Salzburg and the Saint Rupert Festival.

Oh yeah. Festival stand selling cookies.

We’ve been traveling long enough now, entering our fourth year of nomadic life, that we have a good sense of when we need firm plans and when we can wing it. We planned on Salzburg. Always a good idea in popular cities to book ahead. Rich found a new hotel outside of old town that is one of the increasing number of hotels with no reception or staff. The Numa Salzburg Vogelweider. All automated check in and check out. Worked well. We could walk to old town in 20 minutes, it had a bike storage room, kitchenette, and grocery store across the street. As we looked at restaurants recommended by a friend’s Aunt (thanks Gisela and Tante Hannah) we saw that slightly ominous Google maps message that every traveler fears: Hours may vary due to St. Rupert’s Day.

Thank you for the warning Google. Now who is this Saint Rupert? And what might his day mean to our stay in Salzburg?

With stalls selling all kinds of things like cookies?

And beer and wine? (That wine stein was not as huge as this photo makes it look.)

With loads of happy people in Tracht, or traditional dress.

Saint Rupert is, among other things for which he is venerated, the patron Saint of Salzburg. Born around 660, he is usually portrayed with a vessel of salt, as he helped establish the salt mining industry around the city which he named for salt: Salzburg. And, the city throws him one heck of a five day festival every year around Sept. 24, which is the day his relics (bones) were transferred to the Salzburg Cathedral in 774.

Folks are encouraged to wear Tracht, traditional dress, and they do.

Nothing cuter than a little one in Lederhosen.

The city makes a lovely backdrop for the festival.

Traditional dress, or Tracht, is more popular now in Austria and Bavaria than it was ten or so years ago. I love this. But, I do admit that I have a little squeamishness about the clear gender lines of the outfits. What if you as a woman don’t particularly like dresses (Dirndls)? Why, I asked Rich, don’t ladies wear lederhosen? Well the ladies are way ahead of me and they are wearing lederhosen.

Dirdnl or lederhosen. Whatever you prefer.

We visited the festival, which is centered around the cathedral, all three nights we were in town. we spent our two rest days walking around the city, hanging out in our hotel catching up on laundry and travel planning, and resting up for our climb over the alps to Italy.

We put in our earbuds and did the Rick Steves walking tour early in the morning. Before the crowds got going.

Visiting the cathedral while it’s quiet.

The water mill, built in the 17th century and in use up to 1958. Restored in 1975. Hohensalzburg Fortress in the background.

A restorative caffeinated beverage later and we were ready to climb up above the old town.

The edge of old town butts into Mönchsberg hill. Literally.

Up we go. Up to
Mönchsberg, one of the five mountains of Salzburg.

Getting a bird’s eye view. And leaving the increasingly crowded old town behind.

Charming little winding streets on
Mönchsberg.

And stunning views of the fortress (which we skipped visiting.).

Between walking to old town and climbing up Mönchsberg, and back to old town that evening for festival fun, our first “rest day” totaled over 10 miles/16 kilometers of walking.

Mirabell Palace and a happy second rest day. It’s not often I talk Rich into two rest days in a row. But it was my 60th birthday.

Spending all of our days on bikes doesn’t mean we’re tired of thinking about bikes on rest days. We enjoy seeing what cities have done for bikes. Bikes are one of the best ways to get around a city. Our second rest day we spent avoiding the morning rain and doing laundry, and then walking around admiring bike infrastructure. Before going back to the festival. Gotta love a five day festival. And what did we eat while in Salzburg? Raman twice, once for dinner and once for lunch, Indian food for dinner once, and burgers at the festival. We usually go for Asian food when we’re in cities since it can be tough to find while biking in rural areas. Gotta get our eat around the world fix.