Trick Fountains and Mozart

Hellbrunn Castle

We get up planning to catch an 0825 bus from the train station to Hellbrunn Castle. We are out the door a little before 0800. I had asked the desk clerk if there was a stop nearer than the station and she told me Keisler near the mall. As we approach The corner of Keisler, we see a bus # 25 coming and that is the bus we want, so we do a short sprint to the stop. We are 20 minutes ahead of time and get to the Castle at 0830.
The castle itself and the tour we want to take does not open until 0900, but the castle gardens are open. We walk along the very uncrowded gardens and Carol sees a sign for the Sound of Music Pavilion. It is where they sang the song “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” and the city moved it here in 1991. Now we have officially seen a part of the Sound of Music Tour that is popular in this city.
We walk back to the ticket booth which is now open and use our Salzburg Cards to get our tickets for the 0900 tour. We only have about a five minute wait. Construction on the castle was started in 1610 by Prince Archbishop Sittikus who loved to invite VIP guests out for fun in his gardens.

Trick Fountain Seats

We are led into the castle gardens immediately behind the castle, where his water fun happened. Our first stop has a mom and two kids sitting on a stone bench and table. Soon the water is squirting from the seats of the chairs and the ground surrounding the table. There is only one dry seat and that is where the Prince Archbishop would sit. Our tour also goes into a room where birds chirp, the sound is all water powered. More tricks on the way out including water coming out of antlers in a deer decoration on the wall. That one got me wet. Next we see some water powered figures and one large city scene with music also powered entirely by water pressure. Towards the end, I do manage to get Carol in the line of fire telling her to move up a little for a picture. She said that was mean, which may have been true, but I was amused.

Music Room in Hellbrunn

After our trick fountain tour, we tour the castle with a provided audioguide. It is a nice tour and as we exit, we are happy that we started early as the first large tour group shuffles by us. We walk back to the bus stop and catch the ride back to town.
We still have about an hour left on our Salzburg Card so we decide to visit the Mozart Residence, which was not in our original plans. We figure he was a large part of the history of this city so we should learn something about him. We get included audioguide said which really help us learn his family history. It also plays his music while you look at the various instruments he actually played.

Long Lost Heir – Charlie Mozart

We think it is an hour well spent. I also believe that I may be a long lost heir and should get compensation for all the flying Mozarts, bobble Mozarts, Mozart chocolate, Mozart liquor, and various other Mozart kitsch that is rampant in the town.
Leaving Mozart, we return to the deli we went to yesterday to buy another sandwich and Spinach bread. We also go to the supermarket for a cheap beer, soda, and chocolate torte for dessert. Then on to the wall by the river front to eat. It is a very pleasant day out and good people watching.
After lunch, we walk around exploring places and streets we did not see yesterday. We go into the cathedral again, only this time from the street level.

Inspired Sound of Music Scene

Then we walk through St Peters Cemetery, where the Sound of Music scene where they escape in the graveyard was inspired by. The gates around the edge are very close to what was in the movie. We view the inside of St Peters and then just mostly wander, having a very good coconut white chocolate ice cream cone along the way. We cross the river and take a quick walk through the Mirabell gardens and discover another movie scene location by a Pegasus statue and stairs where the kids danced and lined up. Finding these on our own is better than a tour unless you are really into the movie and want to see all the spots in and around town, made famous by the 1964 film.
We go back to the room for an afternoon siesta, satisfied with our Salzburg experience.

Charlie at Augustiner

The only thing left for us to do is go back to the Augustiner Brau Haus for dinner and beer. This is exactly what we do in the evening, enjoying ribs and sausage with our beer. We toast to Dave and Karen who we hope to see tomorrow night in Cesky Krumlov. We make tonight an early one as we have to get up and catch a train in the morning. Before I go, here is my funny story of Austria. When our beers came on our first night in Hallstatt, Carol asked me how do you say cheers in Australian, so I of course said, “G’day Mate”. I am probably in trouble now. Time to leave Austria and find another country.
Expenses
Pretzel for Carol 1.5E
Beer,,soda, and Desert from Supermarket 4.55E
Sandwiches from Deli 5.28E
Ice Cream Cones 2E
Pretzels for tomorrow 3.2E
Dinner and Beer at Augustiner Brau Haus 24.6E
Motel One Salzburg 86.3E
Walked 9 Miles