Salzburg

Salzburg was my favorite city thus far. To have the amazing Austrian Alps as your everyday background reminded me so much of being home in tacoma, and being able to look out and see Mt. Rainier. 

The first day we had a great tour around Salzburg. We were able to get our bearings and look around in the cold and wet weather. We did a lot that day. We went on the tour, which included the church and organ that Mozart played at, the graveyard in which Nannerl was buried, and the cafe that Mozart frequented. We then went to the catacombs, saw where mozart's sister was buried, and went across the bridge to the monastery.
Here, we saw great views of the city, and the castle with the Alps in the background. 

We were also able to see mozart's birthplace, and I stood in the very room that he was born in. We took a big, steep hike up to the Salzburg fortress as well, which looked very much like a castle. It has never been taken by force; I understand why. By the time you get up there, you're too tired to fight. 

The best part of the city for me was the fact that the entire city was Mozart-nuts. We arrived at the perfect time, during Mozart Week. There were shops everywhere showing his embellished image, his music, you name it. They even showed his talented older sister, and someone I admire very much, Nannerl. We were able to visit her grave, which was next to the catacombs nested in the mountains. She was buried with Michael Haydn, Joseph Haydn's younger brother. I felt badly that they were buried together in this particular spot, because it seemed very much for the tourist aspect of things. 

On Mozart's birthday, we had dinner and rushed over to his birthplace in order to get some of his birthday cake. We were squished and pushed for 10+ minutes to get a piece of cake, but we were ultimately victorious! It was delicious, and a very special experience. A funny thing that happened was when a children's choir sang mozart's piece "Bella Nox". If you look up the lyrics, you will see why it is so funny that they were singing it. 

After that, we headed over to see the amazing Vienna Philharmonic. We sat pretty close to the stage, and had a perfect view of the basses. They absolutely shredded. The strings were some of the most amazing I've seen. 

-Lydia