Uh-oh-oh-oh Amadeus!
The
world today refers to Salzburg′s most famous son as "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart". In
fact, his name was officially "Johannes
Chrysostomus Wolfgang Theophilus Mozart" with "Amadeus"
being a Latinised variation of "Theophilus".Mozart himself signed in his later
years as "Wolfgang Amade", and referred to himself as
"Amadeus" only when he was joking.
His family and friends called
him simply "Wolfgang" or in the abbreviated way "Wolferl". The romantic German
poet Hoffmann called himself in honour of Mozart "Ernst TheodorAmadeus Hoffmann" and earned quite
a bit of fame in literature himself. Based on Hoffmann′s propagation of this
name, music companies and radio station in the 20th century eventually agreed
on the convention of called Mozart "Wolfgang Amadeus". In the 1980ies, the Austrian pop-star Falco
had his greatest hit with the song "Amadeus", dealing with Mozart′s
life as a superstar.
Salzburg gnome or dwarf garden: a Baroque snapshot
The Salzburg gnome or dwarf garden is part of the Mirabell gardens in the heart of the city. It
contains statues of gnomes or dwarfs, little
people with grotesque faces that look more like caricatures. In fact, some of
the models for the gnomes were real people, living at the court of the Prince
Archbishop. With Baroque times not being very much into
political correctness, the
Salzburg gnomes are often arranged in archetypical dresses of peasants or nationalities.
Watch out for a Turkish gnome! The Zwergerlgarten or dwarf
garden was built under the reign of Prince Archbishop Franz Anton Harrachin 1715. Today,
the gnome garden is incomplete - some of the Salzburg gnomes have disappeared
over the course of the centuries, others are kept in locations known.
Nevertheless, the garden itself is definitely one of the highlights of Salzburg
and a great photo-opportunity.
The Zauberflötenhäuschen ("Magic flute
house")
The
so-called Zauberflötenhäuschen is placed in the gardens of the Mozarteum Foundation in Schwarzstraße 26, more
precisely in the "Bastionsgarten". Mozart wrote at least parts of the
Zauberflöte, "The Magic Flute"
in this little hut. Originally, it was situated in a Garden next to the "Freihaustheater" or "Theater
auf der Wieden" theatre in Vienna. The
story goes, that libretto-author Emanuel
Schikaneder locked Mozart into the Zauberflötenhäuschen to
ensure that they would meet their deadlines. Other stories talk about Mozart
meeting singers in the Zauberflötenhäuschen to practise parts of the opera. After
the original gardens in Vienna were sold, the duke Fürst Starhemberg donated
the Zauberflötenhäuschen to the International Mozart Foundation in1873. It was moved to Salzburg and re-erected in
the Salzburg gnome garden by Mirabell castle. From there it was moved to the Kapuzinerberg mountain in 1877, where it remained until it was damaged
by bombs in WWII. After the war, the Zauberflötenhäuschen was
renovated and moved once again, this time to its current location in the Schwarzstraße. In July and August it can be
visited with a guided tour through the Mozarteum art university.
Salzburg Stierwascher
During
the period of the peasant′s riots of 1525, the city of Salzburg was under
a siege. Soon the city′s population was running short of food, and fear spread
when only a single bull was left within the mighty city walls. Then the
commander of the defending troops is said to have had an idea: he ordered to paint
the naturally brown bull with white stain and lead it up
and down the city walls on display to the enemy. The next day, they would wash
the bull, paint it in black and do the same thing again. The next day, they
would paint the bull red, then spotted, and so on.
In the end, the enemy thought
that the people of Salzburg were
slaughtering a bull every day, expecting that the live stocks were still large enough to feed the
troops and people in the city for a very long time. Eventually, the troops that
kept Salzburg under siege withdrew, leaving Salzburg to freedom. Under cheer
and laughter, the bull was led to the Salzach river and washed until he
appeared again in his natural brown. Ever since then, people from
Salzburg are called "Stierwascher"
- bull washers.
Fun facts: The tomb of Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich
Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau was the first Prince Archbishop of Salzburg who
shaped the city during its Baroque prime. When his nemesis and successor Markus
Sittikus forced him out of his office and even arrested Wolf Dietrich in the Hohensalzburg Fortress, did Sittikus best to
make the people of Salzburg forget about von Raitenau. Although somewhat
speculative, it can be estimated that this is the reason why Wolf Dietrich von
Raitenau is buried at St. Sebastian Cemetery. As a Prince Archbishop, he
should have been buried in the crypt of the Salzburg Dom Cathedral. He ended up outside the town
centre without much honour. Legend has it, that Wolf Dietrich was
buried upright, sitting in a chairsurrounded by blueprints and sketches to plan the
construction of even more buildings in his beloved Salzburg. It is said that he
will sit like that until Doomsday, when he will stand up and ask the Lord for
mercy for himself and his enemies.
After a complete refurbishment, the 4-star Hotel Park Inn Mannheim opened in June 2007 and is located only a few hundred meters from the Mannheim city center. With 180 rooms, a restaurant with a sunny terrrace and a garden with an outdoor pool, this will be the home of the Phoenix Girls Choir on Saturday, June 23rd. 
All rooms at the Park Inn Mannheim are equipped with air conditioning, telephone, wireless internet, a safe, flatscreen TV as well as an own bathroom with a bathtup and hair dryer. Breakfast can be enjoyed in the hotel restaurant, which features a sunny outdoor terrace that can be used when the weather is nice. Additionally, the garden and outdoor pool offer a fantastic way to relax and refresh, so don't forget your swim suits! 
