"The Charbor Chronicles": One Year Anniversary of Our Visit to Vienna, Austria: "The City of Music" & "The City of Dreams"

Vienna, Austria: "The City of Music" and "The City of Dreams "

When I was thinking of some side trip places that my son and I could possibly visit last year, there were three major cities that immediately came to mind, due to their relative proximity to where we were staying at my girlfriend's farm town in southeastern Poland. The three cities were: Prague, Vienna, and Budapest.

Budapest was the closest one, and it was also considered a gem, as well as being very affordable, so I decided on that. But I figured that we could stay in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, on the way back up to Poland. Then, after doing some research after making these reservations, I learned that Vienna was, in fact, only one hour away from Bratislava by car (we were traveling by rental car). There was no real decision to be made once I learned this: we would definitely try to go to Vienna, obviously.

And we did. It is a city that is noted for architectural beauty and which also is rich in musical traditions, particularly classical music. We were probably less prepared with what to visit in Vienna than with any other city that we visited. I did not have the benefit of having been there before, as was the case with Paris and Krakow. This was not a planned bus tour, as was the case with L'viv. I had not quite gotten as good a "day visit" itineraries for Vienna as I had for Budapest or Bratislava, because those were cities that we were staying in, and thus, the main focal points.

Yet, I knew a little bit about Vienna from reputation, and knew some places that would definitely be worth visiting, such as St. Stephen's Cathedral in the downtown, or the Opera House. We saw both, although we really got to visit St. Stephen's thoroughly, while we only passed by the Opera House (almost by accident) while in thick, fast-moving traffic that did not allow us to really stop. Turning around would prove a hassle, and it had seemed very much filled with people, which meant parking would likely be scarce.

So we went to some other landmarks that I had heard about, and which seemed like musts. These were the gardens around both the Belvedere Palace and the Schönbrunn Palace.

Also, we enjoyed a sidewalk cafe meal, with that famous Viennese coffee, of course.

It proved to be a wonderful day, if admittedly a bit unstructured. Here are the pictures, as well as my original thoughts, with what I wrote about it at the time:

Austria is a country dominated mostly by mountains, although the very eastern portions of the country are largely mountain-free. That is where you will find the capital and most famous city of Austria: Vienna.

Many things come to mind when one thinks about Vienna. Classical music would be one of the first things. Incredible coffee. Beautiful arts and architecture and gardens.

After all, Vienna was the center of the action when it came to classical music at it's peak. And the nickname "City of Dreams" stems from the fact that Sigmund Freud, the psychoanalyst, came from this city.

When I was contemplating this trip in the weeks and months (and even, to some degree, years) prior to it, I imagined some options for relatively close places to visit from my girlfriend's hometown in southeastern Poland. There were numerous possibilities, but the strongest candidates were Budapest, Prague, and Vienna.

Prague was the farthest, and Vienna was the second farthest.

So, I settled on Budapest, which was the closest major city to where she lived, and figured while out there, I might as well spend a night in Bratislava, the capital city of Slovakia, which we would have to go through in order to get to Hungary. So, I booked a hotel in Bratislava, and looked forward to that part of the trip, which was finally beginning to feel like actual reality.

Then, just a couple of days before we left, I found out that Vienna was about one hour's drive from Bratislava. Now, I knew that Europe tended to be different and smaller, more compact to make driving distances seem not all that great. But we were going to be staying somewhere within one hour of a city like Vienna?

Needless to say, from that point onward, I was determined to visit Vienna, a city that I have long dreamed of visiting.

Of course, time was tight. I had two nights in Budapest, and then had booked the next night in Bratislava. So that meant visiting less of Bratislava, admittedly, in order to get even a halfway decent visit of Vienna. It also meant waking up incredibly early, and committing to a good start by getting there early.

When the time came, we managed to do that. We woke up a little after 6 a.m. (well, I had been sleepless for an hour or two prior to that, admittedly). Stopped briefly at the Liberty Statue, which was close to our hostel, and took a few more pictures of this place, and the city of Budapest below. Then, at around 6:30 in the morning, we headed off to Vienna.

St. Stephen's Cathedral, often referred to by locals as Stephensdom, dominated the older, most famous section of Vienna, with a 107 meters (351 foot high) spire. It stands on the site of two earlier churches begun in 1130 and consecrated in 1147, and completed by 1160. The current Gothic cathedral that stands there now was largely done by Duke Rudolph IV from around 1339 to 1365. As the dominant church in Vienna, and in all of Austria, it was host to many important events over the centuries, particularly during the Habsburg and Austrian empires. This amazing cathedral also was saved from mindless destruction during the last days of the Nazis, who ordered it destroyed. However, it was saved when Wehrmacht Captain Gerhard Klinkicht intentionally ignored those orders. It has a multicolored tile roof, with colorful designs, including the coat of arms of Austria. All of this gives it a distinctive look, and has helped secure it's dominant place in old Vienna.

Belvedere Palace was originally built for Prince Eugene of Savoy, who defeated the French and the Ottomans multiple times each, turning back the Turks from potentially conquering Europe. This palace was built in his honor. Both the buildings and the grounds are smaller than the Schönbrunn palace and grounds, but they are absolutely spectacular and not to be missed!

Schönbrunn Palace the main summer residence for the Habsburgs. Empress Maria Theresa had desired a Habsburg Versailles, and this was the result. It is a magnificent palace of 1,400 rooms, complete with a Hall of Mirrors, similar to the one in Versailles. And the gardens in the back are exquisite, complete with the Gloriette that crowns the hill, overlooking the gardens and the palace, and spectacular views of Vienna and the surrounding foothills beyond.

First, I will begin with pictures of the Stadtpark, which we almost accidentally stumbled into. A fortunate accident, because it was beautiful! We had parked nearby along the Ringstraße, after finding out that parking in District 1 of the city (the main tourist district) is free on the weekends, which also was very fortunate for us. The Stadtpark is located just off the Ringstraße and dates back to 1862, and was Vienna's first communal park. It has monuments to numerous classical musicians, with the most famous monument being a large gilded bronze monument honoring Johann Strauß II.

I had seen St. Stephen's Cathedral on our right, but the park looked beautiful and enticing, and promised a bit of shade as respite from the already hot morning. So, we went there as our first real stop in Vienna, and I was very glad that we did!

Stadtpark

The gilded bronze monument of Johann Strauß II, known as the "Walzerkönig" (literally translates to the King of Waltz), at the Stadtpark. It was built by by Edmund Hellmer in 1921.

The Andreas Zelinka Monument

The Franz Schubert Monument

Other monuments in the Stadtpark

Robert Stolz monument

A clock of flowers constructed on the gardens in front of the Kursalon Hübner.

The gardens in front of the Kursalon Hübner.

The Promenade at Wienfluss at Stadtpark.

St. Stephen's Cathedral:

Enjoying Wienerschnitzel and famous Viennese coffee at an outdoor, sidewalk café somewhere in the downtown area.

Schloß Belvedere

The horse sculptures in front of the Belvedere Palace clearly looked influenced by the Chevaux de Marly.

Schloß Schönbrunn

The Gloriette on top of the hill overlooks the garden and the palace below.

Other Pictures From Vienna

Reminders of the prominent role of classical music history in this city were everywhere. The people of Vienna has long taken deserved pride in the city's history regarding classical music, as well they should: