(Part 3) Vienna the City of Splendor: Houses and Intestines of Famous Austrians

- Dec. 30-31, 2018, Sunday to Monday, New Year's Eve.

- My adventures around Vienna were largely dedicated to rubbing elbows (almost literally) with some of Austria's famous historical people, and my last days in Vienna were no different. Like I said in my previous post (click here for Part 2), being so close to dead historical people, or at the very least things they once owned, gives me the same starstruck feeling as when encountering living celebrity idols.

- On the morning of my last full day in Vienna, I had a brief morning visit to the St. Stephen's Cathedral to attempt a photoshoot, which I finally was able to, before morning on to the Beethoven Pasqualati House (Herrengasse metro station). The Pasqualati House was an apartment building built in the late 1700s by Baron Pasqualati. He was a patron of the composer Ludwig van Beethoven, whom the Baron allowed to stay in the Pasqualati House. During Beethoven's 12-year stay in the house, he composed some of his famous works such as the 5th and 6th Symphonies (my personal favorites.) The 5th Symphony is probable his most famous work ("dan-dan-dan-DANNNNN"). I am sure a lot of people have heard of it, some just probably don't know what it's called. The 6th Symphony, also called the "Pastoral Symphony," is familiar to some, especially the first, third, and fifth movements. Today, the 4th floor of the Pasqualati House houses a small Beethoven museum, with some of his compositions that he made inside the house.

Yay photoshoot!! Notice how my swear matches the cathedral's roof.

The Pasqualati House.

Beethoven.

The 6th Symphony.

His ever popular 5th Symphony.

Beethoven's own handwriting (which I can't read)!!

- A long walk north of the Pasqualati House is another famous Austrian's house tucked in the quiet streets of Vienna. The Sigmund Freud Museum is a few blocks away from the Pasqualati House, and is located inside the very house that Sigmund Freud himself lived in. Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, lived in this house from the late 1800s until he had to flee Austria in 1938 due to Nazi rule; it was especially more dangerous to Freud as he was Jewish. In the small museum, one can find some of his things, a room full of his published books - including "The Ego and the Id" ("Das Ich und Das Es,") and artifacts that he collected from Egypt and other parts of the world.

Can't miss it.

Freud's mirror.

His closet.

Freud's artifact collection.

Well-decorated living room.

His signature chair. Unfortunately the actual chair wasn't in the museum.

"The Ego and the Id."

- It was raining moderately after my visit to the museum, but moderate rains can be hard to tolerate with the dropping winter temperatures. Still, I managed to walk all the way to Museum Judenplatz near the central part of city. The museum is located in the heart of one of the once vibrant Jewish enclaves of Vienna. The museum itself inside the late 17th-century Misrachi-Haus shows the lives of Vienna's Jewish community from antiquity to contemporary history.

On the way to Museum Judenplatz.

Vienna will really blind you with grandeur I swear.

Judenplatz Holocaust Memorial.

Sorry, no photography inside.

Except for this - the remains of an old synagogue that was destroyed in 1421.

What the old synagogue could have looked like.

- Since the entrance ticket to Museum Judenplatz is also valid for the Jewish Museum (yes, it's a sister museum,) I decided to visit the other museum as well. This second museum is located between the Hofburg Palace and St. Stephen's Cathedral. This museum is fairly new, although the museum's origins go way back in the late 1800s. This museum, apart from showing more about Jewish culture, also shows more contemporary takes on Judaism and Jewish culture. It also includes a wax statue of Madonna, who is a Kabbalah follower!

The storage. It had shelves and shelves of Jewish religious paraphenalia.

Oh cool!! Jewish stuff from Bukhara!!

I like these pointers!! They help readers see which line of the Torah they're reading.

Ancient stone marker.

Madonna!!

The museum is inside this building.

