A Grand Tour!

When I was seven, my grandparents took a long and fascinating tour around Europe, taking in numerous countries in the style of great artists and poets before them (only, instead of those romantic horse-drawn days, Grandma and Grandad went on a Wallace Arnold coach!)  As part of the great family history project, I've been busy collected some of the photos of this Grand Tour, and what a wonderful snapshot in time they are.  So why not come on a journey with me, back to 1992, to an age before digital cameras, when tours and holidays were booked face-to-face with the travel agent, and when a trip around Europe meant several different currencies in your pocket.

Somewhere on the English Channel, Mr. and Mrs. Major are heading to The Netherlands, to Zoetermeer near Amsterdam, to view the Floriade, a once-every-ten-years flower show (ask Grandma about it today, and she'll still tell you how colourful it was!)  From there, they will visit Amsterdam, before taking a trip down the Rhine, and eventually make it to the Bavarian town of Oberammergau, famous for its passion play and woodcarvings.  After this, it's a short hop to the Austrian city of Innsbruck, then on to Salzburg and Vienna, where Grandad will insist they go in search of the Beautiful Blue Danube.  They find it, too!

The Floriade

Oberammergau

Grandad at the River Salzach in Salzburg

The Beautiful Blue Danube at Vienna

After a whistle-stop tour of Austria, it's on to the magical city of Venice.  Grandma recalls how she never thought she'd get to see the city, but having seen pictures and paintings for nearly 70 years, she finally makes it.  Grandad, meanwhile, enjoys the architecture of the Doge's Palace, as seen in a previous blog post!  Rested and rejuvenated by Venice's soporific air, the tour moves on again to bustly, dusty Rome, where Grandma drops her camera, resulting in a unique holiday snap of some roadworks.  After Rome, it's the cultural hotspots of Florence and Pisa, before the stylish French riviera lures the tour group, to Monaco and Nice.

Venice, looking toward to San Giorgio Maggiore

Unusual holiday snaps in Rome

Michelangelo's David, in Florence

Monte Carlo

By now, the Swiss Alps are calling our globe trekkers, the lakeside towns of Thun, Interlaken (it's got a bit of a reputation in our family as a place to be!) and Lucerne nestled into prestine mountainous landscape, and a firm favourite with Grandma and Grandad.  Finally, in one final city stop before returning home, the workhorse of a coach trundles all the way up the backbone of France, stopping for a little exploration in Paris, a fantastic way to end the trip of a lifetime!

View between Interlaken and Lucerne

Wooden bridge, Lucerne

Up in the Alps

What an amazing journey, seeing some of the very best that Europe has to offer, and a wonderful photographic record to live in the family forever.  And not to forget the family, they even brought us presents - I eventually grew too big for my Florence baseball cap, but I can still picture it today, absolutely covered in little pictures of the city's iconic towers and cathedral.  It really is surprising how interesting other people's holiday snaps can be, so if this has piqued your interest, why not take a look at the rest of the collection?

Ploughs, Puppets and Perchten

Rolling out of bed a little later than usual, I draw back the curtains to reveal the hotel courtyard, covered in perfect-white snow.  It isn't inches thick, but it's enough to make Salzburg appear picture-postcard perfect for our last full day in the city.

The snow ploughs are out in force when we reach the old town, bulky bright orange vehicles with massive shovels on their fronts.  Their role in the winter is absolutely crucial, keeping the arteries of the city clear for traffic.  It is obvious that those who operate these vehicles thoroughly enjoy their challenge, and who wouldn't - I think they look like great fun to drive.

Snow Plough hard at work

Our destination - and the weather really has made this the perfect day for it - is Festung Hohensalzburg, the city's fortress, which sits like a mighty crown on the Festungsberg Mountain, keeping careful watch over the city as it has done for over 700 years.  It is reached by way of a funicular, from which Salzburg's squares, spires, towers and rooftops fall away with some rapidity.  From the top, there is not an inch of the city hidden from view, and it is almost fairytale-like to look over.

