Note: As it is very time consuming to try and add pictures in the body of the blog, I will add them at the end with captions.
4-7 December Vienna
We left Denver on 4 December to fly to Chicago where we spent the night visiting Doug and Duffy. We enjoyed a great Mexican dinner Saturday night with several of Doug and Duffy's friends. On Sunday, we left in the early afternoon to catch our 4:30 Austrian Air flight to Vienna to begin our Danube River Cruise.
We arrived in
Vienna about 8:30 am on Monday 5 December.
The flight was uneventful, and I managed to get about 5 hours of
sleep. Getting through Vienna Airport
was super easy – it took about 5 minutes to get through passport control and
find baggage claim. There we were greeted
by St. Nicholas (St. Nicholas Day is celebrated here on 6 December) who with
his two helpers was handing out chocolate.
What a nice greeting. After
retrieving our luggage, we bought our tickets for the trip into the Vienna Main
train station and in 20 minutes we were in the center of Vienna. It was a short walk to transfer to the
underground (U) train which took us to our hotel – the Renaissance Wien Hotel –
just across the street from the U station – how convenient!
After checking
in we walked back to the U station and took the U one stop to the Schoenbrunn
Palace where we hoped to buy tickets for a tour on Wednesday. It was not particularly crowded as the
weather was cold and overcast, and we were lucky to get tickets for a tour this
afternoon. In the courtyard of the Palace,
they had a Christmas Market, so we walked around that for a while and had our
first glühwein of the year. We then had
lunch in the Palace’s restaurant. The
best part was the large piece of apple strudel topped with whipped cream and
ice cream. They do make outstanding
strudel here.
Schoenbrunn
Palace is beautiful and one of Austria’s major cultural assets – it is the most
popular site in Vienna. The former
summer residence of many of the Hapsburgs rulers, including Maria Theresa,
Emperor Franz Joseph, and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi), it is renowned for its
Baroque architecture, ceremonial rooms and magnificent gardens. Of course, it being December, there was not
much to see of the gardens, although there was a lot of green grass.
In 1569, the
Hapsburg Empire acquired the former Katterburg estate and in 1642 a palace was
built for the wife of Emperor Ferdinand II.
This was the first time the property was called “Schoenborn,” which
means “beautiful spring.” It was named
for an artesian well where the residents obtained their water. At the time it was used as a hunting and
recreation area.
In 1696, Emperor
Leopold I had the old pleasure palace torn down and replaced with a hunting
lodge for his son Crown Prince Joseph who would later become Emperor Joseph
I. However, the grandiose plans for the
new palace never achieved their full goal.
Emperor Leopold had to halt the construction work as his money had to be
diverted to the War of the Spanish Succession.
It wasn’t until
about 50 years late (1740), under the reign of Empress Maria Theresa, that the
building began its transformation into the palace we saw today. While in the past it had only been a hunting
lodge and sometime summer retreat, Maria Theresa wanted it to become her
full-time summer residence, complete with the beautiful gardens that exist
today. Although they used the original
plans of the first architect (who died in 1723), these plans were greatly
modified by Maria Theresa. Most of the
work was completed in the late 1700s and the only major change to the palace
since then was in 1820, when the façade was painted its distinctive yellow
color. The structure is massive,
covering three sides of the front courtyard.
Altogether, there are 1441 rooms, but only 45 are available for public
viewing. It was in one of the halls that
a six-year-old named Mozart made music.
On the grounds of
the palace is the Tiergarten Schoenbrunn (Schoenbrunn Animal Garden), founded
in 1752 and is, today, the oldest continuously operating zoo in the world. It was started by Maria Theresa’s husband,
Holy Roman Emperor Francis I, as an imperial menagerie. Originally there were 13 animal enclosures,
built in the form of cut cake pieces that were placed around a pavilion where
members of the court would eat their breakfast.
Francis’ son took safaris to Africa to bring back animals for the zoo. In
1828, the arrival of the first giraffe created quite a stir in Vienna –
clothes, accessories, and even musical compositions were all influenced by the
giraffe.
Sadly, both world
wars brought damage to the zoo. With food supplies in short supply during WWI,
the 3500 specimens that inhabited the zoo were reduced to 900. And the bombing raids in February 1945, not
only destroyed many buildings, but killed over 500 specimens. Today the zoo has rebounded and has over 700
species. As we were limited in our time,
we did not visit the zoo, although I had seen it in 2005 when visiting Vienna
with Doug. At that time the only two
species from America were the American bison and the prairie dog.
We took a tour of
the private rooms of Emperor Franz Joseph and his wife Sisi. To say they are beautiful is an
understatement – they are opulent with much gold gild decorating most of the
rooms. We visited about 25 rooms from
the grand ballroom to the Emperor’s toilette.
