Nearing the last few weeks of my year abroad I wasn’t entirely sure how I could really top it all off, after all my trips around and abouts. Little did I know that Salzburg would be the gem, the icing on the cake, ‘die Sahnehäubchen’ and ‘Schatz’ that would be the last perfectly-fitting piece to the puzzle of my year abroad experience.
Salzburg itself, comprised of the old town, new town and the Salzach river running through the middle, is a small, yet beautifully traditional Austrian town; set at the foot of the alps, a bustling baroque town overlooked by imposing medieval fortress, Hohenfestung Salzburg. I passed through most of the new town and headed for the old town, where unsurprisingly all the tourists were! First things first I headed to the cathedral and surrounding area, also went past the house where Mozart was born, then headed along the river towards Mirabell Gardens, which is one of the most well-known filming locations for the movie, more specifically for the ‘Do Re Mi’ song, with the famous step sequence and the dancing round the fountain. Naturally this area was a hotspot for fellow fans like me, with people dressed up re-enacting dances and singing, I loved it! In fact (emotional fangirling moment), it made me feel quite overwhelmed to know that I was there for real and no longer was it just an elusive scene featured in a movie.
As soon as I got word of this so called ‘Sound of Music Experience’, I was sold. A day full of everything all things ‘Von Trapp’, how could I possibly have denied!? The event was run by the Austro-American Society of Upper Austria and Salzburg in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the film, and was a day packed of all things ‘Sound of Music’, as well as providing us with a unique insight into the real Von Trapp story.
The day began with a private screening of the film at the Mozart Kino, because a few people there were actually seeing the film for the first time! It was actually lovely to see if on the big screen for once, and to be in a cinema full of fellow enthusiasts was such a buzz!
After the film screening (the whole three hours) we headed for lunch at the Stieglkeller, which was a little walk up the hill, in the direction of the castle. Tables had all been reserved for the group and it gave us a chance to talk to other people who came on the trip.
It was then time to head further round the hill to Nonnberg Abbey. The outside of the abbey was used in the film, but (spoiler alert) the inside courtyard where the nuns sing in the film is all just film set done in Hollywood. Inside the abbey, one of the sisters told us about the abbey and the great influence of the real Von Trapp family, and also a speech was given by Dr Franz Wasner, who spoke about his uncle, who was the priest that put together and directed the real Von Trapp family singers. He was represented by Max Detweiler in the film.
We then all split off into groups for our walking tour round the town seeing all the main spots from the film, and our tour guide was simply great! The tour was not only full of interesting facts and stories, but at various points in the tour he would remind us of the songs that were sung at that specific place. The thing is he didn’t sing the songs at all, he just read the lyrics from cue cards as if it were a monologue with intermittent caesura for dramatic effect, which resulted in cry-laughing because it was pure genius.
The next part of the tour then continued after a short taxi ride down to the southern outskirts of the city to the Trapp Villa, i.e the house that the real Von Trapp family lived in, sang in and eventually fled. The house has been turned into a hotel now, but still values and exhibits its history, through photos, drawings and family keepsakes, which were quite touching. Take a look at the website http://www.villa-trapp.com/1/home/ for more information.
The final part of the day was then a reception at Schloss Leopoldskron, the palace which was used for the outside shots of the Von Trapp’s family villa in the film. Leopoldskron is not open to the public and even the hotel Leopoldskron is a building adjacent to the palace itself, which was why it was such a privilege to be there. They even opened up rooms upstairs in the palace such as the library, the dining halls, the terrace and various other elaborate rooms which inspired the Hollywood sets.
A panel discussion was also held, which discussed the success of the movie, the historical value and its impact on Salzburg today. Speakers included the a representative from the tourist board in Salzburg, Georg Steinitz, who worked as an assistant director for the filming in Salzburg, as well as Elisabeth Von Trapp, granddaughter of the real Captain Von Trapp. As well as speaking about her family Elisabeth also sang a few songs for us, both from the movie and those that she has wrote herself, since she also pursued a career in music. The evening was finished up with a buffet, of which schnitzel and apple strudel were a compulsory element, naturally.
Overall the evening and the whole day in fact was just a dream and it really opened my eyes to the real story and the struggle that the family endured. The film, yes might not depict all the details or tell the story exactly how it was, but that doesn’t really matter at all, because it has brought the attention from all over the world to the stage that is Salzburg.