvonne and I pay a few euro's to pose in this castle scene, LOL.  Couldn't get Dad to join us mainly because he was "castled out".

These were instruments of torture.  The guide said this wheel was one of the most painful.  They would basically break bones with it.  Prisoners were put down in a room through a hole with a steel grate (and often just left there to die).

This is a very historic and picturesque graveyard near the St. Peter's Abbey and the fortress in Salzburg. "St. Peter's Cemetery with its unique ambiance is one of the oldest and most beautiful cemeteries in the world. It is the final resting place for a number of famous personalities, artists, scholars and businessmen: Sanction Solaria (architect and builder of Salzburg Cathedral), Mannerly Mozart (Mozart's sister), Lorenz Hagen Auer (the Mozart family's landlord and friend), Michael Haydn (composer and Joseph Haydn's younger brother), Paul Hofhaimer (organist and composer), Sigmund Haffner (alderman and mayor, friend of the Mozart family, Haffner Serenade and Haffner Symphony by Mozart), Richard Mayr (opera singer, first "Ochs von Lerchenau" in the Salzburg Festival's Rosenkavalier), Harry Collins (last commander of the American occupying forces who later lived in Salzburg, one of the city's honorary citizens). " 

We also stepped into the Cathedral of Salzburg.  This place is very famous because Mozart played the organ here several years (as well as in Mainz and Munich) and he made history:   "The tour thus saw Wolfgang's transformation from a composer of simple keyboard pieces to one with increasing mastery over a range of genres. This was evidenced in his home city, on 8 December, when one of his symphonies (it is uncertain which) was performed at High Mass at Salzburg Cathedral." (Click on the link above for my source.)

For more history go here:  http://www.sacred-destinations.com/austria/salzburg-cathedral 

 probably the most spectacular organ we saw of all the cathedrals we visited

gorgeous domed ceilings with frescos

 beautiful ornate wooden pews, and the pocked floor showed us its age (400+ years)

 Dad is gawking at the ceilings...

Cool video of inside (hope to put my video up some day too) http://youtu.be/fg4PfyH9RjY

 the cathedral from the side...

 This is Mozartplatz or Mozart's plaza/ park.
It is interesting that two of his sons were here at its opening.  (Click on link for more info.)

We had a light lunch and pils, of course, at this outdoor cafe near the Cathedral and Mozartsplatz.

So perhaps the climax of "Our German Vacation" was our "first class dinner" at the Munchstein Castle where Mom and Dad stayed and dined almost thirty years ago.  It was quite a feat to even find it, winding back roads on the northern part of the Old Town in the hills.  This modernized castle looked nowhere near as old as its original foundation...and it had great views of Salzburg.  A special chef and about three waiters were at our beck and call.  It was about a 5 course meal, and wow, it is the most memorable perhaps, along with our dinner in Schnellenburg Castle, of our entire trip!

In front of Munchstein Castle where Mom and Dad once stayed

 Dad's steak

 My fish...delicicous!

Our waiter is cutting up Dad and Yvonne's steak.  Yvonne said it was probably the most delicious steak she has ever eaten.

 these were our appetizers, unique and delicious!

night views of Salzburg from the castle, breathtaking!!

looking down at our table

Afterward, Dad remembered a walk he took to an overlook of the city.  At first I was not so sure  his memory served him well, but sure enough, we found a spectacular overlook by walking through a park at the top of this hill.

view of the canal, Cathedral and fortress

On the drive back into Germany on the way to Munich, we passed through small Bavarian towns.  Each had a pole in the center, and a church with a tall tower of course.  These Maypoles tell the history of the town. 

Click on it to enlarge and see the "pole history" more clearly.

These are Maypoles and the holiday for celebrating these is May 1st.

http://germanyiswunderbar.com/southern-germany/germany-holidays-the-village-maypole/

(Dad called those church towers "onion towers".)

NOTES FROM DAD about this picture:  "The lake we stopped by going from Salsburg to Munchen is Chiemsee. Mad King Ludwig built his most prized castle on an island in Chiemsee. He drowned here in the lake under mysterious circumstances."   There is a cross to mark this historical spot.  Click on the link and go down to "The Curtain Falls" to read more about his mysterious death.  

http://schwangau.de/646.0.html 
A lake we passed....our rental car.