Cemeteries work a little differently here in Austria, where they have been burying people for hundreds of years. In short, they're running out of room. In America, one often buys a plot in a graveyard before he dies. In Austria, cemetery plots are rented. After ten years, a bill is sent to your relatives. If they pay the rent, you can stay in the ground. Otherwise, the cemetery will dig you up and dispose of your remains to make room for the newly dead. Therefore, once one's relatives have all died, it is probable that the person will be removed. This seems pretty morbid to we Americans, but they have a lot less land space than we do. Of course, there are major exceptions to the rule: famous people and clergy buried in cathedrals and scenic gardens are often allowed to stay.
We explored Nonnberg Abbey this afternoon; a long trek up a very steep, almost vertical cobblestone path that left most of us out of breath. From there, the view is amazing. Not only are both sides of the mountain visible, but so are the steeples and colorful rooftops of Old Salzburg. Check out my Facebook for pictures...I promise they weren't taken on a movie set! Inside the Nonnberg Abbey one will recognize many locations from The Sound of Music, as well as see the cloister of nuns that still live there today! Underneath the church (in which I think Maria and Captain Von Trapp got married) are creepy old catacombs. Nonnberg Abbey is important because it was founded in 732 by Heilige (Holy) Rupert, the first archbishop of Salzburg, who promised to make it a Catholic city when he received the Alpine town from the Romans.
We followed a mountaintop path around to St. Peter's cemetery, where many clergy and distinguished Salzburg citizens have been laid to rest over the years. It's really more like a garden, with elaborate artwork and well-tended flowers on all the graves. Then we moved into the church, by far the eeriest part of today's tour. The walls are all lined with elaborate gates (like the ones in The Sound of Music scene where they're hiding out in the abbey), and behind the gates are many graves in the walls, and lots of statues of Mary. One can light candles for dead relatives, for a small fee. Of course the artwork and frescas on the ceiling were detailed and flawless. The whole experience was made creepier by the fact that, as our group was entering the church, a funeral was just ending. It was really sad, because it was for a little girl. But, I guess if people choose to have their funerals/weddings in such a tourist attraction, they agree to be OK with the fact that tourists are going to be walking around snapping pictures of the artwork.
We finished off our trip with very good beers (Weissenbier) in a little cafe in the Altstadt. It was the perfect end to a very educational and fun day.
Digging up the remains of these poor deceased individuals does sound morbid... very interesting fact, though. I would have never known that :P Glad you learned a lot this day
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