salzburg

SALZBURG

First off please let me give you some trivia on SALZBURG and THE SOUND of MUSIC movie….the English version was only released in Austria 8 years back!!!!! Also it is partially a true story and Von Trapp family does exist and the family moved to the States when the Nazi’s took over Austria.
In the States they used to perform all over before which they performed in the UK. Some other observations about Salzburg and The Sound of Music:-
• The production house thought they would finish the movies in 3 months but owing to bad weather the movie took 11 ½ months to complete. This can be noticed when you realize that they had shot the end at the first schedule and the remaining movies in parts over the 11 ½ months. So basically the children look older in the beginning and look younger at the end!!!
• In the movies they are shown escaping over a mountain which INCIDENTALLLY leads to GERMANY!!!! So that is artistic licensing for you!!!
• Apparently the Austrians have NO FONDNESS for the movies despite it having millions of fans across the globe.
• In Salzburg every year in July / August there is a SOUND of Music festival where about 2 million people visit the city and the current resident population is just 150,000 only. So around the festival time most of the city residents move bag and baggage as the city infrastructure cannot cope with the influx.
• In the movie the butler squealed on the von Trapps but in reality it was he who helped them escape

Now that we are done with that, we can go ahead and enjoy the real Salzburg. It is a medium sized town with the hills all around and the river flowing through…quite picturesque actually.

When we were there we got hit by a spell of cold weather and it was quite windy, not that it dampened our spirits.

We had taken a train for BUDAPEST to SALZBURG and I just cannot compliment the efficiency and service of the Austrian OBB train service. The train was on time, clean and the seats comfortable. Do remember ( talking from this experience ) that normally if the seat is reserved then the destination is marked on the electronic seat number above it. If blank then this seat is unreserved.

After checking into our hostel we headed to look for a lunch place and what a discovery we made – a place called PASTA VINO. I can easily tell you that I have never ever come across such a great restaurant before.

The reason why I am praising it – the people running it. There was the cook / chef / owner called VINCENZO was the most entertaining person I have met. He made the meal so lively and exciting as only an Italian could make it. Regards the food…simply spectacular and the house wine an amazing match. There is no menu and the pasta is cooked fresh, so depends on when you go you may get pasta, spaghetti, fettuccine etc. also there is one option from chicken, fish or veg. the meal is simple and that is what adds to the flavour. It was a GREAT meal.

That night we headed to AUGUSTINER BRAUSTUBL BREWERY.& BEER GARDEN. This place is run by the monks who brew the beer at the same location. What an EXPERIENCE especially for a beer lover like myself. If ever you are in this part of the world DO NOT MISS IT. It is not one of those tourist traps and is so so local that you will stick out like a sore thumb.

The way the system works is that you pick up your glass after choosing from either 500 ml or a 1 litre one. then you pay a grumpy person, for which you have to stand in a huge line. Then again line up to get the beer filled where the person doing this has made it into an art form. Then you head to one of 3 cavernous halls ( outdoors gardens if the weather permits ) and take a place wherever available.

For food you can either choose from 6 food court kind of places and if you want you can get your own food!!!!!! The taste of the beer – PRICELESS!!!!!!!

Another place worth it’s salt is the BIO BISTRO café which sells only organic veggies dishes and is run by an amiable Punjabi from Jammu & Kashmir called Sayal who is based here for the last 20 years.

Other then eating we did actually do quite a lot else. We visited the Mirabell Gardens and the Castle ( though by now I could not make the difference from one castle / palace to the other ) and saw MOZART’s birthplace.

We just walked and people watched and took in the atmosphere as that is what I like the most. There were these people playing chess in the open air on this huge painted chessboard. I met have spent a good part of an hour watching too locals fight it out with their supporters giving them all the possible advice. An afternoon well spent!

Another bit of trivia on Salzburg – the promoter of the all famous drink for die hard party lovers – RED BULL originated from here and has his HQ here. Infact he has an entire island where his HQ is. Also he has an entire Hangar at the local airport where his cars and airplanes are open for public display.

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