Why a waltz through Salzburg might be just what you’re needing
Every time I visit Salzburg I can see my breath. There’s just something about this storybook Austrian city in the Alps that makes it so appealing in the chilly festive season. Perhaps it’s the night lights that set aglow fairytale Baroque churches and the hilltop fortress. Perhaps it’s the aroma of warm pretzels, cinnamon and rum that wafts from stalls along crooked, cobbled streets around Universitätsplatz, the city’s main square. It definitely has something to do with the music.
The fourth-largest city in Austria, Salzburg is the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeaus Mozart and the set for many scenes from The Sound of Music. Strolling the streets, you’re guaranteed to hear notes from Requium, or Julie Andrews’ octave-leaping vocals claiming a few of her favourite things. It somehow sounds better when you’re rugged up and searching for a mug of glogg and a slice of gingerbread.
It’s exactly this that I order at Café Tomaselli, where Mozart would also come to escape the cold with a hot chocolate between compositions. Waiters in snappy dinner jackets roam the mirrored rooms leaving steaming glasses of einspänner (strong black coffee with a dash of whipped cream) on the marble-topped tables. From time to time they pick up trays bulging under the weight of cakes: schlotfeger (chocolate-coated, cream-filled pastry rolls), sticky slices of Salzburger nockerl, a white-peaked soufflé, and slices of moist, flaky strudel.
Across the square, horse-drawn carriages line up beside the fountain, and tourists line up to take photos of Mozart’s Geburtshaus, his childhood home and now a museum. Inside, there are some haunting portraits of the musical talent, alongside the tiny violin he played as a child. A short walk away is Mozart’s Wohnhaus, where he lived as a young man. It’s still a shrine to his genius in not only writing music, but also in penning lively letters to friends.
I encounter another queue at Café Konditorei Furst, where tourists come to sample a Mozartkugel. While many establishments across town now sell these bite-size chocolate spheres filled with pistachio-flavoured marzipan and nougat, Konditorei is where they were invented in 1890. Gazing up from the narrow street I see domes and spires, the formidable cliff-top fortress and the mountains beyond.
I have an equally impressive view from my hotel on the outskirts of town at Schloss Leopoldskron. This incredible estate was one of the film sets for The Sound of Music. Today, it’s a lovely lakeside hotel and museum – the heritage-listed main building, an 18th century Rococo castle, is home to a jaw-dropping collection of art and books belonging to the onetime owner, prince Leopold Firmian. Neat rooms overlook a pebbled courtyard in the newer building, but a number of suites still occupy the stately home and come with antique furniture, wooden floors and deep soaking tubs.
Nearby is Schloss Hellbrunn, a Renaissance-inspired pleasure palace with fountains and the gazebo that witnessed so much wooing in The Sound of Music. And there’s also the Mirabellgarten, where Andrews sang Do Rei Mi with her entourage of children. The lavishly landscaped Baroque gardens – a patchwork of hedges, fountains, roses and dwarf statues – surround the Mirabell Palace, built in 1606 by prince-archbishop Wolf Dietrich for his beloved Salome Alt. Inside, a marbled hall hosts regular classical music concerts.
After exploring the Altstadt’s grand churches, gardens and squares, I cross the river Salzach to take in the completely different atmosphere of the narrow, 16th-century Steingasse, where working people once lived and worked. Today, shops, galleries and quirky bars now beckon. Here, Salzburg’s museum of modern art has important works by Klimt and Kokoschka and exciting shows by contemporary artists. It’s also on this side of the river that you’ll find Hotel Sacher, home to that torte. The recipe has never been revealed, of course, but it is so dense and rich that it’s suitable to be packed in your suitcase and brought home to Australia as a souvenir. If it lasts that long.
Written by Natasha Dragun. Republished with permission of MyDiscoveries.