(Part 2) Vienna the City of Splendor: Meeting the Austrian Royal Family

- December 28, 2018, Friday.

- Vienna is not shy to show its royal glory. For a city that has been the historical capital of the empire and the country of Austria for so long, it has every right to do so. There are so many palaces in Vienna, it is said that there might be one in almost every corner of the city! On my second day in Vienna, I was on a mission to peek into the lives of the Viennese royalty, and even "meet" some members of the Austrian royalty, particularly the Habsburgs.

- My first stop for the morning is one of Vienna's most well-loved palaces, the Schönbrunn Palace (take the metro to Schönbrunn station.) Built as a summer residence west of the city center in the 1500s by Emperor Maximilian II, this palace seemed to have a world of its own as it was far from the hustle and bustle of the city center.

Schönbrunn.

I dressed up as Oaken from Frozen because people said I looked like him. Hoo hoo!! Big summer blowout!!

Now with more "proper" and non-Oaken clothes.

- As many people visit the palace everyday, it is best to purchase a ticket from their online website (click here). Once you enter the palace grounds, go directly to the palace, no need to go to the ticket office, and enter the turnstiles once the time indicated on your ticket flashes on the digital clock. I actually had a bit of confusion, and ended up I entering late. I was supposed to buy a new ticket, but the kind lady at the turnstiles let me in anyway since it wasn't a busy day and I was alone. The palace had endless rooms though the arrows were helpful in leading the way. There was a short and long route, and unsurprisingly I took the longer route. I was already there, so why not make the most out of it. (Photography not allowed inside.)

Backside.

The arches at the back is called the Gloriette. I wasn't able to go there because it was raining.

- Just as I was about to explore the gardens, it rained. Finding a place where I could dry off, I thought that maybe I could just take the metro, dry off inside the train, and ride to Karlsplatz to continue my day. I was supposed to visit the Fine Arts Museum (Kunsthistorisches Museum) and Natural History Museum but the lines were too long. Instead I hopped over to the museums inside the Neue Burg, which was right beside the Fine Arts Museum. The Neue Burg is one of the buildings of the Hofburg Palace complex. The Hofburg Palace, built initially in the 13th century before expansion throughout the centuries, has a rather confusing layout, especially since it is made in such a way that it integrates the outside world inside the palace. It's not like the Schönbrunn Palace or any other palace that I have visited where there is a clear gate or entrance that lets people know whether they are inside or outside the palace grounds. By the way, the Hofburg Palace was also the primary residence of the Habsburg royalty. The Habsburgs ruled the Austrian Empire for many centuries, and it's interesting to note that they came from a small royal family in Switzerland, before booming to power and ruler over many parts of today's Europe. I wasn't able to enter the Hofburg because of the long lines; I didn't get to buy a ticket beforehand as I had wanted to see the Schönbrunn more than the Hofburg, although the Hofburg Palace is a reason why I might consider going back to Austria in the not-so-near future.

Neue Burg.

City history.

If you're into the Eurovision song contest, then I'd like to tell you that this is Conchita Wurst's costume during the finals. For those of you who don't know what the Eurovision is, it's an annual singing contest among countries that are part of the European Broadcasting Union. In 2014, Austria was represented by a drag queen named Conchita Wurst who came out the stage as a bearded lady, and sang "Rise Like a Phoenix." Conchita won first place that year.

I ope the horses don't feel too cold.

- After having lunch in one of the restaurants inside the Hofburg, I went to the Augustinerkirche or the Augustinian Church beside the Hofburg. This 14th-century church is easy to miss since, unlike most churches, its facade was not well defined, and so looking for the entrance can cause a bit of confusion as well. This small church has a room called the Herzgruft, or the "Hearts Crypt," which has urns of more than 50 members of the royal Habsburg family; unfortunately it was closed when I visited, as the Herzgruft was only open after high mass and by appointment.

The Hofburg Palace from Michaelerplatz.

Inside Augustinerkirche.

Let's imagine we're seeing the actual Herzgruft.

Augustinerkirche.

- The Habsburgs had a rather unconventional way of being interred. Whenever someone in the family died, they would be interred in three places: the hearts would go to the Herzgruft in Augstinerkirche, their bodies in the Kaisergruft (Imperial Crypt) at Kapuzinerkirche, and their innards in the Herzogsgruft (Duke's Crypt) at St. Stephen's Cathedral. The practice of burying a body in two or three different places had been practiced in Europe since he ancient times, although it was sometimes forbidden when Catholicism became dominant in Europe due to differences in beliefs on "proper" death rituals.       

