Salzburg, The City Of The Sound Of Music.

Salzburg, the fourth largest city of Austria is especially known for a few things. Firstly its well preserved "Old Town" (Altstadt) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site boasting a host of historic monuments with magnificent baroque architecture. The Hohensalzburg Fortress and Castle that sit atop the Festungsberg, a small hill in Old Town for example, has a 900 year history and is one of the best preserved medieval castles in Europe.

Salzburg is also the birthplace of Mozart, a very famous classical music composer who lived during the 18th century. Though Mozart has long gone he is still well revered and his spirit lives on in the city as streets, cafes, restaurants,  square, buildings, monuments, chocolates, and all types of food and brands are named after this man in Salzburg.  

More than anything else, Salzburg is well known as the place where "The Sound Of Music" is filmed. Those living outside of Europe may or may not have heard of Salzburg but there are few who have not watched or heard of 'The Sound Of Music', a 1965 American musical movie which became one of the most successful productions in cinematic history. The Sound Of Music which I watched closed to half a dozen times is a real life story about the Von Trapp Family singers who lived in Salzburg. Loving the story, the setting and the scenes and then getting to see for myself some of the places where the movie was filmed was indeed an exuberant experience. 

Salzburg is built around the Salzach River which divides the city into two parts. There are 12 bridges that crosses the river but I just walked on Makartsteg Bridge which goes into the Old Town. I have listed some of the places I visited and written brief description of them below.

Makartsteg Bridge 

The Makartsteg Bridge built in 2001 is Salzburg′s most modern bridge. This pedestrian only bridge is also a lover's bridge with thousands of lovelocks secured to its metal bars.

Dominating the skyline of the old town is Hohensalzburg Castle and its fortress which are perched on a small hill. This castle can be seen from The Makartsteg Bridge.

Residence Square And Fountain

The Residence Square is the largest and most beautiful square of Salzburg. Bordered by Salzburg Cathedral, the Residential Palaces and townhouses, this square and all the buildings surrounding it are important historical landmarks in Salzburg.  It is also one of the filming sites of 'The Sound Of Music'.

In the midst of the square is the very ornate Residence Fountain.

Horse carriages that ply this otherwise pedestrianized zone is a tourist attraction and a booster to a medieval ambiance that befits this historic area. 

Salzburg Cathedral, Cathedral Square And Marian Statue

Salzburg Cathedral which is also Salzburg's biggest church faces Cathedral Square.  Both the square and church dated from the 1620s. In the middle of the square stands the 18th century marble statue of Marian.

Mozart's Birthplace

There is a building at Getreidegasse of the Old Town made famous by virtue of the fact that it is the birthplace of Mozart. People flock to see and take photographs of this building painted in a yellow as its third floor was the residence of Mozart's family for more than a quarter decade. Mozart himself was born here in 1756. This place has been turned into a Memorial Museum for Mozart and features among other things Mozart's old musical instruments, portraits and editions of his music.

Hagenauerplatz

Hagenauerplatz which lies right in front of Mozart’s birthplace is one of Salzburg's most popular and robust squares. This square is located on Getreidegasse which is the Old Town's main shopping street.

Buchhandlung Hollrigl is a building which house the oldest bookstores of Austria.

Other Old Town Attractions

 Altes Rathaus (Old Town Hall) with its clock tower. 

Awilda marble sculpture at courtyard of the University of Salzburg

A restaurant at the Old Marketplace which is one of the squares of Old Town.

A nice signage at a street near Salzburg University

Restaurant near Salzburg University

A statue near Makartsteg Bridge

A street musician near Makartsteg Bridge

Mirabell Gardens And Palace

Mirabell Gardens  is another filming site for The Sound Of Music. It features landscaped gardens, statues of Roman gods, fountains and lovely flowers.

The palace with its gardens is a listed cultural heritage monument and part of the Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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