A snowy view over Salzburg

Inside Festung Hohensalzburg

Festung Hohensalzburg is the best preserved fortress in Europe.  Construction began in 1077 and was expanded on for centuries, becoming more-and-more fortified as the importance of Salzburg grew.  Inside, the fortress houses a military museum, but the best experience is gained from simply wandering the complex, archways and alleyways, and admiring the view.  Looking away from the city, the fortress itself is overshadowed by the mighty Untersberg, shrouded in wintry mist.  In one of the outlying fields, a singular house, surrounded by a neat little hedge, stands very lonely.  This is Hangman's House, the home of the fortress executioner in days gone by.  As nobody wanted to live next to him, the hangman was made to live a solitary existence, surrounded only by grass and, in December, snow.

Lizzie and the misty Untersberg

Hangman's House

Within the cavernous, dungeon-like fortress, we discover a delightful museum dedicated to string puppets.  The Marionette Museum may be only one-room in size, but it is on the good side of quirky.  Exhibits include the Sound of Music characters and a recreation of Mozart's homecoming following his tour of Europe.  It makes for a fun (not to mention warm) ten minutes.

Mozart in the Marrionette Museum

Back down the fortress funicular and into the slushy streets, we go in search of the Nonnberg Convent - the oldest convent north of the Alps - but find it closed for the week.  This gives us the rest of the day to have a final wander through the markets, where the atmosphere has definitely intensified as the week has gone on.  Excitement is actually close to fever pitch, as the residents of the city prepare for one of their pre-Christmas traditions - the releasing of the Perchten.  According to local tradition, the Perchten is a demonic creator, half man, half god, who appears at the end of the year accompanied by evil figures.  These evil figures not only help her to protect the residents of the city, but also assist her in dishing our punishments.  We squeeze into the packed cathedral square, and watch as lederhosen-clad men perform with whips and instruments.  At the far end of the crowd, screaming starts, and the Perchten - a man dressed in a hideous mask - is let loose on the crowd.  Her minions - in equally grotesque attire - carry giant pairs of scissors, which snap at onlookers who are too close to the action.  Lizzie and I edge slowly backwards, slightly bemused but also absorbed - this is one custom we'll probably never witness again, and it certainly captures the imagination of the locals.

The Nonnberg Convent

Nightfall in this beautiful city, our final meal taken in an individual little restaurant with an Austrian-Italian-Indian edge, where we tick another first off our list with a dessert of Salzburger Nockerl.  This dish, which is only made in Salzburg, is a sweet soufflé, a mountain of meringue topping over a mix of forest fruits, very difficult to describe.  The presentation represents the hills surrounding the city - Gaisberg, Mönchsberg and Nonnberg - whilst its dusting with powdered sugar resembles their snow covered peaks.  It is perhaps a bit too eggy for my taste, but it's a fine way to finish the week in classically Salzburg style.

Nockerl

We wander back to the hotel in the evening chill, all along the way bidding farewell to places we have grown to love in a few short days - Salzburg Cathedral, Getreidegasse, the River Salzach, Cafe Habakuk, the Christmas markets, St Peter's Abbey...  Tomorrow we will be on a plane back home, back with our families, to a place where the only white Christmas is on a greetings card, where snowmen are the realm of Disney films, where the climate will be positively balmy.  But in our hearts, we'll be taking mountains and markets, rhinos and reindeer, snow ploughs, string puppets, hockey pucks, fortresses, churches, ice skates, sachertorte, nockerl, and plenty of snow.  What a beautiful place!

Which nutcracker to choose?

