Day 7 - Friday May 21, 1999 - Vienna, Austria: Arrived at Vienna Sudbanhof right on time around 6:30AM. I went to the Tourist Information office, got a map of the city, then I took a tram to the nearest subway station, and there I took subway line U1 to the Karlsplatz station that was near my hotel. I walked to my hotel, the Pension Shermin (A-1040 Vienna, Rilkeplatz 7, 990 ATS per night, breakfast included), which was right next to the Technical University, and checked my luggage in with the receptionist since my room would not be available until after noon. I started walking in towards the city center, the first thing I noticed was the extensive use of trams as public transportation, and the maze of overhead cables needed to power them. The first site that I passed along the way was the Karlskirche (St Charles Church), this church is unique because its central dome is flanked by two triumphal columns as tall as the dome. Next, I walked up past the Karlsplatz subway station, and saw the two Stadtbahn subway station pavilions designed by the famous Viennese architect Otto Wagner. These buildings are two of the finest examples of the Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) style of architecture that was popular in Vienna in the late 1800's. The two buildings are identical and face each other, the west pavilion is closed and not used, but the east pavilion is open, and now houses the Otto Wagner Café.

Walking into the city center, the Staatsoper (State Opera House) stands at the center of Vienna. This building's magnificence, and central location leaves no doubt that music is at the heart of Vienna which at one time or another was home to: Hayden, Mozart, Brahms, Beethoven, Schubert, Mahler, and Johann Strauss. This musical heritage was nurtured by the ruling Habsburg family, in fact Emperor Leopold I was a composer, and his son, Emperor Karl VI, played the violin. Continuing the family tradition, Karl's daughter, Empress Maria Theresa, played the double bass, and her son, Emperor Josef II, played the harpsichord, and cello. I boarded tram number 1 which goes on the Ringstrasse around the city center, this ring of streets used to be where the old city walls existed. The ride gives you a quick orientation and overview of this magnificent city. I walked to the Naschmarkt for lunch, this is an open air produce market that is off Wienzeile street. When I arrived, the market was very busy with many fruit, vegetable, olives, meat, fish, cheese, and sausage vendors.

Due to the lack of sleep on the night train from Venezia, I retired early to my room in the Pension Shermin at around 2PM. The room was quite large, with a good modern bathroom, and it was very clean. I woke up around 6PM and walked back into the city center via Karntner Strasse. This is a pedestrian only street with many outdoor cafés, and many street performers entertaining the large crowds of people walking up and down the street. My favorite street performer was a guy who controlled a marionette that played the piano. It was fun to see the little kids being totally fascinated by the marionette, they would run up to put a tip in the guy's hat, and he would have the marionette stick out its tongue, and eyes at the kids making them run in panic back towards their parents. I had dinner at the Rosenberger Markt Restaurant, this cafeteria style restaurant is just off Karntner Strasse north of the Opera House. Although not inexpensive, they had a pretty good selection of quality food in a rare to find European smoke free environment, I loved their fresh fruit juices.

Day 8 - Saturday May 22, 1999 - Vienna, Austria: Walked back into the city center, and through Karntner Strasse past the State Opera House, and up to St Stepehan's Cathedral. This Gothic cathedral is the largest and most important church in the city. Its central doorway is the remnants of a 12th century Romanesque church around which they built the Gothic church. The Gothic church has two identical front spire towers flanking the central doorway, a very tall ceramic tile roof decorated in a geometric pattern over the nave, a small north tower with a bell, and a tall (450 foot) south tower called St Stephan's tower that can be climbed via a spiral staircase for a fantastic view of the city (30 ATS). The north tower was to be identical to the south tower, but was never finished and simply capped off at the height it stood in 1511. The interior of St Stephan's Cathedral is impressive, but not as magnificent as the interior of other cathedrals that I have visited, I was more impressed with St Peter's Basilica in Rome, and Chartres Cathedral in France. Next to the elevator to the north tower is the entrance to the catacombs of the church, it is here that 56 urns containing the intestines of the Habsburg rulers reside. Outside the north tower of the cathedral there was a long row of horse drawn carriages used to take visitors around the city.

Next I walked back to the State Opera House to stand in line for tickets for a 2PM English guided tour of the interior of the building (60 ATS). While waiting in line, I was approached by a couple in 18th century period costumes selling overly expensive tickets (about $40) to a Mozart concert by the Vienna Mozart Orchestra in the Musikverein Golden Hall. I decided to splurge, and buy a ticket for that night's performance, after all who knows when or if I will ever be back in Vienna. The original State Opera House opened in 1869 during the reign of Emperor Franz Josef I with a performance of Mozart's "Don Giovanni". The original architects were criticized for their building's design to the point that one committed suicide, and the other died of a heart attack before the opera house's first performance. During World War II the opera house was completely destroyed by Allied bombing, it was rebuilt, and re-opened in 1955 with a performance of Beethoven's "Fidelio". The interior of the Staatsopera is just spectacular, justifying its position as one of the premier opera houses in the world. Among the illustrious directors and conductors at this most famous opera house have been: Gustav Mahler, Bruno Walter, Richard Strauss, Wilhem Furtwangler, Karl Bohm, Herbert von Karajan, Lorin Maazel, and Claudio Abbado. This spectacular opera house holds either an operatic or ballet performance almost every night (except in July and August), and standing room tickets can be purchased right before the performance.

