Europe 2019 - Day 50 (Part 1)

25 June 2019, Tuesday

Today we do a day trip to Salzburg, Austria - the birthplace of Mozart and the Sound of Music! It is about 2 hours by bus and it is cheaper to do it this way rather than stay in Salzburg as it is a really expensive city. Salzburg has possibly the best-preserved old town centre full of beautiful baroque architecture, which is why it is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

When we arrived at Salzburg we went to the first ticket machine we saw to buy a 24-hour ticket for the day. Then we went to the tourist information centre to get a city map and some information on the tourist attractions. It was then that we were told that we had bought the wrong 24-hour ticket. So that was 4 Euros gone. 

Anyway, we took a short bus ride into town, and first we went to the Mirabell garden and schloss (palace). The palace is listed as a cultural heritage monument, was built in 1606 and was used mainly as a pleasure palace. Today the municipal government is located in this palace. There is a wondrous set of gardens here with symmetrical design and an emphasis on mythology including the Pegasus Fountain and lots of other fountains, hedges, and themed gardens.

In the distance we could see the Mozart University, which brings us to our next destination - Mozart’s residence in Makrtplatz. This was the former residence of the Mozart family from 1773-1780. The building was reconstructed as closely as possible to the original design after its destruction during WW II and is now open as a museum.

Then we walked across a bridge, and I could see the hills in the distance. I had to stop myself from singing “The Hills Are Alive...” at the top of my lungs 😁. 

After the bridge we went to Altese Rathaus- the Old Town Hall. The Rathausin Salzburg is a four storey medieval building with natural stone on the outside and some stucco work around the windows. The house was originally a burgher house, dating back to the 14th century. In 1407, the city council purchased it and started to use it as a court - both for the community′s government and as a court of justice, as indicated by the Justitia statue above the entrance. The tower of the Rathausused to have night watchmen, and its clock and bell tower provided a reference for time (the clockwork is probably the oldest in all of Austria).