Unfortunately, you are not allowed to take pictures inside the building. But google has some great pictures of these
rooms.
Returning to the
hotel, we spent the better part of the evening in the bar having a wonderful
conversation with an American defense contractor (former Army but we won’t hold
that against him) and downing way too much wine.
The next day
was spent walking around the city. Vienna
is an absolutely beautiful and a very friendly, walkable city. We can’t wait to visit some of the Christmas
markets, especially the largest and grandest in Austria – the Rathaus Kindlmarket.
Vienna is the
capital of Austria and its most populous city.
It is also perhaps the most culturally vibrant city, steeped in
grandeur, in Europe if not the world.
The city is home to beautiful Imperial Palaces, built during the
Hapsburg Dynasty, museums and old churches, as well as lively modern coffee
shops and let us not forget, the Sacher Torte, a heavenly delight of chocolate
and apricot jam. Vienna is famous for
their Lipizzaner horses who perform their elegant equine ballet at the Spanish
Riding School. It is also known as the
City of Music and is renowned for its State Opera House and the Vienna Boys
Choir and a musical heritage that features famous composers such as Mozart,
Strauss, Beethoven, Schubert, and Brahms.
Who can forget the beautiful Viennese waltz danced to the Blue Danube
composition – I think I have watched too many Hallmark Christmas movies! And everywhere
there are vendors trying to sell you tickets to a Mozart concert. As Mozart is not one of my favorite
composers, we decline. We had also been
to a quartet concert in Vienna during our Viking Danube River Cruise many years
ago.
Vienna’s past has
been a succession of former empires and dynasties, beginning with a Celtic
settlement in 500 BC. In 15 BC, the
small city was fortified by the Romans to guard against Germanic tribes from
the north. The Babenberg dynasty, then
located in Bavaria (Germany), began expanding its territory in 976 AD. In 1145, Vienna became the family residence
and remained the center of the Babenberg dynasty until 1440.
Vienna then
became the imperial city of one of the most powerful and influential dynasties
– the Hapsburg Dynasty, who ruled Vienna and Austria from 1558-1918. Under the Hapsburg rule, Vienna became the seat
of the Holy Roman Empire (until 1806) and a cultural center for arts, science,
music and fine cuisine. During the early
part of their rule, they twice stopped the Ottoman army from entering the city
and survived the Great Plague of Vienna in 1679 that killed one third of
Vienna’s population. Following WWI, the
Hapsburg Empire was divided up among many European nations, leaving only
Austria and Hungary under the rule of the last Hapsburg ruler, King
Charles. On 11 November 1918, Charles issued
a decree recognizing Austria’s right to become a republic and renouncing his
right to any share in the affairs of state (he made a similar proclamation for
Hungary on 13 November 1918). The reign
of the Hapsburg Dynasty had come to an end.
Unfortunately,
from 1938 to 1945, Austria (and Vienna) became part of Hitler’s Greater Germany
and much like Berlin, the city was divided into five zones (British, French,
American, Soviet Union, and one international zone in the historic center of
Vienna) following the war. It wasn’t until the State Treaty of 1955 that
Austria regained its independence with Vienna as its capital. As with most of the other cities under
Hitler’s rule, Vienna suffered heavy damage during the last months of WWII, but
the damage has since been rebuilt and Vienna looks as it did before the world
wars.
After yesterday,
we felt as if we had mastered the U subway system so off we went on our walking
tour. The only problem we encountered
was trying to determine which of 8 exits we needed to take as we exited the
subway station. Unfortunately, we still
haven’t mastered that and as a result we probably did more walking than needed. But we did see some beautiful buildings and
several small Christmas markets (that had not yet opened for the day). We passed by the massive Opera House that
takes up a complete block and finally made our way to the Neumarkt area, a pedestrian
area with many high-end stores.
There we saw the
Donner Fountain. Located in the
center of Neumarkt, this elegant fountain was commissioned by Vienna’s City
Council in 1737. Created by
George-Raphael Doner, it shows the gracefully undraped Goddess of Providence, holding
a snake and attended by four laughing cherubs who are struggling with a
fish. On the edge of the waters that
flow into the fountain’s basin are four allegorical figures that represent the
rivers of Austria. After it was erected,
it was judged to be too obscene and immoral – an afront to public decency. The Council ordered that it be removed and
melted down and destroyed. However, it
was not destroyed and today the original lies in the Belvedere Museum. The one in the square is a copy.
There we finally
found St. Stephens Cathedral, the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese
of Vienna. Throughout its long tenure as
the most important church in Austria, it has been witness to many important
events in the history of both Austria and the Habsburg Empire.