- From the Augustinerkirche, I got lost through the lively and cobble-stoned alleys of old Vienna before reaching the Theater Museum. It was a small museum that housed some exhibits from Austrian theater archives. However, for a theater museum, it seemed a bit underwhelming. I suppose most of the things I expected like flamboyant theater costumes and props were exhibited in other bigger museums (I liked Museo Teatrale in Milan a lot more; click here to see).

Theater Museum.

Scale model of an old theater.

Higly detailed, up until the last string!!

Ceiling of the Eroica Concert Hall, named after Beethoven's 3rd Symphony, "Eroica."

Plans.

Oh look, Chinese marionettes!!

- Not spending much time inside the Theater Museum, I found my way to the 17th-century Capuchin Church (Kapuzinerkirche) in the Neuer Markt area. Though this church looks small and simple on the outside, it hides one of Vienna's most important "treasures" - the bodies of the Habsburgs themselves!! As mentioned above, the Imperial Crypt of the Kaisergruft is found at the basement of this small church. It contains the bodies of around 150 Habsburg family members. The Imperial Crypt was bigger than I expected, and it was both exciting and hair-raising to be so close to the former Austrian royalty (so yes, this was me, "meeting" the Habsburgs, at least, their bodies inside their elaborately-ornamented bronze tombs.)

Capuchin Church.

The tombs were just laid out like this. It's easy to just go up to the coffins and touch all of them. Of course, I did not do that.

Of course the bigger tombs were for kings and queens. This one is for King Joseph I.

Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and Maria Theresa, some of the most notable rulers of the Habsburg Dynasty.

King Franz Joseph I, the longest reigning monarch of Austria, and the third longest in Europe so far. He ruled for 68 years!!

The Capuchin Church above the crypt.

Streets around Neuer Markt..

- After paying a visit and rubbing elbows with the Habsburgs, I walked towards Stephansplatz, or St. Stephen's Square, which probably can be thought of as the heart of the old town. Similar to Salzburg (click here), Mozart has yet another home in the heart of Vienna, just behind the St. Stephen's Cathedral. Mozart's apartment, also called Mozarthaus (managed by Wien Museum), was Mozart's home from 1784 to 1787. He did not live there too long, but it was a well-preserved apartment that allows visitors to get a glimpse of life back in the 18th century. (As with the other Mozart houses, no photography inside.)

Opera costumes.

Loophole again: I took a photo of this since the "no photo" signs were just inside the galleries. This is what the apartment looks like from the inside.

Apartment from the outside.

- I spend the rest of the day leisurely walking around and inside St. Stephen's Cathedral. It was far better seen during the day because the sunlight highlights the different colorful geometric figures and patterns on the roof of the church. This 12th-century church has been the main church of Austria, and its massive size and roof designs make it Vienna's most iconic landmark. Unfortunately I didn't have much time to explore the whole church, but at least I was able to see inside (don't worry, I eventually would explore the church on another day.)

There was not much space to work with so it was hard to get a photo of the whole church.

I want a to have a shirt with the patterns on the St. Stephen's Cathedral's roof. 

Front.

Interior.

- That evening, after having dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant (because my Asian self will always look for Asian food,) I made sure that I had a full night's rest since I was going to have a "bonus leg" for my European trip. As I was based in Vienna for a good 5 days, I thought of doing a day trip outside the city. Realizing that Vienna was at the far eastern side of Austria, it was a gateway to many Eastern European countries, with some cities close enough and compact enough for a day trip. The closest to Vienna, perhaps, was the cozy Slovakian capital of Bratislava!!

- Please don't forget to read about my other adventures in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia here:

GERMANY:

Berlin and Potsdam: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

Munich and Schwangau:  Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

AUSTRIA:

Salzburg: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

Vienna: Part 1 here, Part 3 here

SLOVAKIA:

Bratislava:  here

(Part 1) Vienna the City of Splendor: The Car That Started World War 1 and the Best Chocolate Cake

- December 27, 2018, Thursday.

