Vienna, Austria

The Imperial City of Vienna, Austria was full of stunning architecture and fun events. We loved the experience, but were taken aback a few times.

Just so you know, this picture is entry into the Hoffsburg Palace Courtyard. The drive through is complete with a rotunda inside, absolutley stunning. There are apartments in this building now.

Our first night in Vienna was dissapointing. There hadn't been a tour yet, and we were left to our own devices. That meant that we went the opposite direction of downtown, which was lovely and ended up in the Muslim Ghetto, which was a bit frightening, it appeared that the residents there were shcoked by our appearance as well. Little did we know at the time, that Vienna had no ghettos, or poverty or crime - at least according to our tour gude the next day. Boy, she could have fooled us, but we would have felt much better knowing that the night before.

We had an interesting tour the next morning, we visited an apartment complex designed by a modern architect who believed that there were no straight lines in nature, and there shouldn't be in man-made designs either. Even the floors were uneven. We were also driven past the famous St. Stevens Cathedral and most of the downtown museums. We also received a guided tour of the Summer Palace of the Hapsburgs - complete opulence. It was a marvelous glimpse into the royal lifestyle. The Hapsburgs were the monarchs of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and produced such well known figures as Maria Theresa and her daughter, Marie Antoinette. The palace gardens even had the hedge mazes, it was incredible.

On our own, we went to the Hoffsburg Palace, the winter residence of the Hapsburgs. It now houses some museums and government offices. There we toured the Midevil Armor and Musical Instrument Museum. It had the armor of Maximillian, the Holy Roman Emporer and many others. It is the most comprehensive collection of armour in the world. The musical instruments were also fascinating. I think we, withour dear friend Marette, were the only ones from our group to tour that.

We also went on a tour of the catacombs of St. Michael's Cathedral. It is the second cathedral of Vienna. The tour was very respectful. Just a few months previously a new chamber had been discovered in these catacombs that contained the coffin and body of the grandson of Christopher Colombus. We saw a few of the mummified bodies, and it was very like the movies in that there were piles of bones and skulls, and walls piled with femurs. Chad loved it, Corinne doesn't feel the need to visit them again.

Chad had the opportunity to visit the US Embassy. While he was there Corinne went with the other spouses to the Museum of Modern Art. It was very interesting, and she advises everyone to avoid the first floor, extremely disturbing.

We also got to see an incredible Balalaika band. Corinne really wanted to buy their CD, but we were a few Euro short at the time, and they were just playing on a street corner, so we couldn't find them again.

The last night many members of the group met at a small amusment park on the banks of the Danube. We ate at a huge restaraunt famous for its pig knees. Then we all climbed onto a train car that had been attached to a large ferris wheel. What a trip!