- I hurried back to my hostel after my visit to the two Jewish museums as I was drenched from the rain the whole afternoon. I took a rest for the rest of the day, and fixed my things, thanking the heavens that my luggage does not go beyond the weight limit despite all the things I bought during the trip. However, my trip is not quite done - I had one last thing to take care of before I wave "auf widersehen" to Vienna.

- On my last morning in Vienna, I went back to St. Stephen's Cathedral, and saved the best (??) for last. I finally had a proper tour of the church on my third visit for the trip, and not only did I get to go around the main prayer hall, but I also grabbed the opportunity of seeing the third royal crypt - the St. Stephen's Cathedral's Ducal Crypt or Duke's Crypt. As mentioned in Part 2 (here), the royal Habsburgs who ruled over Austria and other surrounding lands from the 1500s until the late 1700s had a rather unusual but not-so-rare death ritual. They were buried in three crypts, the first two being the Imperial Crypt with all the bodies in the Capuchin Church, the Herzgruft (Heart's Crypt) in the Augustine Church where all the hearts are, and the third being inside the Imperial Crypt under the St. Stephen's Cathedral. This is where all the intestines of the Habsburgs were preserved, which is why the intestine roon had a faint scent of alcohol and chemicals. Other than the intestines, there were mass burials as well with bones retrieved from various parts of old Austria. (Unfortunately, no photos can be taken inside the crypt. Also, your only way of accessing the crypt is through a guided tour of the crypt.)

Inside the cathedral.

This was where Mozart's 4th and 5th child were baptized.

The altar where Mozart married Constanze Weber in 1782.

Near the main altar.

Tomb of Emperor Frederick III, first Habsburg Emperor.

The Wiener Neustädter Altar, ordered by King Frederick III in 1447.

Detail of the main pulpit.

Memorial for Mozart.

A last look at the St. Stephen's Cathedral.

Please buy Mozart Balls. They're awesome!!

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Viennese Version.

- Finally, I had a final runway walk around the Old Town before having lunch at Nordsee, a German fastfood chain that specializes in seafood (it reminds me a lot of the seafood at the pier in San Francisco, see here). I wanted to have the lobster and shrimp combo, though I knew it was going to burn a hole in my wallet; it was lobster after all. But in the spirit of the holidays, I had my Christmas miracle. The Filipina staff who served me found out I was Filipino and gave me a generous discount!! Needless to say, it was a memorable (and not as expensive as originally expected) last lunch in Vienna.

A music store!! I resisted buying, but it still is a mystery how I was able to go out of the shop without buying anything.

New Year's Eve concert.

Lost pig. (It belonged to the cafe not shown in the photo.) 

A plate of seafood satisfaction.

- I went back to my hostel after lunch and picked up my things, though I didn't leave the hostel until I had a chance to do a short photoshoot at my hostel's backyard with giant chess pieces and traditional Viennese wooden patio/backyard furniture. I just needed an excuse and a venue to take photos of me wearing my 6-euro authentic-looking-but-not-made-of-leather fabric lederhosen.

Have y'all met my twin?? Hahahaha.

Traditional outdoor furniture.

- Changing back to my street clothes, I walked to the front of the Westbahnhof train station and rode on the airport bus. I rode the plane to Istanbul that night where I celebrated my most unusual new year - in an airport(!!), and even met a friend's family who were also bound to Manila. I arrived in Manila just before dinner time of the 1st of January, and although I refuse to admit, I was quite thankful of Manila's heat after being drenched and frozen for the past 2 weeks (I normally hate the heat.) I know I still have a lot to know, visit, and experience in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia, but my holiday trip gave me an increased interest in Europe and its colorful connectivity in terms of culture and history, in contrast to Asia and its vast diversity. Hopefully, I'll have more chances to visit Europe in the near future!! 

Happy new year!!

My new year "celebration." Hey, it's still cake.

And finally, I was welcomed with a nice-looking NAIA Terminal 3.

I really love how they added some character to the airport. About time!!

- 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 2 here

SLOVAKIA:

Bratislava: Click here