Haus der Natur

This weekend, we visited the Haus der Natur in Central Salzburg, which celebrates and educates on topics in nature and technology.  It spans five floors (Austrians would say ground floor, then one through four) and includes a range of exhibits, from Journey Through the Human Body to the Space Hall to Fossilized Life.

The aquarium was extensive and included many aquatic animals that I had never seen before.  The Moray Eel?  It entwined itself in the rocks of its tank, and opened and closed its mouth in five second intervals.  The Giant Squid?  The museum staff couldn't suspend a real one from the ceiling (unfortunately), but the information that accompanied the model stated that Giant Squids have the largest eyes of all living creatures.  A small portion of the information about the animals was in English which I appreciated, but there are so many German-English cognates that I was able to get the gist of things when the information and labels were exclusively in German.  And, the husband helped too.

There were dozens of these carved, wooden figurines.  I snapped these photos quickly, but now that I look at them, I wonder what sort of comment the artist was trying to make by putting the animal heads on human bodies.  Did the artist have someone in mind when he/she carved each figurine?  Did the model's personality dictate which animal head was carved?  I want to look more into these.

And, because we're silly -

Salzburg is a taxidermist's dream.  The museum was filled with display after display of stuffed animals (but not the cuddly variety).

Case in point: bear attack.

Once we left the Haus der Natur, we walked along Kaipromenade which stretches along the River Salzach.  Many merchants had set up shop and were selling their goods to Austrians and tourists alike.

It surprised me how many Austrians were dressed in traditional garments - lederhosen, dirndl, tracht.  I was wearing a blue and white gingham button-up which is the pattern of shirt that men and some women wear under their traditional vests and jackets.  At first, I only saw red and white gingham shirts, and I worried that my shirt may have been offensive, but then I saw green and blue gingham and I felt less self-conscious.  Overall, it was a good day, and I loved exploring more of the city and all that it has to offer.