Vienna

Vienna!

In the Vienna underground and guess what?  We each have our metro ticket safely tucked in our very own pocket!

Our first evening in the city we went to "phil".  As the lower case styling suggests, it was the hippest café/bar/bookstore I have been in perhaps...ever.

Barry, Benoît, our french friend, and I sampling some Austrian beer at phil's.  The girls had some decadent mugs of hot chocolate at the table just to the right.

We met our Austrian friends at Stephenplatz where Stephansdom, or St. Stephen's Cathedral, stands.  Here is a photo of the interior where Mozart's wedding and his funeral took place.  It is also said that Beethoven realized how deaf he truly was after watching birds flying out of the St. Stephen's bell tower without hearing the bells that had caused their flight.

A street scene just off of Stephenplatz.

Vienna's City Hall

Here is Vienna's Imperial Palace, The Hofburg, which was the seat of the Hapsburg Empire from the 13th century until 1918. 

Part of Vienna's Monument Against War and Fascism created by the Austrian sculptor, Alfred Hrdlicka reminding us of the atrocities committed by the Nazis in this country.  This memorial stands in the centre of Albertinaplatz, on the spot where two hundred people lost their lives when a shelter in which they were hiding collapsed during a World War Two bombardment.  In the background is St. Augustin Church.

This is what I ordered when we were out for lunch with our Austrian friends;  "krautflekerl", or cabbage and noodles, which they assured me was a very typical Austrian meal.  When I ordered it, however, I was very surprised to see the server make a face which was very clearly saying "yuck".  You could understand while I became a tad concerned about what I had chosen off the menu.  I turned to one of our friends and she assured me that she really loved this dish.  The server then told me, "Well, you'll either hate it or love it."  When the server returned to pick up my empty plate, I told her that I had really liked my meal she responded, "Well, of course you did!  You never had an Austrian grandmother forcing you to eat it all the time!"   

My Austrian friend, Lisbeth, whom I met in Avignon at the university and now lives in France, says the only thing she misses about Austria is "topfenstrudel" a sweet cheese pastry.  So naturally, I had to try it along with some vanilla sauce and a coffee.

The Schonbrunn Palace, the former imperial summer residence 

Having some fun in front of the summer palace.

It was chilly at the summer palace in December!

The grounds in front of the Belvedere Museum, once a baroque palace, which houses the largest collection of Austrian art.

The entryway of the Belvedere Museum.

Barry in an upper room of the Belvedere.

The Belvedere's most famous painting is "Kiss" by Gustav Klimt.  We weren't allowed to take any photos of the actual painting, but here the girls are posing in front of a replica.

I also visited the KunstHausWien Museum which features the work of Austrian artist and architect, Friedensreich Hundertwasser.  The museum was designed by him.  I knew nothing of him or his art before my visit, so his style was all new to me.  I wasn't allowed to take photos, but below are photos of a few postcards I bought featuring his work.  

"Blue Blues" 

"Park"

On the look out for band-aids, we happened upon the oldest pharmacy I've ever been in, the "Apotheke zum heiligen Geist", that dates back to 1551.

Last stop on this trip's itinerary was New Years in Budapest...