Day 6: Salzburg & Berchtdesgaden
Today is a free day. No travel, no stress. Just a chance to have fun. And, we did!
Our restaurant, Hotel Elefant, has a wonderful restaurant and we ended up sitting next to a nice table of 4 tourists. Two were New York teachers who moved to San Diego to be closer to their daughters. There was another San Diegan who had married a German, who was able to navigate situations easily and make their trip relaxing. The conversation was lovely and they gave us many ideas for what to do in Munich (our next destination), as well as Nuremberg (which we're leaning towards visiting). The breakfast options were a bit confusing, with lots of meat offerings that did not look familiar. We tried most things and they were delicious.
With full bellies, we checked our bags at our current hotel (we're moving to a different hotel today) and set off to see the sites. We walked to Mozartplatz, a large square with a sculpture of Salzburg's favorite son, to get some bus information at the tourist office.
We probably should have paid more attention to the various Mozart-related sites, but we were keen to get to the Eagle's Nest, which is a medium distance away. Rather than book a tour, we decided to be adventurous and figure out how to get there on public transportation. The tourist office gave us information on how to catch the 840 to Berchtesdarden, the 838 to Obersalzburg, and then the bus up to the Eagle's Nest. You may ask, "what is the Eagle's Nest?" Known in German as the "Kelsteinhaus," the Eagle's Nest is an incredible building the Nazis made for state events at the top of a mountain. To get there, we took the bus to Obersalzburg, which is the location of Hitler's former summer retreat. There are famous pictures of him relaxing and receiving guests at his home, but that is all gone. The allies bombed the entire area. However, bombing the Eagle's Nest required too much precision for the day, so that building survived WW2. Their is an Obersalzburg documentation center, but it is under renovation.
So, we took the bus up to the Eagle's Nest. Getting off the bus, you walk down a long tunnel outfitted with polished stone and then enter a rotunda area for an elevator, which is known as the "Golden Elevator" because of its polished gold interior. They prohibit pictures, so I did my best to sneak this.
The Golden Elevator is barely visible behind this guy's head...
The Eagle's Nest, from a path above.
Still rockin' the Venice hat...
Using the iphone panorama mode
After taking in the sights and contemplating the meaning of this place, we took the bus back down to Obersalzburg and then Berchtesdaden, and then had to run to catch our bus to Salzburg (a little stressful). The road back to Salzburg goes along the River Salzach and its blue-white color is amazing. Here's a photo of the river with a small water wheel:
Upon return to Salzburg, we picked up our bags at the Hotel Elefant. We would have liked to stay a second night at Hotel Elefant, but they were booked up when we tried to add another night. So, we walked to Hotel Amadeus, across the river, in a happening part of Old Town. This second place was great. It's location was fun and it has nice amenities. They serve a complimentary breakfast of croissants and coffe.
We took a short nap and then decided to check out Salzburg's brewery scene. We had a short walk to Die Weiss, an over century old brewery in Salzburg that only makes wheat beer. The brewery was in a quiet neighborhood; it's unclear why and how the neighbors tolerate such a large beer garden. Die Weiss brews various flavors and styles of wheat beer, but that is it. April and I thought it interesting that the German approach for a brewery is to do its one thing perfectly and consistently over time and be known for that, which contrasts with the average American brew pub that will make many different styles of beer, ranging from lagers to IPA's to stouts (etc). By the way, the concept of a West Coast hoppy IPA does not exist here. What we think is standard everywhere simply is not. The beer was terrific, but April missed her hoppy IPA. After enjoying a pretzel, we wanted to stick-and-move to see more options. So, we departed the lovely beer garden and headed to the train station to make arrangements for tomorrow's trip to Munich.
Die Weiss beer garden. Beautiful scenery with relaxed family atmosphere
After the train station, we took a walk along the River Salzach and took a pedestrian bridge.
From Salzburg pedestrian bridge
We made our way up a few hills to a famous monastery brewery, Augustiner, which has brewed beer for over 400 years!
We walked into a gigantic shaded beer garden. What a fun scene.
Augustiner beer garden
The whole process was confusing, but locals (and other tourists) were kind to explain things along the way. The process starts by going to a cash register and paying for a beer (either 1/2 liter or 1 liter), grabbing the appropriate mug from a shelf, standing in a line that goes by a sink so you can rinse your mug, and then presenting your receipt to the guy pouring the one (and only one) beer they make -- a lager. You hand them the mug, they fill it and slap it on the counter, and you quickly make way for others in the line.
The food is a separate process. You walk up some stairs into a building that has many beer halls and food stalls. We chose pork belly, with mustard and shredded horseradish, along with a pretzel. Perfect pub grub.
Pork belly and pretzel
We sat with two, mid-30's men, one a banker and one a dentist, and eventually struck up a long conversation that went well into the night. They were both Austrians and loved to talk politics -- particularly European politics. They were fascinated by so many examples of how the news they receive about America is very different than the reality we shared. A few times, they asked us if we would discuss "spicy" political topics with them, and we happily obliged. At the end of a long day, we walked back to the hotel and quickly fell asleep. Tomorrow, on to Munich.
A great evening at Augustiner
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