Today (tomorrow for most of you) is Thursday… and I’ve already updated some pics for you all. Salzburg and Innsbruck are now up, and of course my flowing locks of facial hair. Things are about to really get fun so hold onto you asses!

As I exited Austria, I ventured through Salzburg and Innsbruck.  Both were very beautiful cities, but we’ll start with Salzburg.

If you’ve been following my facebook page or read my last post about hiking you would know that I’ve been following the footsteps of the Von Trapp family… and making some of my own.  If you’ve been living under a rock or have never encountered anyone who has seen The Sound of Music then it’s news to you that the movie was in fact filmed in and around Salzburg.  You can take the tour, but you can make your own tour and it will most likely be more interesting and I can guarantee it will be cheaper.  Outside of being well known as a film location, there was a famous musician that was born here as well, you may have heard of him, his name was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.  He spent most of his youth here, then packed his composing materials and moved to Vienna.  But that doesn’t prevent the citizens of Salzburg from celebrating the fact that the musical genius was born there.  Monuments, museums and festivals in his honor are common within the city, and not hard to find.

The sights of the city center (split by the Salzach River) can be seen in there entirety in one day, which leaves you time to hike the surrounding terrain.  There are, however, a few places I would recommend within the city.  The main central plaza is the Residenzplatz.  Within a stones throw of this plaza is the Dom (Salzburg Cathedral), which is free and very nice to roam around, for being yet another church.  The interior is equally as impressive as the outside (a common backdrop for the movie).   Just down the street is the Kollegienkirche (Collegiate Church), which happened to have it’s interior under construction but was still an wonderful site to see with a Baroque style featuring many curves and smooth corners.  The last big site you should see within town is the Festung Hohensalzburg (Hohensalzburg Fortress),  a massive fortress that overlooks the entire city.  Only about 7 euro to get in, it’s worthwhile, and the price includes a tour of one of the towers which provides unparalleled 360 degree views of the city and all that surrounds it.  I chose to hike the long way around (the Monchsberg Hill) to reach the fortress, and I would recommend it to get a feel of the surrounding area.  The day before I was trudging around the Kapuzinerberg area on the other side of the river (that’s where I found the daring radio tower).  The city itself is small, set right on the edge of the Austrian Alps, has such a quaint hill town feeling that makes it very easy to enjoy and really feel at home.

Let’s move westward into Innsbruck, where I spent only an afternoon.  There’s not much to see in terms of sights, but the surrounding landscape is absolutely breathtaking.  Surrounded by towering mountains (the Alps), this former Winter Olympic host city does not let you forget you are a little higher than sea level.  Within the small city center, as with Salzburg, there are a few sights I would recommend stopping by.  First on my list is the Dom zu St. Jakob (St. Jacob Cathedral), which was a yet again a small yet beautiful cathedral.  The only other site I stopped by was the Goldens Dachl (Golden Roof), a large bay window added to  the front of the ducal palace to commemorate Emperor Maximilian I’s marriage to Bianca Maria Sforza of Milan in 1493.  The roof is comprised of 2,700 gilt copper tiles, and is impressive, but nothing absolutely amazing.  You have to travel outside the city to see what made Innsbruck attractive to me… the mountains.  Close by there are 322 miles of well-maintained downhill runs at a number of ski resorts.  I happened to pass this area up for a future visit to tackle those cravings to carve powder.

If you are around the Austrian Alps and love the feel of mountain towns, without a doubt make a trip to either Salzburg or Innsbruck, you will not regret it.

The ninth stop on my trip placed me within a city that loves to preserve it’s rich cultural history and architecture, yet strives to develop as a modern metropolis: Vienna (Wien), Austria. Nearly all of the historical sites to see within Vienna are located in the city center, surrounded by a vast boulevard commonly referred to as the Ring. Here you will find Stephensdom (St. Stephen’s Cathedral), with it’s massive 446 foot Gothic tower and black, yellow and green tiled roof. A step inside reveals yet again another wonderful piece of work with greatly detailed columns and statues (free to enter by the way). The other key sites within the Ring include the Hofburg (Imperial Palace), a massive palace that show cases the talents of the Lipazzaner Horses, and Hofbibliothek (Library). Definitely worth at least a stop by. From there you can visit many of the museums all located within close proximity to Museumstrasse. Just out from there is the Rathhaus (City Hall), that showcases much of the history and future plans of Vienna within it’s exhibitions. One last stop before we venture out from the city center is a must see in my book. It just so happens to be one of those buildings I studied in college and loved seeing it in person, Karlskirche (St. Charles Church). A wonderful construction that pieces various styles together, tall spires at the front, with a Baroque influenced interior and an atypical oval dome. It’s of course free to get in if you plan your entry just right (behind a large group), otherwise a fee of 5 euro or so will grant you access as well.

Once I started to wonder outside the city is when I really started to enjoy myself. The architecture is great, but head north towards the Danube River to escape the bustling inner city and catch a glimpse of the surrounding mountains and the roaring river. Depending on where I’m at, I tend to find more joy out of exploring the lesser known areas of a city that may present an element of nature, allowing you to just get lost inside yourself. Which takes us to the next stop and my favorite site of Vienna.

A stop at the Schloss Schonbrunn (Schonbrunn Palace), the imperial summer getaway, makes you wonder what their permanent residence must have looked like. A must in my book, you have to get away to see this palace in the southwest of the city. The actual building itself is quite impressive, but it’s the royal grounds that make it worth the trip. The Vienna Zoo is actually located within the palace gardens, as well as a vast amount of trees, sculptures and fountains that decorate this forest size green space. I hiked up to a structure known as the Gloriette, which provided great views back towards the palace and over the western part of the city. It was easy to get lost in the snow covered forested area (a favorite of mine if you can’t tell by now). Vienna as a city is quite nice, a tasteful mix of preserved buildings and modern facilities. The prices are more on the expensive side but nothing outrageous. My advice, explore outside the city center and get a different taste of Vienna.