December 2022
During the time off before Christmas and over Christmas and Boxing Day, we went to Wien with Mom and Dad Oliver. We used the ICE to travel from Köln to Vienna over about 10 hours.
Day 1
I had started to not feel well on the train. So the morning after getting into Wien, I had to go find a doctor. I was seen relatively quickly and told I had the flu (die Grippe). After a quick stop at a pharmacy (Apoteke) we went out to see the city.
In Europe, medication is more restricted and so there is much less that is available over the counter. So I had to go to a doctor first to get a prescription for Ibuprofen and medicated cough drops.
We went to tour Schloss Schönbrunn- the summer home of the Habsburgs. We took the 45 room tour and saw many of the royal apartments, the Emperor’s chambers, and some of the ballrooms used for more formal affairs. However, photographs were not permitted. I did appreciate that at the beginning of the tour they had an area with restored samples of wallpaper, fabrics, etc that you could touch and then asked that thoughts in the tour room not be touched. Amid the extravagance, I found it somewhat funny how much the Audio-tour emphasized that Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph preferred to live a simple life based on his choosing to eat the ‘peasant food’- schnitzel. While being in a giant summer palace- the tour was 45 rooms but that was all on one floor and definitely not all of it.
Day 2- Christmas Eve
The Spanish Riding school breeds and trains #Lipizars horses to perform in Vienna. While we did not get to attend a performance we were able to go view a training session with the horses in their arena. Unfortunately photographs were not permitted inside so we don’t have pictures of the absolutely gorgeous area- I assume very few have crystal chandeliers. But it was really cool to see the horses and trainers work through the exercises.
After visiting the small market outside the Spanish riding school we walked over to visit St. Stephens cathedral and the larger Christmas market outside the cathedral.
For dinner, we attended a Christmas Eve fest at the 25 Hours Hotel which was a predetermined Italian food over 7 courses. All very good- if a bit odd.
Day 3- Christmas Day
On Christmas morning, we visited the Burggarten, which was once the private garden of the Emperor and part of the Hofburg palace. Now the garden is a part open to the public.
Part of the garden includes a historic greenhouse. Part of the greenhouse is reserved as a Palmhaus which is currently a cafe. The other section is the Schmetterlinghaus (butterfly house), which we visited (pictured). The butterfly garden had a small collection of butterflies and only a small variety of flora. Overall it was pretty little butterfly garden.
We spent the afternoon in another Christmas market among the Rathaus (town hall). For dinner went to Café Landtmann not far from the town center. The food there was amazing- Mom Oliver had an absolutely giant schnitzel which was probably the best I have ever tasted. The dessert pastries were absolutely delicious too.
Day 4
On our last day in Wien, we visited Karlskirche which was built in the early 1700’s to celebrate the end of a the plague. This was one of the most ornate and beautiful churches I have ever seen. The effect of the rose marble and gold leaf is absolutely stunning. I would have loved to buy a book on the art and history of this monument, but unlike other grand cathedrals Karlskirche did not have a nearby gift shop. This defiantly appears to be one the overlooked and less visited churches- but totally worth a visit- which was very cool to see a less crowded cathedral.
