26th March 2006 - Day 160

What terrible weather. It was raining for the whole day. I got out after wasting time waiting for the rain to stop, but got quite irritated by the bad weather that I went to have breakfast at Macdonalds instead.

The rain showed no signs of stopping. I went to the Altstadt to try one of the handmade Mozartkugel from Holzermayr before going up the Festung. It is 0,70€ for one. The shop owner kept telling me that this is the real thing. Of course, which sane shop owner would say otherwise?

The fortress has never been attacked before. It's easy to see why taking the footpath in the rain. But getting past the fortress walls is a matter of 8,60€ nowadays. It is the largest medieval fortress in Europe.

I visited the second part of the fortress hoping that the rain will stop by the time I finished. There is a museum about a particular Rainer Regiment. There were World War II pictures of Austrians in German uniforms portrayed in a positive light. The first time I saw photos of such kind.

Then there were the Fürstenzimmer which contain Gothic style chambers. I took my time to read through the entire history of Salzburg.

It was still raining when I finished, so I went ahead with the first part of the fortress and saw a torture chamber where tortures were never administered, the Bull of Salzburg (which is actually an organ) and the watch tower where the view was supposed to be superb in better weather condition.

The rain was not as heavy by the time I came down from the Festung. For lunch, I settled for a large Käse und Schinken Brezel.

Taken from the Mirabell gardens with the Festung in the background

It was an unimaginably boring afternoon. I was so bored that I tried to convince myself to visit Mozarts Geburtshaus. But I refuse to contribute more to this 5 billion euro industry which accounts for 90% of Salzburg's revenue.

Out of boredom, I climbed up the Kapuzinerberg to entertain myself. The weather really spoilt the view from high up.

Probably the only nice photo taken on a rainy day

Disappointed at the lack of attractions to visit (because of the rain and it was late), I went back to hostel to take a break. Does this town has nothing more to offer besides Mozart, the Sound of Music, and the Festung? I probably would have been happier watching re-runs of the Sound of Music in black and white, while marvelling at how beautiful Salzburg is.

It was a coincidence. I met one of my floormates here. In the same city, the same hostel and the same room! He's going on a tour with his Spanish friend. I was very surprised to see him here.

I decided to give Salzburg one last chance by joining a night tour conducted by the hostel. Maybe my reading up of Salzburg was not extensive enough to uncover other places of interest here.

The tour guide Phillip was great. He filled us up with interesting information about his town. Like how they refuse to be recognised as Austrians, but as Salzburger instead.

Did you know that the energy drink Red Bull came originally from Salzburg? This has something to do with the history of the town.

The town of Salzburg was once under siege. The enemies had blocked off all paths leading up to the fortress, preventing the Salzburger from getting essential supplies.

The town was getting worried when there was only one bull left. The commander came up with an idea of painting the bull in different colours and parading it on the platforms of the fortress. This created the illusion of being well supplied for the enemies.

Of course the enemies fell for the trick and withdrew. Henceforth, the people of Salzburg became known as Stierwascher or Bull Washers.

Red Bull was but the name of choice for a drink which would supposedly give you an extra burst of energy.

I thought Jägermeister is from Germany, but I was informed otherwise. The same goes for the beer which Augustine monks brewed. Both beverages came from Austria.

I asked Phillip about the Mozartkugeln and the 2 confectioneries. It seems only logical that Fürst is the original since the person who came up with this treat is called Josef Fürst.

We had some Jägertee while looking at the nightview of the Festung. After we went back, I went to the bar with Yoshio for a drink. Seems like I can now take 500 millilitre of beer quite well now.

So, I'm quite glad to have joined the tour and left Salzburg with a good impression.