Our rental van had GPS and we were told there was a parking lot outside Salzburg. The plan was to park there then take public transportation into the city to avoid driving in the city. We missed that parking lot. Before we realized it, we were driving in the city. I looked up and saw a parking garage and we decided to park there. It was full so we had to drive around inside it for 10 minutes or so before a car left for us to park. Little did we know that we were in the closest parking garage to where we were headed. (Our vacation was covered in prayer and we saw answered prayers over and over and over again.)
Mirabell Congress Parking Garage - I took a photo so we could show it to people in case we were lost and couldn't find our way back.
Our first stop was Mirabellgarten (Mirabell Garden) where Maria and the children are seen dancing around singing "Do-Re-Mi" in the musical. It looked just like it did in the musical!
Fountain in Mirabellgarten (Mirabell Garden)
We didn't have bicycles to ride through here but we ran and skipped and sang!
One of my favorite views of Mirabellgarten
(Notice the fortress on the hill in the background. Unfortunately, we did not have time to go up to it.)
(Notice the fortress on the hill in the background. Unfortunately, we did not have time to go up to it.)
Salzach River that runs through Salzburg
Birthplace of Mozart
We toured Mozart's birthplace. This map amazed me at how much traveling ("touring") he did during his short lifetime in the days before trains and planes.
Mozart's sons worked with the city of Salzburg to commission a statue in memory of their father. It took us a while to find it but we finally did.
Walking the streets of Salzburg with all the shops and restaurants
We had lunch at a restaurant on one of the streets we were walking. Then we headed back to Mirabell Plaza for an afternoon tour. We stopped by Mozart's Residence on the way. We just didn't have much time to spend there.
Mozart's Residence after he was seven years old until he became an adult
We took a guided tour in the afternoon to see all the sights in The Sound of Music. The first stop was at the gazebo used in the musical. After filming the musical, "Hollywood" gave the gazebo to the city of Salzburg.
Our tour guide said that they used to let tourists inside the gazebo but the tourists kept getting hurt. Can you guess why? If you've seen the musical, you'll know. Our girls were disappointed that they didn't get to jump from bench to bench.
The "road" Maria skipped down to the house where she would meet the Captain and his children. Hollywood pieced together several locations to make it look like one place. We didn't get close enough to the house to take any photos. It is a private residence and they do not allow tourists. Only the outside was used in the musical. The inside was a Hollywood set.
Clicking her heels together...just like Maria did on this lane! :)
The "water scene" had to be filmed two times. The youngest child actor was afraid of water. Julie Andrews assured her that she would catch her. Well, she did the first time. But the second time, they fell off opposite sides of the boat and Julie Andrews could not reach her. Our tour guide said that person is still afraid of water to this day. The child refused to film the scene again so the producers had to use parts of both scenes for the final product.
The back of the "house" used for the boat scene in The Sound of Music. Tourists are not allowed in that building because it is a conference center. However, we could see it from the other side of the lake. Our oldest thought it would be fun to fall in like the children. (Thankfully, she stayed dry.)
We drove about 40 minutes outside the city to see other sights. The fall colors were amazing!
Hollywood used parts of different geographical locations in filming the opening scene. If you go to Austria, you will not find the land and lakes just as in the musical. They even used parts of Germany. They also removed the fortress from the mountain so you just see the abbey.
The lake used for the opening scene of the musical. (Dad's getting excited that the tour is getting closer to ending.)
The church where the Captain and Maria got married in the musical. This was not where they married in real life.
The trees where the children were climbing when the Captain, the Baroness and Uncle Max passed by in the car. The trees were so tall that the children had to be lifted up in the trees to film the scene.
Our tour bus
While riding around Salzburg and the countryside, our tour guide played all the songs from the musical for a sing-a-long. Dad even joined in a couple of times to our girls' delight. B on the other hand endured the tour but was happy when it ended. Did you know that "Edelweiss" is not an Austrian folk song? If you go to Austria, most Austrians do not know it. Actually, most have not even seen The Sound of Music. Our tour guide said the first time she saw it was when she was asked to lead the tours with her company.
An evening in Salzburg walking across the river
The bridge Maria and the children biked across in the musical
Salzburg was beautiful at sunset.
Oh, Salzburg, we would love to visit you again!!
We had no trouble finding our van and driving back to Schliersee. What a fun day we had seeing so many places we recognized and discovering many new ones!
1 comment:
We have lots of the same pictures minus ones from the tour...as I was voted against for that one. Again. I loved all of the places in the city center area though! And did anyone tell you why all the locks are on the bridge that you crossed? Someone told us that they do that when they get married. Did you see any street musicians? Salzburg had the best ones that we heard all year.
Post a Comment