Nightfall in Salzburg

Music Museums and Mozart

It is impossible to visit Salzburg without feeling the presence of Mozart.  The composer's image is everywhere, his music wafting through the streets and shops, his brand of chocolates available in all the supermarkets, his aftershave for sale in every souvenir shop.  Mozart never much cared for the city, finding it boring, but the city has never forgotten him, nor has its love for him diminished over the centuries.  After a breakfast of sachertorte and apple strudel, Lizzie and I went in search of the world-famous composer, starting at the house of his birth.  This is what we discovered.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on 27 January 1756, in an impossible-to-miss yellow property on Salzburg's main shopping street, Getreidegasse, in the very heart of the city's old town.  The son of Leopold and Anna Maria, Wolfgang was the youngest of seven children, of which only two survived - himself and his elder sister, Maria Anna, known as Nannerl.  Both the children exhibited phenomenal talent from a very early age, but it was Wolfgang that most surprised his father, so much so that Leopold gave up his own composing efforts to concentrate fully on his son.  This must also be the reason why, during Wolfgang's teenage years, the Mozarts moved across the river, to a bigger and newer building, more grand, spacious and luxuriously decorated, and also much quieter - the perfect place for a budding composer to find the space and air he required.

Mozart's birthplace, 9 Getreidegasse

Mozart's Residence

It was this childhood talent that would take both youngsters travelling all over Europe, beginning with an exhibition at the court of the Prince-elector Maximilian III of Bavaria in Munich, in 1762.  The journey continued to Vienna and Prague, then Mannheim, Paris, London, The Hague, Zurich, and Donaueschingen, meeting along the way numerous musicians and composers.  On their return home, Wolfgang embarked on a tour of Italy with his father, to Milan and Rome, where he was accepted as a member of the Accademia Filarmonica.

On return from Italy, Wolfgang was employed as a court musician by Prince-Archbishop Hieronymus Colloredo, the ruler of Salzburg.  Here he worked in many genres, but developed a particular interest in violin and piano concertos.  Wolfgang, however, grew increasingly restless with his employment and with Salzburg.  When the court theatre closed down, he ventured to Vienna in search of work, but found little.  He was then accompanied by his mother on a quest to Munich, Augsburg and Mannheim, before he investigated a post to be an organist at Versailles.  At this time, Mozart fell into debt and took to pawning valuables.  His lack of funds is probably the reason why he delayed in calling a doctor when his mother took ill whilst in Paris.  She died on 3 July 1778.

The Mozart family around 1780 (Source: Wikipedia)

Wolfgang returned to Salzburg all the more dissatisfied.  In 1781, he was summoned to Vienna, where Archbishop Colloredo was attending the celebrations for the accession of Joseph II to the Austrian throne.  He was offended when he was forbidden to perform before the Emperor, resigning his position after a quarrel.  He nonetheless settled in Vienna, persuing his career as an independent performer and composer.  This began well, his work soon being performed throughout the German world, his reputation growing.  Wolfgang moved in with the Weber family, with whom he'd had previous correspondence in Mannheim, and went on to marry the family's third daughter, Constanze Weber, on 4 August 1782.  The couple had six children; Karl Thomas Mozart and Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart were the only two survivors.
  
Between 1782 and 1788, Wolfgang wrote his most famous operatic works, The Magic Flute, The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni.  Leopold died in 28 May 1787, and in December of that year Wolfgang was appointed "chamber composer" to Emperor Joseph II.  Court records have revealed that Joseph intended to keep Wolfgang from leaving Vienna.
  
The beginning of the Austro-Turkish War in 1787 saw Mozart hit harder times, as the level of prosperity in Vienna declined.  In 1788, the Mozart family moved to a suburb of Vienna to reduce rental expenses although, it seems, he merely increased his housing space without saving a penny.  Mozart began to borrow money, and it is suggested that the composer began to suffer with depression.  As he seemed to be recovering his situation, he was struck down with illness, and by November 1791, his health had somewhat deteriorated.  Bedridden, suffering from swelling, pain and vomiting, he was nursed by his wife and her youngest sister, and was attended to by the family doctor, Thomas Franz Closset.  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died in his home on 5 December 1791.  He was aged only 35. 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, painted posthumously by Barbara Krafft in 1819 (Source: Wikipedia)

We leave Mozart's residence, via the obligatory shop, and step out into the late afternoon air.  Back at Mozartplatz, (and much to Lizzie's insistence!), we don our ice skates and take to the rink.  Now, I've never been ice skating before, but I find the whole thing impossible to master.  Children of only 9 or 10 years old zoom confidently past us as we cling to the side, hardly daring to take a step out to the middle of the ice.  "Helicopter arms" is how Lizzie describes me when I do venture away from the edge, limbs flailing all ways, whilst the statue of Wolfgang Amadeus looks down on us in judgement.  Of course, he probably mastered this at the age of five.

