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Published: February 6th 2008
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After leaving Venice as you know we headed to Austia to stay with our friend Tristan for Christmas. We took an afternoon train to Vienna and arrived at night on the 20th of December. Being in Vienna was a bit different than any of the other cities so far in that we had a friend from home to spend time with and a place to relax that was a home. So, while we saw many amazing sites of Vienna, we were really grateful to slow down the pace and enjoy Christmas with someone from home. Thanks Tristan!
On the 21st Tristan took us on a walk passed the Stephensdom in Stephensplatz (square), the famous and beautiful cathedral in the center of town. We then walked down Graben street, that has a ton of high end fashion shops, to the Hofburg Palace which today houses several museums and the current president. Vienna was actually the center of the Habsburg Empire (the Austrian Empire) from the 13th century until the early part of the 20th century. The empire spread from Germany to Hungary at one point. Actually, it was the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand that percipitated the Austrian declaration of war
in World War I, and their empire was dissolved at the end of WWI. The ruling family lived in the palace for centuries. It is a huge stone and marble, regal looking building. In the back of the palace is a huge courtyard that leads to the Museum Quartier. This area houses several more museums and at the time, a huge christmas market. At the market we tried out gluwine, which is a version of hot wine to warm our hands and body up, and listened to the accordion player! In the same complex as the museums is a great little cafe that we had lunch at. After lunch Tristan took us to Mariahilefrstrasse street. This is a very popular street for shopping by the common folk as Rich and I were still looking for some more winter clothes!
You already know what happened on the 22nd and 23rd, that is if you read the Hungary blog!
Already christmas eve has approached! On the 24th Tristan took us around the "Ringstrasse" on one of the street trains. Vienna is actually laid out so the city center is surrounded by a street that makes a ring around the heart of the
city. So, riding around the Ring you get a good view of the sights. We then headed to Rathausplatz, a square that is surrounded by four public buildings, the Rathaus (city hall), the Burgtheater, the Parliament and the Universitat. The Rathaus was beautifully lit up and there was yet another huge christmas market in front. At the christmas market we had the traditional Austrian christmas market meal: bratwurst with cheese stuffed inside and Punsch (another hot wine that is definitely needed to warm up)! Rich also tried Jaga tea which he said kept him nice and warm! It was perfect for a freezing outdoor market as it snowed on us!
Christmas day was a very relaxing day for us! We went out to the Habsburg´s summer palace, the Schonbrunn. I am sure the gardens and grounds are spectacular in the summer, but even in the wither the palace from the outside was amazing. It is canary yellow and looks like a huge country house. The rest of the day we spent making a christmas dinner and getting in touch with our families.
On Tuesday the 26th we decided to brave the cold again and had a toastie (ham and cheese
sandwich) at a cute cafe near the Stephensdom for lunch. We then went into one of the Hofburg museums, the Schatzkammer, that is famous for housing the Austrian Empire´s crown jewels. The jewels were amazing! They had a huge emerald and the biggest opal I´ve ever seen! It also housed many emperor´s clothes from their crowning ceremonies and silver pieces from various churches. We then did a very exotic thing and saw the Golden Compass movie! You always need some things from home!
On the 27th, sadly, Tristan had to go back to work, so Rich and I went around the city on our own. We ventured inside the Stephensdom, which was quite ornate and artistically decorated with stonework. We also go in to the cattacombs and saw some of the Habsburgs final resting place. We also went to the top of the Eagle tower in the Stephensdom to view the city from above! Rich and I had been craving mexican food, so Tristan took us to a place he knew of that night. It was be no means great but at least it was mexican food!
On the 28th Rich and I went to Schwedenplatz square and went insde
the Jesuiten Kirsche (church). The coolest part about this church was that inside it had spiraling red and green colums lining the inside of the church. Heading back to the Hofburg we went to the Albertina art gallery. We were lucky, there was a great Monet exhibit going on and the museum also had works by Matisse, Kadinsky, and Picasso. Heading back to Tristan´s we shopped around a little and bought some more winter clothes. On our last night Tristan took us for some traditional Austrian food and he even ordered for us! Good choices Tristan it was excellent! We also hit the town that night and stopped at a bar and then a club that actually is an old underground metro stop! On Saturday the 29th we had to say goodbye to Tristan and head on an afternoon train to the Czech Republic.
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nic-n-shane
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Ah, you guys are wearing those stylish ski caps, like the dudes wear here in San Diego!! :) Makes me miss the cold weather, but I'm guessing you guys might be missing the warm weather right about now. Looks like a lot of fun. Can't wait to see you guys!