The church sits
on the site of the first Romanesque St. Stephens that was consecrated in
1147. Between 1200-1225, a second
Romanesque church replaced the original one. In 1304 a Gothic Choir was added and in 1433
the South Tower was completed. Construction
of the North Tower began in 1450 but was abandoned in 1511 due to the
Reformation and the growing threat of a Turkish invasion. It was finally finished in 1578 with the
construction of a domed cap, where the Pummerin, the cathedral’s 21-ton bell
resides. In 1722 the Archdiocese of
Vienna was established. In 1732, the
catacombs beneath the church square were set up as underground burial
places. During the waning days of WWII, while
most of the church was saved from destruction by the fleeing German forces,
civilian looters lit fires in the nearby homes and shops, and sparks from those
fires set fire to the roof of the Cathedral.
Much of the artwork, the pulpit, and the tome of Frederick III were
saved by brick shells that were built around these areas, but the organ, bells,
and other artwork were destroyed. After
only 7 years of rebuilding, St. Stephen’s Cathedral reopened in 1952. In 1960, a new giant organ replaced the one
destroyed in the fire. Today, St.
Stephen’s, with its four beautiful towers and tiled rooftops, dominates the
skyline of Vienna. The South Tower, at
446 feet and the highest point in the city, offers fantastic views of Vienna
for anyone willing to climb its 300 steps – we were not!
The last time
we were in Vienna, the church had been undergoing a massive renovation and was
covered in scaffolding. Today most of the scaffolding is gone and the outside
is spectacular. There was also a small
Christmas market located in front of the church. We walked inside, where the inside was just
as majestic as the outside.
Not far from
the church in the center of a pedestrian walkway, is the Plaque Column or
Trinity Column. This baroque sculpture has
a complex composition of visual images and symbols, freely mixing religious
icons with motifs from the Habsburg Empire.
The Trinity seems to play an important role. Its basic message is that the Black Plague of
1679 was a punishment for sins. but it was defeated by the piety and
intercession of Emperor Leopold 1. The
sculpture is designed as a tower of clouds, saints, angels, and the Habsburgs (or
Leopold 1), thanking God for his intercession, with references to the Trinity
throughout the sculpture. The bottom of the sculpture has figures representing
the triumph of faith over disease, with Leopold 1 praying to God. Next are the angels who act as a mediator
between God and the man below. And
finally, the highest level of the sculpture is reserved for the Holy Trinity
and is topped by cherubs. In addition, there
is a three-part division which establishes a connection between the Trinity and
the three parts of the Habsburg monarchy. The western face of the sculpture is
dedicated to God the Father, with a double-headed eagle (the coat of arms of
the Holy Roman Empire), the coats of arms of the Inner Austrian lands – the
duchies of Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola – and the coats of arms of the core
countries of the monarchy. The eastern
face, associated with the Son of God, has the coats of arms of the kingdoms of
Hungary, Croatia and Dalmatia, and Bosnia.
And finally, the northern face, belonging to the Holy Trinity, has the
coats of arms of the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Margraviate of Upper Lusatia and
Lower Silesia, and the Duchy of Silesia. This column eventually inspired the erection
of many similar monuments throughout Austria.
It should be noted that Leopold 1 did his praying from quite a distance
away from Vienna, as he fled the city as the plague started!
We then walked
to St. Peter’s Church, a beautiful church with a green dome. Built on the site of a 14th
century church that could be the oldest church in Vienna, St. Peter’s Church is
Vienna’s is one of the oldest, but the most lavish baroque church in
Vienna. Built in the early 18th
century, its exterior is dominated by a massive dome, mimicking its namesake in
Rome, reliefs and statues. But it is the
interior that really captures your interest.
It is like opening a psychedelic Easter egg with its dazzling display of
gold, silver, and marble statues and icons.
It is stunningly baroque! Its magnificent golden pulpit sits opposite a gold and
silver sculpture representing the Martyrdom of St. John of Nepomuk. And the painting on the ceiling of the dome –
the Coronation of Our Lady – is said to be one of the prettiest in Vienna. Another feature of this church not to be
missed is its large organ that was built in 1751. Today the church belongs to the priests of
the Opus Dei.
Our last church was St. Michael’s Church, another
of Vienna’s old churches, and one of the few remaining churches built in the
Romanesque style, St. Michael’s Church, dedicated to the Archangel Michael,
sits across the square from the Hofburg Palace.
Built during the 1200s, it was the parish church of the Hapsburgs. Winged angels, carved in 1792, fly above the
church’s entrance. Perhaps the most
interesting feature of the church is the catacombs located beneath it. During the period 1631-1784, about 4,000
people were buried there. Because of its
unusual environment, these bodies did not decompose, and today, in addition to
the coffins adorned with flowers or skulls, you can also see mummified corpses,
some still in their baroque frockcoats and wigs. Unfortunately, the catacombs are only open on
Friday and Saturday, so we were unable to visit. Mozart’s “Requiem” piece was first performed
in St. Michael’s shortly after Mozart’s death.