In the shadow of Wolfgang Amadeus

Ice skating on Mozartplatz

Rhinos, Reptiles and Reindeer

Out early and well wrapped-up in another frozen Austrian morning.  There hasn't been any fresh snow, but what had previously laid has not melted, the pavement slush of the previous evening now hard, shiny ice.  It makes for trecherous walking conditions (excluding the local Salzburg population, who seem to continue life like it was a warm spring day), but the two of us eventually make it to the bus stop, for the Number 25 to Untersberg.

Half an hour later, just outside the city and in suroundings that look and feel particularly Alpine, we step out.  The bus departs and we are left alone, as if abandoned at the side of a country road.  Beyond the fields, the singular, enormous mountain - The Untersberg - rises off the flat land, snow-capped, mesmerisingly beautiful.  Regional folklore is all based around this location; Emperor Frederick Barbarossa is said to be sleeping inside the mountain, attended to by dwarf-like creatures called the Untersberg Mandln.  Every hundred years he awakes, but on checking that ravens are still flying around the mountain, he falls back to sleep.  Myth has it that his long beard has grown twice around a table, and when it reaches its third loop, the world will come to an end.  At this time, Frederick will leave the mountain to commence the final battle of humankind.

The Untersberg

On the other side of the road, one of the best little zoos we have ever been to is open for business, although practically deserted in the pre-Christmas run-up.  Lizzie buys a bag of sheep food that costs almost as much as the ticket, and is quickly set upon by a variety of woolly creatures.  One sheep leads to two, and eventually she has nine or ten clamoring for pellets.

Lizzie and her sheep

The zoo runs along a narrow strip of land around a rocky formation, that forms a stunning natural backdrop.  Within the spacious enclosures are the usual animals - lions, camels, zebra, rhinos - as well as some of the more wintery variety; there are big-horned mountain sheep, snow leopards and, aptly, beautiful reindeer.  Perhaps the most popular exhibit, however, is the reptile house, where a few other stragglers have gathered for warmth.  In what is now freezing rain, the lives of tropical frogs, tortoises and iguanas become even more fascinating. 

At Salzburg Zoo

Rhinoceros

Salzburg Zoo lies in the grounds of Hellbrunn, a palace which would have made an excellent visit, if only it was open out-of-season.  Instead, we board the Number 25 back into the city, where the afternoon calls for some indoor activity, courtesy of the Natural History Museum.  There are various interactive exhibits in the human biology section, galleries of taxidermy from bygone days, fossils, minerals, and a space room with a life-size diorama of Neil Armstrong's first steps on the Moon.  On the lower floors, a sizable section is given over to snakes and reptiles, including an enclosure for inquisitive crocodiles, whilst on the ground level, a 36-tank aquarium completes the natural history experience beautifully.

Ammonite

Fabulous aquarium

Darkness has set in by the time we leave the museum, and cross the Salzach back into the New Town.  We have an early start in the morning, so the evening is a quiet affair spent at a little Italian pizzeria.  It is quite a place mind you - a seemingly one-man operation by a genuine Italian himself, who takes the orders, serves the drinks, cooks the food, and delivers it to the table with a big smile on his face.  It's not bad tasting either - onion soup for starters, followed by a chargrilled vegetable pizza, finished off with an ice cream crepe, and all washed down with a tall glass of Salzburg beer.  Delicious!

History, Hockey and Habakuk

Salzburg, Austria, home of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, setting to the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical classic, The Sound of Music, capital of the Salzburg region, and arguably Austria's cultural centre, a perfect winter wonderland for Lizzie and I to do some pre-Christmas exploration.

