Austria - Vienna and Salzburg

Day 6 - We drove from Budapest to Vienna. Vienna was once the center of the mighty Hapsburg Empire. Upon arrival, we went on a city tour with a drive along the elegant Ringstrasse. Vienna's Ringstrasse or The Ring Road is 5.3 kilometers long, where the Vienna State Opera, the Parliament, City Hall, and many more buildings built in the second half of the 19th century that were mostly architectural masterpieces. 

We went down from the bus to walk from Hofburg Palace (wish we went inside the palace), which used to be inhabited by the imperial family, and today houses the office of the President of Austria. We walk through Heldenplatz or the Heroes Square, the name is based on the two magnificent horseman monuments created in 1860 nad 1865. The last stop of our city tour is St. Stephen's Cathedral or in German, Stephansdom. It is the mother churh of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna and is one of the most important Gothic structures in Austria today. The roof is made of colorful roof tiles laid to create the Royal and Imperial double-headed eagle and the coat of arms of the city of Vienna. Emperor Friedrich III was buried in an impressive marble sarcophagus inside the cathedral. What we noticed most is the intricate carving of the gothic pulpit  where a stone self-portrait of the sculptor gawking out a window which is famously known as the Fenstergucker. That night we enjoyed dinner with music at one of the Heurigen or wine taverns in the Vienna Woods. A Heuriger is a tavern that serves it's own wine from the current harvest year and different meats such as Wienerschnitzel (breaded pork cutlet or tonkatsu as we commonly call it in Asia), pork loin, ham, there's also potatoes and other vegetables, and Apfelstrudel (not really a fan of Apple strudel because I don't like the taste of cinnamon) for dessert.

Day 7 - It's free day in Vienna but instead of just staying in the city, we decided to join the Vienna Woods excursion and visited Schoenbrunn Palace. Schoenbrunn Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and former summer residence of the imperial family. After 1743, Maria Theresia redesigned the whole complex. Emperor Franz Joseph, who later married the enchanting Sisi and  reigned from 1848 to 1916, was born in the palace in 1830. I'm always in awe everytime I visit a palace, no matter how many I've already seen, I'm still amazed at what I can still discover, and Schoenbrunn is no exception, it's bautiful! The rooms are mostly decorated in Rococo style. I think the Bohemian crystal chandeliers and white porcelain tile stoves stands out in this palace because the stoves are in every room and in different designs. We were able to enter different rooms in the palace like the guard room, billiard room, walnut room, balcony room, carousel room, hall of ceremonies, Blue Chinese salon with Chinese paper wall-hangings, Vieux-Laque room, Napoleon room, miniatures cabinet, Gobelin salon, red salon,  There's also Emperor Franz Joseph's study, Emperor's bedroom with the bed where he died, and the dressing room where Elisabeth (Sisi) spent a lot of time in since she's very vain and wanted to preserve her appearance, and the imperial bedroom. Maria Antoinette Room served as a dining room during Elisabeth's time, the room was named after a tapestry which formerly hung there showing Maria Antoinette and her children, the Rich bedroom is where Emperor Franz Joseph was born. We were also able to enter the children's room where several portraits of Maria Theresa's daughters are hung, mirror room where 6-year-old Mozart first performed, Millions Room got it's name from it's precious palisander wood paneling of 60 Rococo cartouches with Indo-Persian miniatures. The Great Gallery is used for court functions that has one of the most magnificent Rococo interiors in existence.

After the palace, we went to Baden, famous for it's thermal springs since the Roman times and visited the Cistercian Holy Cross Abbey in the village of Heiligekreuz. The monastery was founded in 1133 which has been inhabited ever since by monks. We were able to listen to the monks praise God in the form of a Gregorian chant. The chant was simpler than I expected but it's a different experience. On our way back, we passed by Mayerling, a former royal hunting lodge, where the only son of Emperor Franz Joseph, Crown Prince Rudolph, was found dead with his mistress Baroness Mary Vetsera, apparently as a result of suicide. After the deaths, Emperor Franz Joseph had the building turned into a convent which was settled by nuns of the Discalced Carmelite Order.

Day 8 - Going to Salzburg, we took a Danube Cruise with Kaffee und Kuchen (coffee and cake) then drive through Salzkammergut Lakeland to Salzburg. Upon arrival in Salzburg, we had a walking tour around the historical center. First stop was the Mirabell Gardens, where several scenes from The Sound of Music were filmed, including the scene where Maria and the children sing 'Do-Re-Mi' while dancing around the horse fountain and using the steps as musical scale. We passed by the Great Festival Hall, St. Peter's Monastery, and Residenzplatz (also a film location of The Sound of Music) which is a forecourt bordered by the New Residence, the Cathedral, the Old Residences, and a continuous row of townhouses. As we walk along Getreidegasse, a shopping street with unique store signs that reminds me of Harry Potter, we got to a building where Mozart was born. We end the day with dinner at St. Peter Stiftskeller and walk back to our hotel at night.

Day 9 - Before going back to Munich, we joined an excursion to Berchtesgaden. We crossed the border into Germany by way of the Durnberg-Hallein salt-mining area into the Berchtesgaden district in Bavaria and drove up to Hohenring Road. We stopped to take pictures of the alpine panorama. Too bad the weather did not permit us to see the Eagles Nest clearly and I think the place was closed so we weren't able to visit Obersalzberg, the compound area of Hitler's second headquarters as well.

We enjoyed more of The Sound of Music filming sites on our way to Hellbrunn. Hellbrunn Palace or Schloss Hellbrunnis an early Baroque villa meant for use as a day residence in summer. It is currently where The Sound of Music Pavilion is located. The Pavilion is where Liesl Von Trapp sings 'I am 16 going on 17'. Not far from Hellbrunn, we also passed by Anif Castle and Frohnburg Castle, used for the exterior shots of the Trapp villa.

We finally went back to Munich and had a visit at Hofbrauhaus, Munich's best known beer hall. I don't drink beer so I didn't enjoy the place at all, it's noisy and full of people, but I guess many does because the place is full packed.

We had another day extension for shopping and on the 12th day, it's our time to go back to reality. Thank you Lord for another chance for a vacation and travel to new places. <3