She was in Salzburg

On to Salzburg, I took an early morning train in from Vienna but this has its pros and cons.

One of the better breakfasts I had, super yum meatloaf sandwich. And it was cheap

Pros - You reach bright and early and that's always a good start because you would have time to walk. As I said, I start my days early so this was not a big issue to me

Cons - Waste of hostel money. If you think about it, I can actually save one night of stay in Vienna and head towards Salzburg in the evening of my 3rd day rather than morning of my 4th day. It's a one hour plus journey away, so I technically would not arrive too late. But I was not big on night arrivals, and it was too near to take a midnight train. So I guess either way I would have to pay for a short one night accommodation whether it is in Vienna or Salzburg. Other option is to leave mid afternoon (4pm ish) and arrive in Salzburg in time for some light and nightlife.

So, Salzburg. I've never watched the Sound of Music, or at least I don't remember. But the meadows sure entice one to feel like they need to run across the greenery. It was a really clean city like Vienna, though much more quiet especially since the area I'm staying was technically outside of the tourist attraction.

Salzburg has two parts; the old city, where most attractions are and the new city, where the trains, hostels and businesses are and both are separated by the Salzach River.

Transportation: Buses mainly, cause there are no metros or tram. But everything was within walking distance so I just used what God gave me, my legs.

Base/Hostel: YoHo Youth Hostel
Location: 3/5
Environment: 4/5
Dorm: 3/5
I got a 4-person bedroom with shared bathroom so I thought it was inconvenient to have to go to the bathroom which is shared by everyone on that floor. That said and done, shower amenities were good, if you are early, the 4 bathroom stalls are not packed, it was clean and there was ample space. Environment was lively, it was a really colourful building, but as I was there for only a day plus, I did not hangout at the common area. The dorm was smaller with only four people, but there was a lack of plugpoints, and for travel that's never good news. Really funny that my dorm mates that night were all Asian females, from Korea, Japan and Taiwan, and darn friendly.
Location wise, it's a half-half between the old town and new town, so not too bad. Though it can be difficult to find it at the start because if you take a wrong turning (like I did), you venture deeper into new town instead.

What a colourful front door no? 

Day 1
Geitredegasse
Alter Markt
University Square Market
Hohensalzburg Fortress
Cathedral
Mirabell Gardens
Linzer-Gasse

Salzburg's old town is pretty small actually, all those markets and streets are actually located in the same area and interconnected. While not much about history, I really enjoyed walking and taking photos because the architecture was quite distinct from Vienna. It was more classic, and had a more "historical" vibe to it.

A lot of shopping can be done, again, mostly clothes and other expensive stuff which I was not interested in. I did do some shopping for souvenirs, but I was taking photos and just taking in the scenery as I was walking down these streets.

University Square Market - had more stalls than Alter Market when I went

One thing I had to do in Salzburg was to try the Kaischerschmarn, which is a traditional Austrian dessert made of chopped up egg pancakes served with plum stew. Simply because I didn't manage to try it in Vienna. So I was hunting cafes that served those. And I found it *JOY!*

YUMMEH.

My sightseeing was limited to Hohensalzburg Fortress which you can choose to walk up to the hill it was on, or take the cable-car-elevator-thingamajig. I did half and half so I took elevator up (at this point my feet still hurt massively) and walked down. Spent a good 2 hours plus there as it was huge. The ticket price included a guided tour in the residential area of the fortress and after that there are a few museums where you can visit on your own. There was the Puppeteer Museum and another two historical museums, with names in Austrian that I can't remember.

The walk down was scenic and lovely, so if you had better brains than me to wear good shoes, do save your money on the elevator, and do the walk.

Part of the Hohensalzburg Fortress

View from the Hohensalzburg Fortress

After that it was to the Cathedral, and it was HUGE. Very gorgeous. In terms of architecture, probably more similar to Karlskirche than Stephansdom. Spent some time there in peace.

I actually really liked the interior of the Cathedral. It was not elaborate with mosaics, or colours, but the paintings and colour scheme was lovely.

Then it was on to more walking really, I was looking for souvenirs from Austria for a couple of people, and the markets were really quite lovely for that. Stopped at cafes, because that is a must for me in every city.

On my way back into the new town, I detoured into the Mirabell Gardens. Didn't enter the Mirabell Palace because I didn't feel like I want to pay for another castle, plus it was near closing time. The gardens were alright, not as grand as the Schonbrunn Palace in decoration and scale but it was a nice walk especially in the warm breezy weather.

Entrance to Mirabell Gardens, the building at the end is the palace

Before dinner, I did a little exploration of the new town, mainly taking more photos of the city. I also walked to the train station and back to make sure I knew the way and won't miss my train the next day.

Day 2
Fingerlos Cafe
Linzer-Gasse

Linzer-Gasse; full of cutee signs

My train was around 11am, so it gave me some time to walk, especially since I was awake at 7am. Unfortunately most of the shops were not open so I set on a apfelstrudel + Viennese coffee breakfast and just took my time. It was drizzling so it made it a bit difficult to walk, but I did head back to Linzer-Gasse, a famous shopping street just before the new-town-end of the bridge into the old town.

To be fair, you can finish the main attractions in Salzburg in a day. And I think the value of Salzburg lay more in the outskirts? I would have loved to do some hiking and visiting the salt mines. It was not on my agenda this time round to visit outskirts, but as you would read in my coming posts, that would be one of my greatest  darn-should-have-done-it.

Do try:
- Visit Hohensalzburg: It's probably the main attraction, and it's a good one too because it's a different looking castle, and you have entry to other museums. Plus it has got quite a good viewpoint of the city

- Visit the markets: Whether it is the Alter Market or University Square Market, if you have a penchant for local stalls and street markets, these make good photographs and to snap up some souvenirs - or even a quick lunch really

- Walk the streets: If outdoor sports is not your thing, then take your time to walk, and just enjoy the quaint looking streets of Linzer-Gasse and Geitredegasse.