Next I walked from the Opera House to the Hofburg Palace complex by going through the Burggarten gardens. Until the late 1800's, the Burggarten used to be the private garden of the emperor, but now it is open to the public. I entered through an impressive gate that is crowned with an imperial double headed eagle statue, and walked past the large Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) Glass House that houses a restaurant. Then I came into the Hofburg Palace complex, the Heldenplatz grounds in front of the palace buildings are magnificent with two large equestrian statues, one of Prince Eugene of Savoy, and another of Archduke Karl. Since it was getting late, I had to choose between seeing the Imperial Apartments or the Treasury. Since I planned on going to Schonbrunn Palace the following day to see the royal living quarters there, I decided to go to the Treasury in the Hofburg Palace (80ATS entrance). The Treasury contains the crown jewels of the Habsburgs, it is the most impressive collection of jewels on the continent, and it rivals the crown jewels of England in the Tower of London in importance, and value. The most important room in the Treasury is room 11 because it holds the magnificent 10th century Crown of the Holy Roman Emperor, the Imperial Crown of Austria, the Holy Lance (supposedly the lance used to pierce Christ during his crucifixion), and a reliquary with a piece of wood from the True Cross soaked with the blood of Christ. I walked back to my hotel passing through the plaza between the Kunsthistorisches Museum (art museum), and the Naturhistorisches Museum (natural history museum). The plaza between these museums has a large statue of Empress Maria Theresa facing the entrance gates to the Hofburg Palace across the Ringstrasse.

At night, I headed to the Musikverein concert hall for the Mozart concert that was scheduled to start at 8:15PM. The Musikverein was built in the late 1800's under the reign of Emperor Franz Josef I, its exterior is uniquely painted a deep red, in its interior is a magnificently decorated concert hall, and it is the permanent home of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. The performance took place in the Musikverein's Golden Hall, the place was packed with tourists, and the program included ten of Mozart's most popular orchestral, and operatic works. All member's of the orchestra are dressed in 18th century period costumes right down to powdered wigs. By far the favorite piece, which brought the house down, was the aria sung by Konigin der Nacht (Queen of the Night) "Der Holle Rache" ("Hell's Revenge") from Mozart's "Die Zauberflote" (Magic Flute), the Soprano singer was Christina Janakopulu, and she did a fantastic job singing this very difficult aria hitting some very tough notes. At the end, the orchestra came out for an encore of Johann Strauss waltzes that was thoroughly enjoyed by the entire audience, after all this is Vienna. In all, it was a touristy concert but everyone really enjoyed it, and no one was asking for a refund at the end.

Day 9 - Sunday May 23, 1999 - Vienna, Austria: I woke up early, and walked to the Karlsplatz subway station to take subway line U4 out to Schonbrunn Palace in order to beat the crowds. This royal palace is second only to France's Versailles in size and splendor, it was the summer home of the Habsburgs who ruled Austria from 1278 to 1918 (810 years), and it provided them with a cozy 1,441 rooms. I purchased a ticket for the Grand Tour with an audio guide which covers 40 rooms (120 ATS), the ticket is stamped with the time at which you are allowed to enter the palace, and since I got there early, I only had to wait about 15 minutes to go in. The palace exterior is in the Baroque style with a yellow color, and the interior is in the Rococo style favored by Empress Maria Theresa. The rooms are very lavishly decorated with much porcelain, crystal, and gold-leaf gilded hand carved wood pieces. All the rooms had the back side of furnaces up against their back walls so that servants could service them while running around behind the interior walls of the rooms never to be seen by the royals. One of my favorite rooms in the palace is the Mirror Room (room 16), because it was here that a six year old Mozart performed a concert for the Empress Maria Theresa. Another impressive room is the large Great Gallery (room 21) with its windows overlooking the palace's gardens, it was the room where balls took place.

The Empress Maria Theresa, and her husband, Emperor Franz I Stefan, lived in Schonbrunn Palace from 1740 to 1780. They had sixteen children (only twelve survived) among them were two future emperors (Josef II and Leopold II), and seven daughters all with the first name Maria. Their youngest daughter, Maria Antonia (i.e. Marie Antoinette), married King Louis XVI of France, and was guillotined in Paris in 1793. There are several paintings in the palace showing the Empress, and the Emperor with their twelve children.

