Advertisement
Published: December 4th 2006
Edit Blog Post
With a few unplanned days on the calendar due to Corsica accommodations falling through, we checked out the last minute deals from Zurich and scored a 3 day package to Vienna. Although we had hoped to make it there on our roadtrip, it was a bit too far to drive, so we were happy to take this opportunity to visit.
The weather turned from fall to winter on the 1st of November with chilling winds and threatening snow. We managed to bundle up and still did quite a bit of walking outdoors though. The trick to staying warm is drinking a lot of warm beverages! We were very impressed with how the Viennese served hot chocolate: on a silver tray with a small glass of water. It is always nice to have a bit of water with it and they seemed to have figured this out. J also tried the "punsch" being sold on the street. A nice German family explained to us that is a strong, mulled wine. J told them he was born in Frankfurt and the mother exclaimed, "Oh, me too. We are both Frankfurters!" J's reply: "Well, I guess at least I'm not a Weiner."
We stayed near Schloss Schonbrunn, the summer home of the Hapsburgs, with it's extensive gardens. The walk up to the Glorietta offered a wonderful view of the palace grounds, and the entire city beyond. Inside there is a small cafe where we warmed up with, you guessed it, some hot cocoa. Afterwards, we joined a guided tour of the Palace in English. A few interesting tidbits about the palace:
1. The palace was built in 1696 as a hunting lodge for the Hapsburgs.
2. The most famous inhabitants were Emperor Franz I Stephan and his wife Maria Theresa in the mid-1700s, and Emperor Franz Joseph I and his wife Elisabeth (Sissi) in the mid-1800s.
3. Emperor Franz I Stephan and his wife Maria Theresa had 16 children including one Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna von Habsburg-Lothringen (AKA Marie Antoinette).
4. The famous yellow color of the palace was only chosen by Franz II/I because it was the cheapest paint he could get.
5. A painting in the palace shows commoners at a market being de-loused by a trained monkey for a fee. According to our guide, this is how the terms "flea market", "nit picky", "nit wit", etc. originated. Interesting, but
we took it with a grain of salt.
6. I asked our guide where the Hapsburg descendants are today and his reply was that most live abroad, many in the US. Apparently, it is more advantageous for them to use their title abroad than in Austria. 7. Our guide explained that he normally gives the VIP tours and guides about 10 Hapsburgs through the Palace each year (not to mention Lenny Kravitz and David Hasselhoff)!
St. Steven's Cathedral, built in 1467, is in the center of town. It was heavily bombed during WWII, but has been fully restored of course. We were fortunate to get seats for a (free) performance of Mozart's Requiem in the Cathedral one evening. The acoustics are incredible which made it a real treat to experience. Mozart's Requiem holds a special place in my heart as the first piece of classical music I owned on tape; it was given to me by one of my dearest friends INSERT LINK HERE who is an amazing singer and musician herself. It was this music that introduced me to classical; from there I bought loads of tapes and CDs of classical music that I listened to while studying
all through high school and college.
I was interested in seeing the Schatzkammer (Treasury) museum of the Hapsburgs. This is the place to see massive gemstones, crowns, scepters, and regalia! Check out the photos for a taste of the opulence.
As in Salzburg, we decided to do the 2 hour walking tour through the tourist office (12 Euros each). Although it was cold out and had snowed that morning, the sun was shining just before the appointed start of the tour. By the time we headed out the door, it was snowing again. The guide was very gracious and led us to St. Augustine's church to warm up. When we emerged 10 minutes or so later, there was not a cloud in the sky. This pattern of snow/clear skies continued throughout the tour. It was interesting nevertheless and gave us more of a historical perspective on our surroundings. We walked through the courtyards of the Hofburg (main Palace of the Hapsburgs), visited St. Michael's church, and ended up at Stevensplatz.
So I suppose you want to hear about the Wienersnitzel...and we won't disappoint you! We had dinner at the Cafe Mozart (highly recommended) across the street from
the Albertina. Our waiter was the most attentive we encountered in all of Europe to date and J pointed this out to him with a handshake and a sincere thank you when we left. J had the Weinersnitzel: thinly pounded veal, breaded and fried, with homemade gnocchi and vegetables. We're not sure, but we think real Weinersnitzel is veal although we have seen it with pork other places; in Vienna, there is also sweinsnitzel (pork) on menus to differentiate. I had some wonderful lamb with tepid sour cherries, mashed potatoes, and vegetables; the combination of the lamb and cherries was unique and tantilizing.
In each of the countries we've visited so far, the people seem to have a specific "look" - a combination of genetic heritage, immigration and style. We felt that we both fit in well in Vienna, both with the clothing style and our features. We were approached by multiple people speaking German, which hasn't happened elsewhere. J thinks that Vienna straddles Western and Eastern Europe, and that combination makes it more heterogenous.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.086s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 9; qc: 32; dbt: 0.0381s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Jess
non-member comment
flea market
I was intrigued so found this for the origin of "flea market": http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20010709.html You guys are having too much fun! Keep the journals coming.