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CHRISTMAS in Salzburg is like being in a time warp. In the city's main square, festive scenes, like drawings from a children's book, walk off the page and into reality.

  There is nothing that hints of the 20th century - no skyscrapers, no concrete, no cars and no neon.

   But there is snow hugging every rooftop and no shame in fox fur. Full-length minks are part of the scene.

  People in fur coats, and fur boots and feathered hats amble from one square to the next.

  It is part of the seasonal celebrations to mill around, sip gluwein and take in an atmosphere free from urgency and full of festivity.

  Little has changed on the streets of Salzburg in the last 200 years. The Mozart-playing puppets at the piano and jaunty strains of the Magic Flute still draw crowds on street corners.

  Wooden market stalls overflow with baubles and bows, thermal underwear and knitted socks. And there is much laughter and hand clapping.

  Everything is muffled in the cutting cold air, except for the dainty tunes of Mozart on every street corner.

  Nightly tributes to the maestro draw Salzburg's glitterati to the city's concert halls, while less well-heeled tourists traipse through his museum and go home with Mozart chocolates.

  No one can say they have visited this city until they have done the Sound of Music tour, which involves visits to all those beautiful buildings featured in the film.

  Salzburg, just inside of Austria's border with Germany, became a rich city over 1,000 years ago from the nearby salt mines.

  Today, Salzburg retains its rich and rarefied atmosphere, a city that has been reluctant to move with the times and has not suffered because of it.



Festive season suits Salzburg