Emperor Franz II lived in Schonbrunn Palace from 1792 to 1835, and he was the last Habsburg to rule as Holy Roman Emperor. His daughter, Archduchess Marie Luise, was married by Napoleon I (Napoleon Bonaparte) for political reasons, and she bore him his only son, Napoleon II (1811-1832). Napoleon I made his son King of Rome upon his birth (1811-1814), and when he abdicated in 1814 he named the three year old child as his successor. However, Marie Luise returned with her son to Vienna to live at Schonbrunn Palace, at which time the child became the Duke of Reichstadt. The Napoleon Room (room 30) in the palace is the room in which the Duke of Reichstadt died at age 21 from tuberculosis, here there is a portrait of him as a child, as well as the stuffed crested lark which was his pet bird. In 1940 as a gift to France, Adolf Hitler had his remains transferred to the Invalides in Paris where he now rests next to his father.

Emperor Franz Josef I and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi) were the last significant Habsburg rulers to live in Schonbrunn Palace from 1830-1916. Their only son, Crown Prince Rudolph, committed murder suicide in 1889 with his lover, 17 year old Baroness Mary Vetsera. Sisi's cousin was Bavaria's King Ludwig II who built the castles I was going to visit later on in my trip. Tragically, Sisi was assassinated in 1898 by an Italian anarchist while travelling in Geneva, Switzerland. As a result of the Crown Prince's death, the Emperor's nephew, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, became the heir to the throne, however he also was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in 1914 to spark the start of World War I. The last Habsburg ruler, Emperor Karl I only ruled from 1916-1918, because after World War I Austria ceased being a monarchy, and it became a republic.

The garden grounds behind the palace are immense, with beautifully maintained flower beds, and water fountains. I was disappointed to find that the Neptune Fountain, the palace's most magnificent fountain, was not turned on because it was covered with scaffolding for restoration. Up on top of a hill behind the palace is the Gloriette, a triumphal monument built in 1775. I climbed the hill up to the Gloriette, and then walked up the stairs to the roof of the monument for spectacular views of the palace, the gardens, and off in the distance Vienna. Next, I walked back down into the garden grounds, and went past the Palm House which is the largest glass green-house in Europe. My next stop was the Wagenburg Coach Museum (30 ATS) that contains the collection of royal horse carriages. Among these is the Imperial Coach, a funeral coach, and even a child's coach built for Napoleon's son.

I returned to Vienna, and took tram number 1 out to Schotten Strasse, then I walked through Sigmund Freud Park to the front of the Votive Church. This church was built in the 1850's by Emperor Franz Josef I in gratitude for his surviving an assassination attempt by a Hungarian national, it is built in the French Flamboyant Gothic style with two beautiful dual spires, and rose windows. Next I walked south on the Ringstrasse passing by the New University building, and then the Rathaus (New City Hall) with its magnificent park in front. Across from the Rathaus park on the other side of the Ringstrasse is the Hofburg Theater (Imperial Court Theater), and just south of it is the Volksgarten (people's garden) within which is a marble memorial statue of the Empress Elisabeth (Sisi). Then south and on the other side of the Ringstrasse is the Parliament building, this building is in the form of a Greek classical temple, and in front of it is a fountain with a fine statue of the goddess Pallas Athena. Continuing southward on the Ringstrasse you come into the Hofburg Palace complex, across from it are the Naturhistorisches, and Kunsthistorisches Museums with the Empress Maria Theresa memorial between them. Just south of the Hofburg Palace complex is the Burggarten (Emperor's garden) with its Mozart memorial, and a statue of Goethe, then just south of the Burggarten is the State Opera House.

Day 10 - Monday May 24, 1999 - Vienna, Austria: I had planned to visit the Kunsthistoriches Museum this morning to see the Durer, Rubens, Titian, and Raphael masterpieces there. Unfortunately, I did not check the museum's schedule beforehand or I would have realized that they are closed on Mondays. Oh well, so much for flawless planning, thus I headed to visit the Kaisergruft crypt (40 ATS). This is the final resting place of the bodies of the Habsburgs, Their hearts are in the Church of the Augustinian Friars, and their entrails are in the crypt of St Stephan's Cathedral. The crypt contains is the double coffin of the Empress Maria Theresa, and her husband Emperor Franz I Stefan. Also in the crypt are the coffins of Emperor Franz Josef, Empress Elisabeth (Sisi), and their son Crown Prince Rudolph all in the same room next to each other. Sisi's coffin is always covered with fresh flowers, she was tragically assassinated by an Italian anarchist in 1898. The only non Habsburg to be interred in the crypt is Countess Fuchs who was Empress Maria Theresa's governess, and was allowed to be buried in the crypt under orders of the Empress.

I really enjoyed my stay in Vienna, although not as grand as Paris, or as unique as Venice, it is nonetheless a very beautiful, impressive, and historic city. I checked out of the Pensione Shermin, and took an afternoon train at the Westbanhof to Salzburg.

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