Never Again
The first time I was in Vienna I never dreamed that I would return another three times so I just had to see Salzburg. A friend and I booked a tour which ended being a three hour drive which meant we spent six hours on a bus. The countryside was lovely but still---. It was a multi lingual tour and by the time the guide had given the information in German, Spanish, French and then in English the site was long gone and the English version was very short. Feeling short changed the entire way only fueled my frustration. .
In spite of an early morning start, our time in Salzburg was limited only allowing us to see the minimal highlights. The city was founded in 696 by an archbishop who ruled for many years. The monastery, St. Peter, is the oldest one north of the Alps. The city derives its name from the salt found in the mountains. Several foot bridges cross the Sclzach River which separates the old and new part of the city. The colorful facades along the river in the old city are picturesque. As is common in old cities, an ancient castle sits high on the hill behind the city.
Along the river in the new city are the beautiful Mirabel Gardens. A 17th century fire reduced the city to ashes. The archbishop loved the wide open spaces that now house the gardens. We actually got lost in the gardens when on return we thought we crossed the same bridge as we did earlier in the day. But, then again, what better place to get lost!
Mozart was born in Salzburg in 1756 but died in Vienna in 1791. His birthplace, located just behind the pedestrian mall, is easy to find. We enjoyed walking through his home and seeing the museum, but would have enjoyed it more if there had been some English sub-titles. Many international music festivals are held in Salzburg in the summer and during holidays.
The shopping plaza is full of fascinating shops where wrought iron signs tell one in pictures what kind of a shop it is. McDonalds even managed to set up shop and conformed with its own wrought iron sign---no golden arches here.
We chose one of the small restaurants for lunch. It was a cool cloudy day so we both opted for hot soup which was really a goulash. It was delicious, but we had to put up with a surly waitress. After numerous attempts to get her attention to bring us the bill, we finally had to get up and make motions to leave. That caught her attention and we got our bill in a hurry. We would have loved to have had the time to linger over a cup of hot tea, but our time was much too limited.
Seeing only the highlights put Salzburg on my return list. It had been a long and somewhat frustrating day. It definitely was my first and last multi-lingual tour of any kind! It was a good learning experience!
No comments:
Post a Comment