- If there is one city that I'd describe as "fancy," Vienna would be one of the first cities that will come to mind. Being one of the biggest cities of Europe today, and the historical capital of the Austrian Empire, it is one of the cities that can probably blind people with its lavish display of regal pride and heritage. This is a far cry from what people in my country usually know about Vienna - Libby's Vienna sausage (which by the way, isn't Viennese or Austrian for that matter, but despite this, I still enjoy very much.) I had no regrets choosing Vienna as my last stop for my European trip.

- From the tiny town of Salzburg, I took a train to the grand Austrian capital city. I rode a Westbahn train (click here for the Westbahn booking website), which goes directly to Wien Westbahnhof (Vienna West Train Station), where my hostel was located. I stayed in Hostel Ruthensteiner (click here), one of the top-rated hostels in Vienna. Although tucked in a residential area, it was a 5-minute walk from the Westbahnhof (which also has connections to the U+S Bahn metro system), and located near shops, restaurants, and groceries. There were other hostels around too, like Vienna's branch of Wombat's Hostel (and if this sounds familiar, it's because I stayed in Wombat's Berlin and Wombat's Munich.)

- After checking in my hostel, I wasted no time and went to the train station to buy a 5-day pass (it's actually a 3 day-pass, then I eventually bought a 2-day pass after my 3-day pass expired.) The only thing I dislike about my hostel's location is that most of the tourist spots were a few train stations away. Although this does not seem like a big deal, I just probably got used to having tourist spots that were walking distance, even though I understand that not all tourists spots were close to where I stayed. However, I observed that Vienna as a city was not as organized, or at least not organized the way other European cities were organized. It looked more decentralized to me, and most accommodations were clustered a bit far from the main center of the city.

- I rode the metro to Karslpatz, where I saw the 18th-century Karlskirche (St. Charles), though my main purpose of going there was to visit the Vienna Museum (Wien Museum) in Karlsplatz. It was a small city museum that showed a brief history of Vienna and the Austrian Empire.

A cozy little museum.

I adore this candle holder made from a large shell. (The scissors at the bottom are for cutting burnt candle wick.) 

Giraffe piano.

The dresses were gorgeous, but I was more interested in the mannequins' hair made from - what I think is - paper.

Seal of the Austrian Empire.

Statues and stained glass windows from the St. Stephen's Cathedral.

Karlskirche.

Had apple strudel for dessert after lunch.

- From the city museum, I rode the metro from Karlsplatz station to the Hauptbahnhof (Sudtiroler Platz) metro station and changed to the suburban line. The reason why I'm saying this in detail is because I noticed that the S-Bahn and U-Bahn at the Hauptbahnhof are not connected although they stop at the "same station." In my case, from the basement level where the U-Bahn stop was, I had to go up to the street level, look for the S-Bahn entrance, and go down again. I took the S-Bahn to the Quartier Belvedere station to visit two important places: the Belvedere and the Museum of Military History.

- The Museum of Military History is located across the Belvedere to the south, and is located inside a reddish Byzantine-Gothic style building. The building used to be the royal arsenal in the late 18th century, which makes it an appropriate place to house the Museum of Military History. Although I am not a big fan of military history, this was still a significant museum to visit since Archduke Ferdinand's car and uniform are in the Museum of Military History. If this name does not ring a bell, then I'd like to tell you that his assassination was the defining moment that started World War I. Archduke Ferdinand, her apparent to the throne of the then Austro-Hungarian Empire, visited Sarajevo in 1914 with his wife Sophie of Hohenburg. There was a slight change in the itinerary right after the archduke gave a speech at the town hall, which caused the driver to take a wrong turn, and in a case of bad coincidence, right in front of their assassin, Gavrilo Princip. Princip was a member of the Black Hand secret military society, and members of the society were stationed around Sarajevo that day and attempted several times to assassinate the archduke. The archduke's assassination was supposed to add pressure to letting go of southern states of the Austro-Hungarian Empire so they can combine with other neighboring states and become Yugoslavia (and they did eventually become Yugoslavia after World War 1.)

What. is. fancy.

Oh, and this is the actual museum!! The building above was just the outer building.

The interiors do not disappoint too.

Weaponssss.

Hot  air balloon.

Nazi propaganda.

Archduke Ferdinand's car.

His (last) uniform.

