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A walk around Imperial Vienna

The day I arrived here in Vienna I went to an internet cafe and printed off a Frommers walk around "Imperial Vienna"....it started at the Opera House which I walked over to...about a thirty minute walk from here at my current pace..

Yesterday was a cold dank day with the occasional bits of rain in the morning so I took quite a few pictures in black and white as I do like black and white and if they are going to be almost that way anyway....

When the Staatsoper (opera house) opened in 1869 it was greeted with such criticism that one of the architects committed suicide...it was almost completely destroyed by bombs during the war but rebuilt to its original design....I didn't find it an attractive building at all so didn't take many photos...

I liked the big pink bunny though!



From there it was on to the Albertina which I didn't go into. sorry most art bores me...but I thought this stair case was pretty cool...


And the sculptures were beautiful...



At this point I was supposed to go to Lobkowitz Palace but got misplaced (as opposed to lost you understand....) so thought "screw it" (okay the word was a bit more unlady like but you get the gist of it...) and just decided to do my own thing.  I stumbled across Hofburg palace but first I had to check out all the pomp and ceremony going on outside.  Lots of police officers around so asked one of them what was going on,,,,turns out the President of Latvia was coming to visit the President of Austria...being as I wouldn't know either if they came up and bit me on the nose I took a few shots and video of the military band and then went into the palace. 



 I viewed the immense silver collection, visited a museum devoted to Empress Elisabeth (known as Sissi) of the Hapsburgs....very interesting lady...and then visited the state apartments.  I really enjoyed my visit and spent about two happy hours there...no photography allowed except in the silver collection.  Here are some photos of the palace.



From there I just kind of wandered around....eventually ending up at one of Mozart's apartments in Vienna where he lived the longest - two and a half years.  And where he wrote the Marriage of Figaro - oh how I love that music and to think I was in the same room where he wrote it.  Eek.  Not the spine chilling of the Lennon/McCartney houses but being as he is my number three favourite composer a thrilling moment for sure.  Sadly no photography allowed...below photos of my wandering.....I wandered for ten hours in all with a stop for some goulash and later on cake and coffee....

Horses and carriages all over the place - hope they are well cared for...

Looks like gossiping horses to me! "Did you see Nellie's ear protectors?  What a trollop"!
Check out the face and his sidekick isn't much better

Nice!

Side of Stephensdom (St Stephens Cathedral) - impressive outside - dark and oppressive inside.

Coffee and cake at Cafe Diglas...sacher torte which has a thin apricot filling in with the chocolate...oh yes...
 
 Back to Stephensdom - it was huge!
Peterskirche - I preferred this church

 
 
 
 

 


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