Salzburg, Austria

Hello again,

If someone asked me to describe Salzburg with the fewest words possible, this is what I would say: The Sound of Music, Mozart and snow. Despite our first reservations about the quiet city, we quickly realised that the quaint nature was stunningly different from anywhere we had ever traveled to before. We started off the day by going to a small town we had seen on the way in called Dorfgastein. It was the smallest little village that seemed to have absolutely nothing in it. We had no idea what we were looking for, only the intention of finding some snow to take photos and build a snowman in. We walked around, considering sitting at a cafe to have some coffee but we spotted a ski resort we wanted to check out instead. The prices seemed reasonable, so we decided that in the morning we would come back and try it out. However, we had no waterproof clothing and insurance didn't cover it, but neither of us felt it was a bad decision. My next blog post will be focusing on that disastrously great day, so if you're interested in my Austrian ski trip read up in the next post. Promise it's interesting. 

Just before we left Dorfgastein we made a snowman. Selfies were taken and many, many Frozen quotes were said before we took the train back to Salzburg. Back at the hostel we got ready for our next exploration around the city itself. We passed so many shops with Mozart's face plastered on the Windows, however I had no real interest in him so I felt no real urge to stop by his birthplace. We searched for a place called The Dom, which turned out to be a little underwhelming. It looked like most churches in Europe and there wasn't anything truly magical about it, but still cool to look at. There were large statues that were covered in triangle domes to cover them, like the Lourve but smaller scale. I haven't figured out why yet, but I figured it might be to preserve the statues from something like acid rain. Those are just my speculations though. 

The best part of this night was a cliff top castle. There are usually cable car-type vehicles that travel up the cliff to the castle, but we just reached it as it closed. Instead, we stumbled upon a set of stairs that led up. Curious and having nothing better to do, we followed it to the top, hoping it would lead to the castle- which it did. Let me tell you the entire walk up was excruciating. If I didn't know I was unfit, I 110% am aware of the fact now. Everything was uphill and stairs and I was out of breath and made of sweat by the end of the night. However, the sight at the top was magnificent. It overlooked half the city at dusk and you could just make out the snow capped mountains in the distance. It was such a sight. You can see a city scape anywhere in the world, but one surrounded by immense mountains? That's something else. The air was chilly but it didn't take anything away from the beautiful view. You feel so small and insignificant in comparison to such a force of nature. It was also an interesting thought as to why people would originally want to build a city in a valley, why did that seem like such a good idea? Either way, it makes a damn good sight.

We went higher into the castle and ended up at a second view point overlooking the other side of the city. The spotlight was directed straight at us and you could see our shadow wandering on the castle walls behind us. So we decided to make a snowman on one of the barriers in front of us and I put my beanie on her and named her Astrid. So there she was, a snowman on the walls of a cliff top castle in Salzburg overlooking the city just like we had. Her shadow also appeared in the wall behind us so we took a photo of all three of us and called it a day. By the time we started for the hostel, we were the one of the only people in the castle. It was eerily quiet and there were more dark corners than I was comfortable with, but I guess that's the appeal with a place like that. 

We ended the night by watching The Sound of Music which our hostel played every night at 8pm. I'll be honest, I remember watching it vaguely as a child but I've never attributed it to a large part of my actual childhood. Except here's the funny thing, every song that played I had heard so many times it was like a strange nostalgia for something I hadn't realised existed. So it turns out, The Sound of Music may have been a large part of my life. I remember my mum singing Do Re Mi to me as a child, and the song brought back many memories. Rekindling that sense of innocence was a beautiful feeling, and I thank Salzburg for that. It was a wonderful experience and a stunning place. I recommend it to anyone, and don't be fooled by the tiny city because it's worth every minute.