June 8, 2022

Salzburg was the filming site of the movie "Sound of the Music" and the birthplace of its favorite son, Wolfgang Mozart, one of the world's most famous musicians. There are many monuments to Mozart in the city, and music is in the air in Salzburg. Today's theme was to follow in the footsteps of Mozart to visit as many Mozart things as possible. We started our day by having breakfast at Cafe Tomaselli, where Mozart's family often dined when they lived in the Old Town. Then we took the funicular up to Salzburg Fortress, high above the rooftops of Baroque-style buildings. It was a vast compound and offered a 360-degree view of Salzburg and the surrounding area. The history of the Salzburg Fortress dates back almost 1000 years ago. We did the panorama tour, which took us from the salt magazine via the dungeon to the viewing tower, through the battlements to the famous Salzburg Bull, a roughly 500-year-old wheel-driven barrel organ. It was an exceptional experience. Although all the castles we visited on this Europe trip were terrific and picturesque, we wish we knew more about local history to make the visit more interesting. 

With its Baroque-style dome and two towers, Salzburg Cathedral, where Mozart was baptized, is the centerpiece of Salzburg. Its distinctive and impressive architecture on the city skyline left on many of our pictures. The inside of the Cathedral was even more impressive. The imposing organs hung on the splendid façade of white marble with detailed frescos on the dome. The interior was simplistic but magnificent. Walking down in the basement of the Cathedral, where many archbishops were buried, we ran into the Vanitas installation, one of 13 Modern Art installations in public spaces. It was interesting. We also saw another piece of an art installation at the plaza earlier today, Sphaera, a man standing on a golden ball. He was looking for the female counterpart, "Woman in the Rock." But he looks at the wrong direction. In the afternoon, when we passed by a parking lot in the cave, we saw the sculpture on the entrance door to the parking lot.

We had a quick lunch at the old marketplace and continued our Mozart theme activities by touring Mozart's birthplace, a museum focusing more on his family and youth. Before this trip, with our limited knowledge of music history, we didn't know much about the Mozart family. The museum was not just about Wolfgang Mozart but also about the parents, Leopold and Anna Maria, and sister "Nannerl." The Mozart senior was also an accomplished composer, music teacher, and the author of a violin-playing book. We learned more about Leopold Mozart than Wolfgang Mozart from the museum. After visiting Mozart's birthplace, we walked toward the river. We saw the river cruise that was about to leave. Due to the high-water level, the river cruise hadn't run since we arrived. With a few minutes to spare, we hopped on the boat quickly and started 45 mins river cruise on the Salzach river. The ship passed the Mozart bridge a little further and turned around back to the Old Town. The ride was pleasant, the view was incredible, and it was free-covered under the Salzburg card. 

We then walked across the Love Lock bridge over the Salzach River to see Mozart's Residence, where Mozart lived until he went to Vienna at the age of 25. Mozart's piano was the highlight of the museum. On our way back to our hotel from the museum, we saw another Modern Art installation, Caldera. No one knows what the stature means, and someone says it is Mozart'‘s wig.

Attending a Mozart concert in Salzburg was a natural thing to do in Salzburg. We had booked the show before we left for Europe. The Mozart Dinner Concert occurred in the Baroque Hall of St. Peter Stiftskulinarium, the oldest restaurant in Europe and part of the famous Benedictine monastery. There was no obvious sign of the Baroque Hall. Following the direction of Google Maps, we came to the large courtyard within St. Peter but couldn't figure out the concert place. We saw a historic and fancy restaurant at the corner of the courtyard, and the hostess took us to the Baroque Hall. We were a little bit early, and the hall hadn't opened yet at the moment. Only a few minutes later, they started to usher people to tables. We got upgraded to a table in the first row next to the stage. The three-course dinner menu included clear lemon chicken soup with curd cheese and rosemary dumpling, supreme roasted chicken on the glaze of red wine and herbs with creamy white polenta and vegetables from Padre Prior's garden, and the famous Salzburger Nockerl. The food was served during the intermission of the concert. The concert was most of The Mozart Opera, performed by two opera singers and a small ensemble dressed in costumes. We were not familiar with Mozart's Opera, only knowing he was a great composer for classical piano and string music. Although we hardly understood what they were singing, the music was beautiful, and the singing was fantastic. The concert's highlight for us was when the opera singer knelt in front of our table and sang to Connie. The beautiful Mozart music and delicious local cuisine inspired by historical recipes from Mozart's time gave us a fantastic night in Salzburg.  

第十九天：萨尔茨堡是电影“音乐之声“的拍摄地，但它更以音乐天才莫扎特出生地而出名。莫扎特短暂的一生超过一半的时间是在萨尔茨堡度过的。今天除了参观著名的萨尔茨城堡，坐了河上观光游船之外其余的基本就以莫扎特为主题了。我们早上在莫扎特常去的饭店吃了早餐😜, 下午先去他出生及童年居住的房子，然后参观莫扎特一家的住宅，晚上莫扎特晚餐音乐会很不错，音乐伴随着美酒佳肴，还有什么能比这更好的来结束忙碌的一天。