I enjoyed Salzburg – plenty to see and a great city for walking about. I probably didn’t get the best of it not being a classical music lover or enjoying fine (= expensive) dining. However there are a few city views that would warrant a return.
Kit – Ricoh KR5 and Fomapan 100
Austria and southern Germany have really eye catching signage on hotels, cafes, shops – whatever some old building needs to identify itself with.
Ricoh KR5 with fomapan 100.
And here’s a few non-Mozart/Maria music themed shots.
As well as Mozart, the other big tourist theme in Salzburg is The Sound of Music. You can get all sorts of bus tours and walking tours, but I went by bike – Fraulein Maria’s Cycle Tour.
Of course the disadvantage of cycle tours is that it’s hard to take photos without stopping every 2 minutes, still there were a few highlights that were worthy of a photo.
First off, the guide isn’t a ‘Maria’. We had a guy with a beard. Good guide – and played the flute.
One of the main stopping points is the Nonnberg Convent
and of course, a selfie…
Ricoh KR5 and the Fomapan 100
Huawei P9
When you arrive in Salzburg, you know you are in Mozart’s town. He’s everywhere in the form of 2 Mozart Houses, numerous statues, music venues and every item of tourist tat you could think of. I have to confess to actually not liking classical music (I’ve watched the Amadeus movie a few times..) and I’ve no real academic interest but he has definitely become a bit of a tourist magnet for the city.
Of the 2 Mozart houses, we visited the Mozartheim – where he grew up before going to Vienna. His birth house in the main shopping area is above a Spar and had much longer queues. There’s no photography permitted inside the Mozartheim – and it is rigorously enforced.
One slightly dodgy statue of Wolzgang is artist Markus Lüpertz’s ‘Hommage to Mozart’ outside St Mark’s church. The half male/female ‘lumpy’ piece isn’t overly prominent in the city tour guides and not too revered by its citizens. It puts the Ronaldo one in a bit of perspective.
Finally despite all the keyrings, stickers, phone covers and countless other pieces of tat, my favourite item of shopping is the Mozart Chocolate Balls. (genuine Salzburg)
Kit – Ricoh KR-5 and Fomapan 100.
On the second day in the southern Austrian metropolis of Villach, a street music festival was taking place. I took some photos, naturally.
A few more shots taken while lurking around the quiet yet delightful Austrian town of Villach.
There’s the usual source of nutrition by the river
A cliched shot of object-obscuring-head
Some decorative cafe/hotel decal – something you see a lot of over here
Ricoh KR-5 and Fomapan 100 providing the imagery.
This part of the trip was a bit unplanned. Trying to get a cheap train north from Ljubljana resulted in a few nights staying in Villach, a town in the Gailtal Alps in southern Austria on the river Drau. I hadn’t heard of until I checked the direction of the railway line on Google Maps. And it turned into quite a nice stopover. We got a good value AirBnB in a residential area overlooking the town and spent a nice 48 hours around the river, churches, statues, squares, beer and food.
A bit like Ireland, there’s no shortage of places to go for a drink. Villach has its own brewery – Villacher beer – and a splendid Brauhof.
Also like Ireland, there’s the church for each bar.
And there’s a statue of the most famous Villacher – painter and sculptor Hanns Gasser
Down by the river, you can get a splendid 2 hour beer cruise with a nice backdrop of bridges and mountains
Kit – Ricoh KR5 and Fomapan 100
