The tour began in the Mirabell garden, where the “Do-Re-Mi” scene of The Sound of Music was filmed. It was surreal. Apparently the Austrians aren’t as excited about it as we were, but it was awesome just being there.
As we walked from place to place I was astounded by how beautiful Austria and really most of Europe is. There’s so much history here - visible in every nook and cranny of their cities. What seems so magnificent, almost ancient - the gothic cathedrals, universities and all the rest - are just part of everyday life for the people of Salzburg. Even their office buildings are classy and match the architecture of the rest of the city. No suburban sprawl, no shopping mall, no Starbucks on every corner here. What beauty!
Among the interesting things we saw were Salzburg University, St. Peter’s restaurant which was founded in 803 (How cool is that?) and the Petersfriedhof, or St. Peter's Cemetery, the oldest 
Christian graveyard in Salzburg. Many of the aristocratic families of Salzburg lie buried here along with many other noted persons, including Nannerl Mozart, sister of Wolfgang and Joseph Haydn's younger brother, Michael. Fans of the Sound of Music will recognize the gates immediately.
We visited the Salzburg Cathedral, a massive and magnificent building. Built between 767 and 774, the cathedral is probably the city's most significant piece of church architecture and its ecclesiastical center. At the time. it was one of the largest sacred buildings in Europe. Like many such buildings of the day, it suffered fires and desecration. In 1944 the dome and part of the chancel were destroyed during a bomb attack. The necessary renovations were carried out and returned to its former magnificence in 1959.In his capacity as the court organist and concert master, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed a number of great works of sacred music that were peformed first in this very place.
Gathered around the font where Mozart was baptized, we sang Cum Sancto Spiritu.
Then we headed to Mozart’s house. Being in his house and seeing his childhood instruments was amazing, especially for me - a self professed classical music dork!
Our guided tour ended there and we were given the rest of the afternoon for free time, which we filled with shopping and a visit to a local bakery for our first pretzels - EXCELLENT!
An unexpected find after climbing up a giant (and steep!) mountain, was 
a set of huge sculptures depicting the Stations of the Cross at Kapuzinerberg. We hung out a while once we got to the top and then went back down just in time to catch the bus to get ready for our second concert and Mass at St. Mary's Church in Mulln.
As before, the outside of the church was deceiving - a humble façade leading to a magnificent interior altarpiece. This is typical of the “theology” of European church building. The plain exterior symbolizes the everydayness of life on Earth compared to the grandeur of heaven - to which the ornateness of the interior attests.
Mass was celebrated in both German and English, which all of us found helpful. The priest, presider was absolutely adorable and so appreciative of our visit. The concert went well and we were invited to stay a little bit after so the priest could play the organ for us and group pictures could be taken. Then we made our way back to the hotel to pack and get ready for the trip to Rothenburg!
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