So What Happened Was . . .: Jun 24, 2012

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Final Day in Vienna

Today is Sunday. I am so glad that God's continual presence is a promise. No matter where in the world I am!

Today was a mellow day. I was tired from all the excitement of the week but I still managed to drag Stan out very early this morning to take pictures in the softer morning light without all the crowds. But when we got to the church, I realized I had forgotten to charge my camera battery! Bummer! (Poor Stan.) I did manage to get a few shots and then we returned to the hotel and had breakfast.

Later we ventured out again to see different areas we hadn't seen yet and take a few more pictures. This time I realized I had forgotten to put my memory card back in my camera so I couldn't shoot anything! Thank goodness Stan had his camera and he got some awesome panoramic shots which you will see below. After lunch, I returned to the hotel to veg for awhile.

BTW - Stan has put together a checklist for me which he says he's going to go over with me every time we leave the hotel from now on. LOL. I know my mother is rolling her eyes right now!

This picture was taken outside of Starbucks. As I passed by, I noticed these two little children sitting in their stroller leaning forward with their heads together, focusing intently on something. I realized this young father was holding a phone that was playing a movie for his kids while he was surfing on his own phone with the other hand. I got such a kick out of this I just had to get a picture! We have to have our media, don't we? Even when we're three!

Multi-tasking at it's finest.

Loved this baby John Deere!

Vienna fashion.

The Sacher Hotel, Vienna
(Sister property to our hotel in Salzburg.)

The Rathaus is the City Hall in Vienna. It was built between 1872 and 1883 in the Gothic style.

Rathaus

When the Parliament building was commissioned, it was decided that the building's style should be classical Greek architecture since it is connected to the Ancient Greeks and the ideal of democracy. Construction on the Parliament building began in 1874 and was completed in 1883.

The Parliament Building

The Parliament Building - Side

The Heldenplatz is the outer plaza of the Hofburg Palace and was built under the reign of Emperor Francis Joseph. The Library is the furtherest building on the right. On the plaza, there are two equestrian statues of Prince Eugene of Savor and Archduke Charles of Austria, who are remembered as great military leaders. It also houses Austria's unknown soldier.

Helden Plaza and Library to the right

Stadtpark

Vienna, Austria

Greetings from Austria!

This morning (Saturday) started out with a bang . . . or rather, a poof!

Long story short, I couldn't find the hair dryer the hotel provided (it was hidden in a drawer), so I plugged MY blow dryer into the outlet using an adapter. Not a good a idea. There was a pop, fire and all the lights went out. Oops! Apparently the outlets here are only 100v and my blow dryer requires 120v. The facilities guy scolded me in German, moved the dresser and plugged the hotel's dryer in for me in front of the mirror so there can be no further excuses for blowing the electricity. Well, alrighty then.

Then . . . there was some confusion about where we were supposed to have breakfast. The Executive Lounge sent us downstairs to the main restaurant; the restaurant sent us back up to the Executive Lounge. Apparently there was some confusion with our room numbers. Stan finally told the restaurant we would be dining with them and they could work it out amongst themselves. (These pushy Americans!)

Finally, we were getting ready to leave on our guided WALKING tour and I realized it was raining! I had to go back to my room and change into weather appropriate clothes and shoes and get a sweater.

Whew! Okay . . . ready to go.

Walking in the rain.

Our tour guide was great. His name was Herbert and he was born and raised in Vienna. Perfect! He told us that he had to complete a two year course at the university to become a certified tour guide. He was passionate about his city and entertained us with interesting stories and jokes along the way.

Herbert, our tour guide.

I cannot do justice to the history and architecture in this city. We covered a span from the 1200's to 1800's in two hours! Just to give you an example of the history behind one building - check this out:

St. Stephen's Cathedral is the most important religious building in Austria's capital and has been central to many important events in it's history. Here is a rough time-line:

1160 - The initial structure was completed in Romanesque style.
Early 1200's - They added to the structure and built the towers.
1258 - A fire destroyed much of the original building so it was rebuilt re-using the two towers.
1263 - Cathedral was completed and dedicated.
1304 - 1340 Albert I ordered a Gothic style three-nave choir addition to the structure.
1359 - Rudolf IV began another expansion which eventually encapsulated the entire structure!
1430 - The edifice of the original church was removed from within as work progressed on the cathedral.
1433 - The south tower was completed in Gothic style.
1450 - Construction began for the north tower but was never finished.
1474 - The vaulting of the nave was completed.
1511 - Construction was halted.
1578 - The north tower was originally intended to mirror the south tower but the era of Gothic cathedrals was nearing its end so the "stump" at the top was fitted with a Renaissance style cap.

St. Stephen's Cathedral
Vienna, Austria

North tower was never completed.
Renaissance cap added in 1578

This side is being renovated.
There is a screen over the section that is being cleaned.
Note the detail in the roof.

South tower.

Note: This cathedral was made of sandstone which is very porous and absorbs all the dirt and pollution so sections are always being renovated (cleaned). That's why some of the building looks light and other sections are black.

Pretty incredible, huh? I am always struck with "awe" when I stand in a place that is several centuries old. I can hardly take it in. One cathedral that was built in three different styles over 400 years! I wonder about all the important political and social events that took place there. For instance, this is where Mozart was buried. Inside there are alters, a stone pulpit, chapels, tombs, catacombs, crypts and organs that are historical in-and-of themselves. It would probably take a whole year to absorb all the information and history of this single cathedral! And the city is full of historical buildings like this. Can you imagine?

So, walking on . . .

Here are photos of buildings we saw. I'll save the history lessons. Enjoy!