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A Day In Salzburg - December 4th,
1999
It
seems unbelievable to think that a journey from Norwich to Austria
takes less time than a trip to London. But it is so as we found out
today.
We flew to
Salzburg, had about six hours sight-seeing, flew home and were
indoors by 10 p.m!!
It was an early
start at about 6 a.m. We were at Norwich Airport by 7.15 a.m and the
flight to Salzburg took just under two hours.
Salzburg airport is about four miles from the centre but it was a
slow crawl in thanks to the number of tourist coaches. The guide was
entertaining, telling us about the writing of Silent Night and
debunking the theory that in the Sound of Music the Von Trapp family
waltzed across the fields to safety in Switzerland. "Had they
have gone over those fields they would have entered Nazi Germany and
been anything but safe. They actually took the train to
Switzerland" - rather makes a lie of the "hills are alive
with the sound of music" idea, but why spoil a good story with
the truth?
Six hours was
just about enough to get a real feel for quite a compact city. The
centre is full of picturesque, narrow streets and Salzburg is split
into the new and old town by the River Salz.
Being close to
Christmas the shops were bright and colourful and the best view of
the town came from a long climb up to a monastary well above the
roofs of the city.
The Cathedral
was well worth a visit and as darkness fell the streets became very
busy with people attending the Christmas market. Nothing new here
but a welcome cup of mulled wine helped to pass the time.
Overall I would
describe Salzburg as attractive and interesting, rather than
essential. One day is just about enough to gain a feel for the
place, but worth a visit. But of course if you are a Mozart fanatic
there are always the Mozart chocolates, the Mozart guide books. His
face appears everywhere and particularly around Christmas time!!!!
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