“They probably think because I am so small and young, nothing of greatness and class can come out of me; but they shall soon find out.” (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)

Mozart Square in the heart of the old town with the statue erected in 1842. This is the first monument dedicated to the composer.

Regarded as a musical genius, and most certainly one of the world’s most influential musicians and composers, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a true son of Salzburg. As you might have read in my previous post, Frenchie and I were staying at the beautiful Schloss Leopoldskron . We had two days in Salzburg before moving on to Berchtesgarden and that was actually enough to explore this wonderful baroque city following the footsteps of its most famous son and gain insights into fascinating history

At Mozart Square you will also find Salzburg Information Centre, where we got these Salzburg Cards

The Salzburg Cards are pretty great! They give you free admission to most tourist attractions and museums. Also you have free use of public transportation and many additional discounts (the cards are available for 24, 48 or 72 hours) We also found out that you can skip most lines with these cards and avoid paying with cash

Before we even left London, Frenchie had been talking A LOT about Austrian national costumes (mostly dirndls and lederhosen) He was slightly worried, that he might not see any! That was NOT the case! One of the first things we saw, when walking from our hotel into the city was these guys! We honestly didn’t know, what was happening, but there was music – and a lot of people dressed up like they just arrived from another century!

Something was definitely going on in front of Salzburg Cathedral

Half of city was there dressed up in national costumes and bavarian music filled the streets

And then he came… Walking around greeting people with a big and friendly smile!

Now I would really love to tell you, what just happened here, but I never found out! We believe that maybe it was an introduction of a new cardinal, but after endless searching on the internet I came up with nothing, so I can only say, that we really enjoyed this religious and patriotic ceremony, but we never found the reason why it took place. (If any of you know, I would be happy to get a comment)

Frenchie had no reasons to worry – he was surrounded by dirndls, lederhosen and priests!

The Square of Salzburg Cathedral, where you will find a unique sculpture of a man standing on top of a giant gold globe. The globe is an art project of the Salzburg Foundation, created in 2007 by artist Stephan Balkenhol without interpretation (The first time we saw it, we had a bit of shock as we thought it was a real human being!) 

Residentzplatz Square with its richly decorated baroque fountain -probably the largest and most beautiful square in Salzburg. Bonus-info: For fans of “The Sound of Music”,  Residenzplatz is yet another highlight. During their carriage ride through the city, Maria and the children sing as they pass the Residenz Fountain. Tickets for “The Sound of Music Tours” can be bought here

If you are in Salzburg, you don’t have to worry about getting nothing to eat! I think Frenchie and  I gained quite a few kilos after our visit, but who cares. We were on a holiday. Pretzles seem to be the thing around here – and they came in all shapes and sizes (and flavours)

Austrians are also very much into pork products and cheese! As one Austrian said to me, when I asked him what he would recommend me to eat: “sausages, sausages and sausages” (well, that was simple!)

So we went on a mission looking for the best sausages in town…

On our way around in the old town we stopped in front of the house in which Mozart was born January 27, 1756. It is now one of the most visited museums in Austria

On every street corner we could buy the Salzburg speciality “Mozart Kugleln” – a round sugar confection made of pistachio marzipan and nougat covered with dark chocolate

Make sure to bring an extra bag for chocolate presents! 

But we were hungry for “real” food – and even though the MC Donalds sign looked much prettier here than anywhere else…

We decided to go to Sternbrau after having read a lot of great reviews…

Got to love the biergartens around here!

As the beer selection in Austria is exquisite, we even found a beer that Frenchie actually liked (being French he always choose wine)

A selection of “small platters” with Austrian specialties! We didn’t go to bed hungry! It was really nice food!

Probably not the right meal for a vegetarian – but Sternbrau had lovely vegetarian food as well!

It started raining a lot in the evening and we didn’t bring an umbrella! Quite embarrassing for people who actually live in London. If you are here always bring an umbrella. The weather in the mountains can be quite teasing and you don’t want to run back to the hotel soaking wet! There are taxis around, but not as easy to get hold of as in London.

In the next blogpost, I will take you on a beautiful trip to Hohensalzburg Castle (riding the fortress funicular) The view from the castle (built in 1077) is truly amazing and changed the Salzburg skyline forever. 

X Louise