Our first impressions are good.  Austria is a new one on both our lists (although I've technically been before, cutting through the country on a non-stop sleeper train to Rome), and our first faltering steps through the sludge and the snow and into the city's New Town reveal a city of sobriety and taste.  Incidentally, the beautiful new town is supposed to be the uglier part of the city centre, but it is new in name only, dating as far back as the 14th century, although several houses had to be rebuilt following the great fire of 1818.  

In Salzburg's new town

Sunday morning and time for breakfast.  We pick a cafe called Habakuk, situated in the heart of the New Town, enticing passers-by with its dazzling number of window cakes.  What follows for us are two very reasonably priced breakfasts, unlike anything we've quite had before.  Orange juice and delicious hot chocolate, two fresh bread roles each, then three-tiered stands - one each! - laden with ham, cheese, cucumber and cream cheese.  By now, the table is full, but the food keeps coming - eggs next - and it is clear that we have the attention of nearly everyone in the cafe.  It is, however, the perfect set-up for a cold and busy day ahead.

Lizzie gets busy with breakfast

Salzburg's New Town is divided from the old by the Salzach River, a tributary of the River Inn that for several miles forms the Austrian border with Germany.  The most convenient crossing point is the massive Staatsbrücke - "State Bridge" - the dark history of which can be found in the slave labour of the Second World War.  On the opposite bank ones enters the historic and atmospheric way of life of Old Town Salzburg.  In its current form, this heart of the city dates back to at least the 700s, with the foundation of St. Peter's Abbey and the Nonnberg Convent.  The several squares, archways, winding streets, churches and towers are crammed in, every inch of the place a cultural hotspot.  No wonder it is recognised by the United Nations; Salzburg's historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The River Salzach from the Staatsbrücke

Our destination is the city's history museum, which gives a colourful overview of Salzburg's long life.  Human activity in the area can be traced back some 6,000 years to the Neolithic, when a settlement was established on the nearby Rainberg hill.  In the Bronze Age, the Illyrians settled here to take advantage of the surrounding copper resources, but in the following centuries the region would become better known for its salt mining industry.  The Roman army marched into the area in 15BC and built the city of Juvavum, which was awarded the status of municipium in AD45.  Juvavum became one of the Empire's most important administrative centres in the coming centuries, but was eventually laid waste by the Bavarians around AD500.

Fast forward to 696, and Bishop Rupert of Worms, who was granted an area of land including the remains of the Roman city.  Rupert founded the Monastery of St. Peter and the Nonnberg Convent, both still active today, and both the oldest surviving communities of their kind.  Salzburg became a bishopric in 739, quickly rising to become one of the principal sites outside of the Vatican.  In 996, Salzburg was awarded a town charter by Emperor Otto III, and a century later its iconic Hohensalzburg Fortress was built, to protect the town after it took the side of Pope Gregory II in a power struggle with the Holy Roman Emperor.

Otto III from the Gospels of Otto III (source: Wikipedia)

Hohensalzburg Fortress remained heavily fortified, although it was unable to prevent Frederick Barbarossa setting fire to the town in 1167.  The town was rebuilt under Archbishop Konrad III, who also started work on the first cathedral.  Salt mining, meanwhile, was providing the town with much wealth, allowing the Salzburg archbishops to wield great power in the region.  Tensions between the Bavarian and Austrian royal houses came to a head in the early 14th century, and the two powers went to war.  Salzburg, which technially belonged to the Duchy of Bavaria, sided with Austria and, although Bavaria won the decisive battle, they were forced to concede Salzburg's independence.  It was now an autonomous state, sandwiched between the two much larger neighbours.

Salzburg suffered as much as any other European city in 1348, losing one third of its population in the plague. In the centuries that followed, the town grew in importance, with the addition of many new merchants' houses and improved fortifications at the fortress.  In May 1525, the peasants of Salzburg rebelled, seized control of the city, and negotiated terms with Archbishop Matthaus.  In the aftermath, the Archbishop took a hardline approach, eventually defeating the peasants in 1526.