From St.
Michael’s, we walked around the small circle to the Hofburg Palace. This
was the Imperial Palace and seat of government for the Habsburg dynasty during
their reign which lasted until 1918. It
is one of the largest palace complexes in the world and is today the official
residence of the President of Austria. Built
during the 13th century it has continually been expanded with
construction up into the 20th century. In addition to the Spanish Riding School
there are several museums, a church and chapel, the Austrian National Library,
and the Presidential offices. Three of
the most popular attractions are the Imperial Silver Collection, the Sisi
Museum and the Imperial Apartments. The
Silver Collection, which now belongs to the Austrian Republic, includes crystal
glasses, silverware, and porcelain used during the lavish dinners of the
Habsburg dynasty. The Sisi Museum
recounts the life of the beloved Empress Sisi, her rebellion against court
ceremony, her obsession with beauty and the deep sadness that affected her. Married at 16 to the Emperor Franz Joseph of
Austria, feeling isolated and trapped inside the palace, she suffered a mental
illness, caused in large part by the suicide of her son. Escaping from the tragedies in her life, she
traveled the world until she was assassinated in 1898 in Geneva. The Imperial Apartments were the living areas
of the Habsburgs for over 600 years.
They have been preserved in all their splendor with the original décor
and furnishings. As we had already
visited the Imperial Apartments at Schoenbunn and jet lag and a lot of walking
on cobblestones were beginning to take their toll, we just walked through the
complex (a road runs right through the center of the Palace) to the Heldenplatz
or Hero’s Square.
In front of the Hofburg is Heldenplatz, a large square built during the reign of Emperor Franz
Joseph. Its carefully constructed symmetry seems to
dictate that each of the stately buildings bordering it, as well as each of its
equestrian statues and ornate lampposts, has a well-balanced mate. Gardens
stretch out in well-maintained splendor.
It was here, in 1938, that Nazi Germany announced the annexation of
Austria. In the square are two
equestrian stations commemorating two of Austria’s most important military
leaders – Archduke Karl
who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Aspern-Essling in 1809 and Prince Eugene
of Savoy, the hero of the wars against the Turks.
Then it was
time to head back to the hotel for a little rest before traveling to the one
place Bill wanted to see in Austria – the Rathous Wiener Christkindlmarket.
We left the
hotel about 5 PM to take the U to the Rathaus. The Rathaus, built between
1872-1883, is the seat of the local government of Vienna. Here you will find the offices of the mayor
and the chambers of the city council. It
is one of the Vienna’s tallest and most impressive buildings with its towers
looking down majestically on a central square and park. But most importantly, here is the location of
Vienna’s largest Christmas market, with vendors’ booths both in the square in
front of the Rathaus and in the park behind the Rathaus. There was a large Christmas tree adorned with
white lights in front of the Rathaus.
The scene was lively, noisy, crowded, and festive. In addition to the vendor’s booths, there was
a Ferris wheel, a carousel, and plenty of food and drink booths selling glühwein
and other hot drinks in the little mugs that were designed specifically for
each different Christmas market. On our
Rhine River Christmas Market tour we brought home 18 mugs. So far, we have 3 from this trip and the
river cruise has yet to start! We had a
wonderful time wandering through the booths and enjoying our glühwein.
Our visit to
Vienna has been wonderful. Everywhere
you look, people and stores have outdone themselves with Christmas decorations. There are about 20 Christmas markets, the majority
located in the old part of town. But it
is now time to move to our new home for the next 7 days – the river boat
Aria. Tomorrow the next part of our
adventure begins.
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| Greeting from St. Nicholas at Airport |
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| Schoenbrunn Palace |
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| Statue in front of Schoenbrunn Palace |
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Apple Strudel
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Vienna Opera House
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Donner Fountain
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St. Stephens Cathedral
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| Inside the Cathedral |
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Inside Cathedral
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Inside Cathedral
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Inside the Cathedral
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| St. Peter's Church |
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| Inside St. Peter's |
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| Ceiling of St. Peter's |
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| St. Peter's Church |
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| Trinity Statue or Plaque Column |
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| St. Michael's Church |
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| St. Michael's Church |
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| Ceiling of St. Michael's |
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| Hofburg Palace |
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| Hofburg Place |
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| Hero's Square - Archduke Karl Statue |
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Store Decoration in Vienna
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| Hero's Square - Prince Eugene |
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| Rathhouse Christmas Market |
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| Rathaus Christmas Market |
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| Rathaus Christmas Market |
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| Rathaus Christmas Market |
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| Rathaus Christmas Market |
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| Rathaus Christmas Market |
