The historical night watchmen. More and more, we find those particularly intriguing, talented “storytellers” all over Europe, who thanks to their traditional clothing and use of language appear to have time-travelled straight from the Middle Ages. My first point of call with the “his-story” of a night watchman was in 2013 in the Danish city of Ribe, followed by a visit to Waidhofen an der Ybbs in the Lower Austrian Mostviertel district, as well as Austria’s oldest brewery town, Weitra in the Waldviertel. And now, it is Hans & his wife Marinette who receive us all too well dressed in the city of Salzburg, Austria’s (secret) beer capital and home to musical geniuses such as Mozart or the Sound of Music. It really is entirely fascinating to be listening to the historical figure of night watchman Hans and dive into the city of Salzburg of about 500 years ago. Wow!
We start our stay in the city of Salzburg with this sumptuous breakfast menu at the Hotel Auersperg, an excellent address for planning your stay in Salzburg.
Here, “our” night watchman Hans and his wife Marinette welcome us in their traditional costumes …
… Marinette, who has specialised in running night / evening city tours with children! …
… while this time not stealing the show of her dear “Hans”, who loves to tell-tale the history of Salzburg in a quite peculiar way, showing the rights and duties of historic watchmen during the Middle Ages, such as the duty to keep order at nighttime and – if necessary – arrest people on the street!
On our walk through the historic city of Salzburg …
… we cannot deny being spoiled to the comfort of modernity, enjoying a glass of beautiful sparkling wine as we listen to the fascinating night watchman figure Hans!
I honestly and truly recommend you to take a tour with Hans when coming to Salzburg: The way he is able to present his stories borders excellent acting and a real talent for taking you back in time …
… so THANKYOU for an amazing visit and a unique angle onto learning more about the history of town!
But this is just the beginning.
Once a year, the Salzburg Almkanal opens up for visitors, allowing you to explore the subterranean vaults of the Mönchsberg hill and its famous Hohensalzburg Fortress.
“You really want to cross Salzburg on a dark, narrow canal underneath its old town?!” I still have to smile at the words of my friends and remember being sceptical, too, about taking a tour through the Almkanal of Salzburg! What could it possibly be? Now, I know that this canal is truly outstanding, a masterpiece of engineering science dating back to some of the oldest waterway and energy systems in Central Europe! Countless legends and stories have been woven around the miracle of its construction, its (military) use during wartimes as well as the breakthrough in supplying Salzburg with fresh mountain water. Each year in September, the Almkanal is being dried up for maintenance and repair, thus opening a short time window for visitors to come and experience a walk through it: “At peak times, we run our tours every 15 minutes”, our friendly Almkanal guide is about to explain to us. “You are best advised to rent some gum boots here!”
Gum boots?! Yes, gum boots. Do bring some torches, too – a head torch even if you can. And a good jacket, as well as a pair of old Jeans, will all go a long way for this adventure tour of a kind, crossing the Almkanal underneath Salzburg’s famous Mönchsberg hill!
Off we go: Putting on some fancy gum boots for crossing the Almkanal in Salzburg! “Lebensgefahr” – a question of life or death? We don’t think so …
… after all, our guide takes extremely good care of us …
… and knows where to go, at all times …
… some passages are narrow, I have to admit, but there is always room for stopping and stories about this ancient canal underneath the city of Salzburg …
However I must say that we are all quite happy when daylight greets us again …!
… such as the sight of this historic cemetery, St Peter’s cemetery at the foot of the Hohensalzburg Fortress!
Here, our charming city guide Heidi Hochrießer …
… takes us on a tour into the “catacombs of Salzburg”!
And so we discover many a detail about this peculiar cemetery that is only open for visitors at certain times, “home” to many of Mozart’s family and friends …
… with Heidi telling us lots more stories when really we thought we had seen all of Salzburg by now!
But it is when you start getting “behind the scenes”, and shift your focus, that you really start exploring. 😉
Next time, let me tell you more about the culinary highlights we experienced travelling “behind the scenes” of Salzburg, such as the famous Salzburg “Stinkerknödel” (smelly dumplings?!) at the inn of Roland Essl, or the Salzburger Trinkmoor where a moor has been converted into a … drink, beer or bread. No, I haven’t lost it (yet!), nor have my friends: Check out what my fellow travel bloggers & friends have to say about their particular experiences of Salzburg:
- Jo-Igele Reiseblog: “Erlebe Salzburg Kulinarisch!“
- TravelWorldOnline Traveller: “Österreichisch Kochen in Salzburg – am besten mit Freunden!“
- WiederUnterwegs: “Der Salzburger Almkanal“. “Vom Trinkmoor und Salzburger Hausmannskost“.
Cheers & Enjoy your meal! 😀
Disclaimer: We have been invited “behind the scenes” of Salzburg by the city of Salzburg. All opinions are my own.