Mein Dammen und Herren, wilkommen to Osterreich!
Due to an on the fly decision on our part (we all voted. Democracy and all that you know.), we bypassed Innsbruck and headed straight for the city of Salzburg. Our lodgings this time, the International Youth Hostel in Salzburg, catering to the young (duh) and the budget traveler.
A word about hostels: according to Bill, who has stayed in plenty of hostels, this one was about the middle of the road. It was clean, but busy. The hostel had a bar downstairs from our room, and it didn't quiet down until 1 AM. Most everything is public, both the toilets and the showers. There are several types of rooms available, the single, the quad, the double, and the dorm. As the names suggest, the single has the least number of people sleeping in one room (you), while the dorm is full of both beds and people.
Having three people in our group, we opted for the quad. One extra body, not too bad. Unfortunately, you also pay for your privacy, with the dorm rooms going for dirt cheap. Our room went for about 12 dollars for each of us. The beds were OK, my only gripe about the beds is that (ego boost here) being about 6'2" or so, I don't exactly fit in most twin beds. Or at least fit all the way. So I was denied the chance to stretch out for the night since the beds had metal footboards.
If you want to take a shower, you have to purchase one. Buy a token for 1 dollar, and you get 6 minutes to wash before the water is automatically shut off. This was my first time in a hostel, but all in all I found it to be an interesting experience. We were only staying one night, which was a shame, since there seemed to be a lot of interesting people that you could meet there; a lot of backpackers and college student age people.
Salzburg itself is a cool little town. Well, not little, but smaller than Munich for sure. The hostel was only a five minute walk from the train station (bahnhof), so we dropped our bags there before wandering through the city. Salzburg is Mozart town, with the tourist-trap shops selling Mozart everything. Mozart was both born and lived in Salzburg for many years, and the town takes great pride in having hosted the composer. We took a quick tour of his birthplace before heading off to see the things that didn't have to do with Wolfgang Amadeus.
The first thing we tracked down was the glockenspiel (another one?) which, after having seen the one in Munich, was a bit of a disappointment. This one didn't have any fun little dancing men, only bells that rang out a tune. Right near that there is a copy of the Triton fountain, which is in Rome. Probably the most impressive sight we saw in the city was the Salzburg Cathedral. It took the cake for most impressive church so far. It, unlike the others we've seen, was decorated mostly with marble carvings. Bill and I figured that working on the carvings in the church probably kept a number of carvers employed for a good part (if not all) of their lives. It's kind of hard to describe the carvings, but suffice to say that hardly an inch of marble isn't carved or decorated in some way. (Alix: We also had terrific luck in having an organist begin practicing during our visit. The beauty was to both the eyes and ears. It was truly an uplifting experience.)
We went to the ramparts of the fortress to watch the sun go down and the city light up and then walked the river after a dinner of (what else) schnitzel and beer (for Bill).
Salzburg is also the city of The Sound of Music. Sound of Music tours, Sound of Music reenactments, ad infinitum. Part of the film was shot here, so the city cashes in on what draws the crowds. And why not? Throughout our day in Salzburg we had to endure Bill's best (wurst? Beating a pun to death, I know. But it's punny. And it's not the wurst I could do.) Julie Andrews impression. To experience the wonder for yourself, imagine fingers on a chalkboard mixed with the yowling of an off-key cat. The hills are alive...
We only really scraped the surface of Salzburg, and I would love to go back and see what else the city has to offer.
Last thing: in comparing Austria to Germany, I came to the conclusion that, in general, the people seem to be a lot friendlier. It's interesting how the culture changes when you step a foot southward from the German border. According to Bill, our Germanophile, the Germans just don't really want to be friendly. They keep a close knit circle of friends, people they have known for many years, and there is not much of a middle road between that and "total stranger." The Austrians on the other hand, seem to be much more open and willing to talk.
