Another full day of sightseeing around Salzburg on Thursday. Glen and I went for breakfast at Fingerlos, the same place we went the day before. There are very few places open early enough that do a full breakfast service; it’s mostly bread and cheese. Fingerlos at least had eggs. After breakfast, Glen walked me to the collection point for the salt mine tour and then he went off to another day of conference.
Sent to the salt mines
I boarded the tour bus with about 25 other people. Only seven of us were going to the salt mines, the rest were going on the Eagle’s Nest tour in Bavaria. I thought Eagle’s Nest had something to do with eagles so I asked about it, worried I was going to miss out on some wildlife. Eagle’s Nest is Hitler’s home in the mountains, and from the sounds of it, you didn’t get long there. It also rained on top of the mountain so I’m glad I chose the salt mine tour.
We were dropped off at the salt mines, were given our tickets and told what to do. We were given over-clothes to wear, as you go down a slide and it reduces the risk of burn. I was also glad to get some long pants as I’d only worn shorts and it was a cool 10°C down there.
It’s a guided experience so we were all herded in together: the seven of us from my tour, six Germans, a family of four Americans, and a large school group of American teenagers. First we got on the train that takes you inside the mountain.
At our first stop we watched a really embarrassing movie about one of the archbishops which attempted to illustrate the importance of the mines to the archbishops’ coffers. The story (with its actors and terrible script) were continued throughout the tour. I don’t use this word often but it was lame, and not in a bored teenager kind of way. It made me cringe. But thankfully that was only a small part of it.
After the film we walked through the tunnels, crossed the border into Germany, then got to one of the slides that takes you deeper into the mountain. The slides (or chutes) were used by the miners to transport themselves and their equipment down quickly and easily. Now they’re used as a fun ride for the tourists.
You have to go down in twos or threes so I went with two American women who were on my tour bus. I sat at front, the other two too afraid. The speed view down was quite something. We reached 20 kmh. The record is 27 kmh so we weren’t too bad.
Next was a trip across a brine lake which had a light show and New Age music playing. I think they should have had animatronic dragons or sea serpents going around the boat just to freak people out. That’s what I’d do.
We then went down another slide (longer this time), watched the final movie…then caught an escalator up to the train, which took us out again. The whole experience wasn’t the most amazing thing I’ve ever been on but it was interesting and had some fun moments. I think they really need to reconsider the movies.
After getting back into the daylight, we had about an hour and a half before the bus came back to us. I walked up the very steep hill to the church and the village at the top. Thursday was a public holiday in Austria so the villagers were all dressed in their traditional gear having lunch outside at the restaurant. I thought that was nice that they still honour their traditions, wear traditional dress and have a sense of community.
The bus picked us up at 12:45 and we got back to town at 1:30pm.
From the modern to the ancient
There was an Italian market outside Mirabell Palace, which is where the bus stopped. I bought some olive bread and a hunk of parmigiano reggiano cheese for lunch. Glen messaged me and we met outside the conference hall and ate together (he only ate the cheese as he doesn’t like Olive bread). Long joined us too.
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I then headed off to explore more of the city and get even more use out of the Salzburg Card. I calculated that I got about three times the value out of the card so €23 was an excellent investment.
First stop was the Museum of Modern Art. It’s on top of the cliff and there’s a great view of the city from there. I also really only wanted to use the elevator. I thought it might be a glass one but unfortunately it’s completely enclosed.
Once at the top, I took photos of Salzburg below. I wasn’t in the mood for modern art so I skipped the museum, went back down the elevator and headed into the old town to visit Salzburg Cathedral.
It’s stunning on the inside. I was really impressed with the decoration, particularly the tops of columns that had been painted to make the leaves/palms look 3D. I stayed there for a while, taking in the beauty of the place, before deciding to check out the cathedral museum (another Salzburg Card attraction).
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The museum is connected to the residence as well so you walk through cathedral history, then the state rooms, another museum, get outside for a bit to look down onto the square and then go back into the cathedral to stand up near the large organ. By the end, I was a bit worn out and full of museums so I went back to the hotel (via a look in the spectacular Franciscan church) and had a short nap.
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An exercise in absurdism
When Glen discovered there was a marionette theatre in Salzburg, he was desperate to see a show. Unfortunately, we couldn’t see the Sound of Music (which would have been a bit more accessible for us) and we didn’t know anything about the Magic Flute so that left Alice in Wonderland.
We had front row seats in a barely half-full theatre. I don’t know how the place can stay open as each production can’t be cheap.
The play started and we went down the rabbit hole. First of all, Alice in Wonderland is a weird story anyway. It’s absurd and more than a little disturbing in parts. Second, it was in German (as to be expected). And third, it was put together with marionettes. Put that all together and it’s a strange night at the theatre.
I could remember enough of the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland so as not to feel completely lost (though there were plenty of bits that aren’t in the movie, or are in Through the Looking Glass, so it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing.
Oh, and there was a live dog on stage at one point. I actually thought, “Wow, that dog puppet is so realistic,” before coming to my senses.
The puppets were very good, as were the puppeteers. The show could have done with some trimming in certain spots (the turtle bit goes on and on and on). Anyway, we’ve seen marionettes perform in German now. What more could we want.
Afterwards we went for dinner and then to a bar for a little while. Smoking in bars and restaurants is allowed here. It’s horrible.
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Travels with Dan 
What do you say, eh?