Ahhh, Vienna!

 

Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 27 and 28

Hofburg Palace in Vienna

We are in Vienna, Austria, and I don’t even know where to begin.  Fraulein Maria says to start at the very beginning so….

Vienna’s history started with the Romans way back in the 1^st century when the Romans established a military camp named Vinobona.   But as we all know, all good things come to an end and as the Roman empire began to collapse, the area was vulnerable to raids and invasions.

Statue of Archduke Karl - HERO 1

Prince Eugene Statue - HERO 2

But the area experienced growth during the medieval times and it eventually grew into the imperial capital for the Babenberg dynasty.   I will let you look that up.  More importantly the city was walled and it became the capital for the very powerful Habsburg dynasty.  And this was a true dynasty.  This family ruled Austria from 1282 A.D. until the end of WWI in 1918.  And it wasn’t only Austria but the vast and far reaching empire of the Hungarian/Austrian empire also known as Bohemia.

The Hofburg Palace

One of the most famous rulers of this monarch was Maria Theresia.  She ruled the empire from 1740 to her death in 1780.  This lady was quite the lady!  She was the only female Habsburg ruler during this dynasty.  

Schonbrunn Palace

Maria Theresa in front of Schonbrunn Palace

She gave birth to 16 children in 19 years, all the while ruling the empire, waging wars when needed and creating a culture of reforms in education and finance.  She centralized the arts and sciences to Vienna, and to this day Vienna is a cultural center in Europe.  One of the reasons she had as many children as she did was to bring peace and stability to the entire region.   She would very wisely pick and choose her children to become husbands and wives to prominent and ruling families to strengthen their family ties and bring peace to warring areas.  For example, one of her children was Marie Antoinette, who at age 14, was married away to King Louis XVI of France, who was only 15 at the time.   He may be best remembered as the last monarch of France as the French Revolution brought them down.  They were both executed in 1793.

Johannes Gutenberg Monument at the Lugeck Square

Enough history, but there sure is a lot of history here.  Vienna is known as the city of music.  Let’s see…  Who was born here?  Johann Strauss II, Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven and many others.  

St. Stephen's Cathedral from a distance

Also, Sigmund Freud, Hedy Lamarr, Maria Von Trapp and none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger and last but not least, Hanz and Franz from Saturday Night Live!!

Swiss Gate at Hofburg Palace

Even old Adolf Hitler was an Austrian, born German politician.  His love of the arts is well known but what might not be known is that twice he was turned down by the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts in 1907 and 1908.  Just imagine what might have happened or not happened had he gotten into the School.

Hitler balcony at Hofburg Palace where

he conducted his rally March 1938

Danubius Fountain at Hofburg

Vialula in Josephsplatz

Our walking tour in the morning included some free time where we shopped a bit and then went to Sluka Cafe for a cup of their famous Viennese coffee and a slice of Estherhazytorte. It was delicious!

traditional Austrian clothes for children

Steiff bears

enjoying our coffee and cake at Sluka

In the afternoon, Vialula and I went back into Old Town Vienna and went to the Spanish Riding School, home of the world famous Lipizzaner Stallions.  These were also a product of the Habsburg dynasty.  They are a cross of imported Spanish horses with local Slovenian horses to create the breed so well known today.  

the majestic Lipizzaners and their riders

Plaque honoring Gen. Patton for his part

in rescuing the horses in WWII

Crystal chandeliers adorn the interior

of the Winter riding arena at the

Spanish Riding School

Another look - beyond beautiful

The horse is born with dark hair and only as they become of age do they turn white.  These horses get to live as normal horses until the age of about 4 or 5. They undergo training for another 6 to 8 years before they begin their showing.  The average age of these horses is between 20 to 35 years.  They are housed and trained in the heart of Vienna Old Town where they have been for centuries.  

Outside walker

Courtyard Stables

We saw the training and show arenas, and we saw them tucked away in their stables. As many as 68 stalls are at the Vienna location.  The tack room was spotless as was the entire facility.

one of the Stars of the Show

As close as we could get - no petting

Tack Room

They say the stalls are cleaned out every two hours, 24/7.   How would you like that job??  If you want a good read, Vialula said to tell you that "The Perfect Horse" by Elizabeth Letts is really good, and tells the story of how the Lipizzaner horses were hidden and ultimately saved during WWII.

Continuing our horse theme, our day was ended with a carriage ridge all through Old Town.  The clip-clop of the hooves on the centuries old cobblestone streets with all the historical beauty around us almost did us in!

Vialula loved the carriage ride!

A great way to see Vienna

Vienna today is home to about 2 million people and 200,000 of them are students.  It is a fabulous city of palaces, cathedrals, churches, cultural centers, museums, etc.  The city, was, for the most part, saved from total destruction during the war and like many European cities today, the old and past is preserved while the new and modern flourished in new areas ... in this case on the other side of the river.  

Plague Column

St. Stephen's Cathedral

A glimpse of the modern Vienna on the other side of the Danube

You could stay a couple of weeks here and never get through it all.  Vialula and I are awe struck with these old cities in Europe.  We only get to see a snippet at each stop but we are never disappointed.  Make plans to come and see for yourself.  But thanks for hanging in with us and keep following along.