- To air my mind after halls and halls of weapons, and the chills I got from seeing Archduke Ferdinand's car and bloody uniform, I hopped over to the Belvedere across the street. This palace complex was built in the late 1600s to the 1700s, and functioned as the residences of various members of the royal Habsburg Dynsty. Today, the buildings of the Belvedere function as fine arts museums, function halls, and research centers. I wasn't able to go inside because of the long lines, but with the time that I had, seeing the facade of the Belvedere buildings was good enough for me.

The Upper Belvedere.

Sphinx.

The Lower Belvedere at the far back.

It was incredible hard to take a decent photo because of the lighting (the sun was behind me), but it turned out decent. 

Details of the Upper Belvedere.

- I rode the metro to the Wien Mitte - Landstrasse station, and had a 20-minute walk east along Vienna's quiet streets to the Danube River, until I reached one of the museums that fascinated me as I was planning my trip. Kunst Haus Wien definitely stands out among the buildings around it with rather "stereotypically-European" architecture; Kunst Haus Wien looks like a giant drunk chessboard. The building was designed by 20th-century artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Hundertwasser was known for making art inspired by nature and not having straight lines, sort of like Barcelona's Antoni Gaudi (click here and here to see some of Gaudi's designs in Barcelona.) However, unlike Gaudi, Hunderwasser was not just an architect, but was a painter as well; his paintings form the main bulk of the permanent exhibition inside the museum. (No photography inside.)

It's nicer inside.

Backyard.

The cafe is behind me.

Loophole: I got to take this photo inside the building BUT not inside the gallery.

- A block south is the Hundertwasser Village, a building remodeled in the early 1990s by Hundertwasser from an old tire factory. Today, it is a colorful collection of apartments, and at the lower levels, a psychedelic maze of souvenirs, cafes, and small galleries. Honestly, Hundertwasser's architecture is a good break from the usual geometric and plain-colored buildings in the area.

Hundertwasser Village.

Bazaar.

- That evening, I rushed back to Karlsplatz metro station and walked to the historic center of the Vienna. Although not supposed to be part of my plan for the day, I found out the night before that my friend Ann and her mom were in Vienna so agreed to meet up. We met at Hotel Sacher, a 19th-century 5-star hotel located beside the Vienna State Opera. Although none of us were staying there, this hotel is famous for serving one of the world's sought-after chocolate cake - the sachertorte. It is said that Franz Sacher, a confectioner, invented the cake in the early 1830s for Prince Wenzel von Metternich; his son, Eduard Sacher, founded Hotel Sacher year later.

Hotel Sacher.

- People literally line up outside the hotel's cafe, and fortunately I was able to go straight in since Ann and her mom were already inside (thank you for waiting for me huhu.) The sachertorte is a dense chocolate cake with a thin apricot filling, with thick chocolate icing on the outside. The cake was not too sweet, which was perfect for me. I enjoyed the cake more not only because of how it tasted, but because I was with good company.

SACHERTORTE.

With Ann and her mom.

Old-style cash register.

Fancy cafe.

- Right after my late "snack," we walked around the historic center until we reached Figlmüller Schnitzel, a century-old family-run restaurant that serves one of Austria's most well-known dishes - the schnitzel. Although I've had schnitzel in Salzburg (click here for Part 2), Figlmüller's schnitzels are HUGE - bigger than a regular dinner plate. To make it more authentic, I decided to have Almdudler to drink; Almdudler is the brand of an Austrian herbed soda and was made in the 1950s. By the way, this restaurant is also one of the top restaurants to visit in Vienna, so expect a(n insanely long) line, just like in Hotel Sacher.

Passed by St. Stephen's Cathedral.

I TOLD YOU IT WAS HUGE.

Thank you for the wonderful meal!!

- I ended my day after a sumptuous meal, and saying goodbye to Ann and her mom. I rode the train from Stephansplatz metro station. It was the latest that I'd been out for the whole trip, and it was nice to see that Vienna was still festive even late at night. Although it was a jam-packed first day in Vienna, but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. It was definitely the perfect start to more wonderful things that I would experience during my stay in Vienna. If I was already blinded by the royal grandeur of Vienna on my first day, what more the day after when I visited the royal Habsburg palaces and THE HABSBURGS THEMSELVES!!!!

- Please don't forget to read about my other adventures in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia here:

GERMANY:

Berlin and Potsdam: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

Munich and Schwangau:  Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

AUSTRIA:

Salzburg: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

Vienna: Part 2 here, Part 3 here

SLOVAKIA:

Bratislava: Click here