In 1587, Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau was elected, bringing with him a new vision for the city, overseeing the architecture of modern Salzburg.  Down came the 'undesirable' buildings, and in came open squares, grand residences, and the Mirabell palace, built for his mistress.  Reconstruction continued with his successor, Markus Sittikus, who laid the foundation stone for the imposing cathedral we see today.  He in turn was followed by prince Archbishop Paris Graf von Lodron, whose greatest acheivement was to keep Salzburg out of the Thirty Years' War raging between Catholics and Protestants all over Europe. 

Paris Graf von Lodron (Source: Wikipedia)

The dominance of the Archbishops came to an end in 1800, when Napoleon defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo, whilst another French army captured Munich and Linz.  In the ensuing struggle, Salzburg was bounced back and fourth between its lager neighbours, eventually being incorporated into Austria when the Great Powers - Austria, Prussia, Russia and Britain - re-drew the map of Europe at the Congress of Vienna, following Napoleon's defeat.

Salzburg was left more-or-less to its own affairs for the next hundred years or so.  With the outbreak of World War I, 49,000 Salzburgers were conscripted to fight, although the city itself saw no battles.  Following the war, Austria was formally declared a Republic and twenty years later, the country was annexed by Nazi Germany.  During World War II, the city escaped the worst of the conflict again, but was bombed several times as the war reached its conclusion.  In May 1945, American troops entered the city, overseeing reconstruction for the next decade.  In 1967, a preservation order was placed on the Old Town.

We leave the history museum a little wiser as to the story of the city.  Around the next corner, standing tall and imposing, is Salzburg Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Rupert of Salzburg.  Carolers gather on the cathedral steps, carefully avoiding the sheets of ice that have melted just enough to slide from the rooftop in the weak winter sun.  In the cathedral square - Domplatz - the hustle and bustle of the famous Christmas markets is infectious, an assault on the senses of the eyes, the ears and the nose.

Domplatz and the Cathedral

The interior of Salzburg Cathedral

In the increasingly chilly afternoon, we take a brisk walk to St. Peter's Cemetery, a stone's throw from the cathedral, but a much quieter part of town.  The site dates back to 1627, making it the oldest cemetery in the city.  The sprinkling of snow over the wrough-iron grave markers is very beautiful, as is the entire setting, nestled in the shadow of the Mönchsberg, one of the mountains shaping Salzburg's townscape.  Within this mass of rock, early Christians carved out their catacombs, accessed by a narrow and precarious set of crumbly stone steps.  Inside, a few simple rooms, an alter, some murals and inscriptions belie what would have been a phenomenal achievement - a true testament to the fact that faith can, afterall, move mountains.

St. Peter's Cemetery

Catacombs built into the rock face

In the rapidly setting sunlight, we stroll along the Salzach, admiring the riverside properties and picking the ones we would most like to live in.  We're on our way to the Eisarena, home to Salzburg's championship-winning ice hockey team, the Red Bulls.  A fast-paced, ferocious contest against the Linz Black Wings ensues, with the visiting fans bringing a partizan atmosphere to the arena.  Three times Linz take the lead, three times the Red Bulls pull the game back, before a succession of Salzburg goals prove decisive in the third period, and the home team skate out 6-4 winners.

Salzburg Eisarena, home of the Red Bulls

Salzburg Red Bulls v Linz Black Wings

Later in the evening, now below freezing, we return to the Christmas markets for a browse and a pretzel.  The variety at the stalls is fabulous - candles, decorations, bath salts, glassware, wooden gifts, lace - not to mention the myriad food choices of sausages, pastries, chocolate, fruit punch and the famous Glühwein.  We opt for hot fruit punch in the end, which is both tasty and hand-warming in the bitter evening air.  It may make the walk back to the hotel a little wobbly, but its a winning winter warmer to round off a packed-out introduction to Salzburg.

Enjoying a late-night pretzel