The Hills Are Alive! | Education Abroad GeoBlog

I have been a huge fan of ‘The Sound of Music’ ever since that magical VHS first appeared in my Easter Basket way back in 2002. So when I decided to study abroad in Germany, I knew that one place I absolutely had to visit was Salzburg. In fact, Salzburg was number one on my abroad bucket list. So when the plans for our weekend trip finally came to fruition, it was a dream come true!

Five of my friends and I– all girls, we couldn’t convince any of the guys to go with us for a Sound of Music weekend– headed to Salzburg by bus on Friday after class, and after an hour delay in the Munich bus station, finally arrived in Salzburg late Friday night! The hostel we stayed at played the movie nightly at 7pm, but as we had missed it, we instead watched in our room to truly get into the mood of the weekend.

One of my favorite things about getting to a destination at night is that when you wake up the next morning, it’s a complete surprise as to what the place looks like. This is especially wonderful in a city as gorgeous as Salzburg, for as we opened the windows the next morning, singing along to the Sound of Music soundtrack already, the sky was a perfect blue, the sun was shining, birds were singing, and you could see the Alps in the distance. Talk about a picture perfect morning. We headed out to walk around the city and grab breakfast before getting on our Sound of Music Tour at 2. Salzburg is the prettiest, most quaint city I have seen- it is a relatively sleepy town filled with friendly people, churches, pretty facades, and the most gorgeous views of the Alps that you could imagine. My new future plans involve retiring to Salzburg and becoming a Sound of Music our guide.

Our Sound of Music tour was everything I could have hoped for and more. On a bus, we drove through the city and to the outskirts where the vistas for the opening scene and the wedding scene was filmed, singing along to the soundtrack the whole time. We stopped at both houses used for the Von Trapp villa (they used two different locations for the front and the back), and the infamous gazebo! We ended the tour in the Mirabel Palace Gardens, where most of the ‘Do Re Mi’ scene was filmed, and had a great night eating spätzle and drinking bier before heading back to the hostel to watch the Sound of Music… again.

Sunday we went on a tour or the fortress above the city, which offered amazing views over the Alps and Salzburg itself. It was fascinating to be in a fortress that had been occupied by bishops and cardinals of the region rather than princes, as Salzburg was an important religious city for the Catholic church in the region. Since it was a Sunday, and as we have learned abroad Europe shuts down most everything on Sundays, we took a 3pm bus back to Freiburg. All in all, Salzburg was one of the greatest weekends I’ve had since coming abroad. I now want to retire in Salzburg and become a Sound of Music tour guide! Salzburg truly delivered, and it was hard to leave this little town nestled in the Alps. Next stop: Munich for Frühlingsfest!