Hannah's Blog: Croatians in Vienna!

Once again the six Inbound Exchange Students to Croatia got together to go on a Rotary Trip. This time we went to Vienna. Our Rotary District (1910) is combined with Austria so we got to meet all the Rotary Exchange Students staying in Austria. Our small group was dwarfed by their eighty or so students but we still had a great time tagging along with the Austrians.

On October 17th I got up at 3:30. My host mom drove Kevin (another exchange student) and I through the darkness and pouring rain so we could get on the 4:30 bus to Zagreb. Once in Zagreb we had quite an adventure trying to find the train station, where we were to meet the rest of the group. We arrived at the main bus station at 6:15. It was dark, cold and wet and we had to find our way to the train station. We went to a tramway station that was across from the bus station and waited for tram 6. I knew we had to get on tram 6, go two stops then get off. By the second stop we found ourselves stopped in the middle of the highway with no train in sight. Turns out we were on the right tram but were going the wrong way. We continued to ride the tram in the wrong direction. It eventually switched tracks, turned around and headed back to where we had got on. After going two stops (in the right direction this time) we saw the train station. It was still pouring rain so we jogged through the rain with our luggage. Again we went the wrong way, heading towards the cargo section instead of the passenger section. After asking a few questions in Croatian we found ourselves running several blocks in the pouring rain so we wouldn't miss train. We arrived at the station soaking wet and out of breath, but still in time for our train. The rest of the exchange students and our chaperone were all ready there and had been concerned of our whereabouts.

We boarded the train, found two cabins and were off for a weekend in Vienna.

During the first part of the train ride it was raining but after stopping at the Slovenian border and having a passport check, the weather cleared up. We passed through many towns and villages. The scenery was great! I didn't really take any pictures of the scenery but below is a picture of the train from our cabin. It took roughly six and a half hours to get to Vienna. The train stopped a few times to let people on and off.

Our Train. Allie, Emily and Gabrielle sitting in our cabin. There are six seats to a cabin. In the last hour of the trip we found out you can fold the chairs down to make a giant bed so that's what we did.

The back of our train at the Vienna station.

The front of the train with the driver hanging out his window.

On Saturday we did a walking tour through the city. Here are a few pictures from that.

The Marie-Theresien Platz. The statue is a monument to Empress Maria Theresa. The building behind is the Art History Museum. Directly across from this building is an almost identical Renaissance style building, the Natural History Museum. We didn't visit the Museums; we just walked through the Platz.

Monument to Empress Maria Theresa.

Art History Museum

Looking back at the Platz - Statue and Natural History Museum.

Lamppost with the City Hall building in the background. It is the most important Neo-Gothic style civic building in Vienna. This is as close as we got to it.

A section on the Imperial Palace. (Hofburg)

This Palace was the residence of the Habsburg Dynasty. (13th Century to 1918) There isn't just one palace, rather a cluster of buildings all erected at different times and for different reasons. A habit of Austrian Monarchs was to never occupy the rooms of their predecessors so that is why there is such an array of buildings. In total there are 18 wings, 19 courtyards, 54 staircases and more then 2,600 rooms. Quite an extensive place. Today the palace hosts several Museums. We didn't go in but we walked through a few courtyards and saw parts of the exterior.

"In der Burg" courtyard and monument to Emperor Francis I. (Imperial Palace)

Gateway leading from one courtyard to the next.

Entrance into part of the Palace.

Men in traditional dress. There were several people in costume throughout the streets. They hand out information and try to get you to go to events and such - solicitors. They create a nice atmosphere in the area.

Horse and carriage.

Michaelerplatz - the main entrance to the Hofburg. (We exited through it) In front of the entrance are large statues depicting scenes from Hercules' life.

Looking up at the dome ceiling. Just inside the main entrance.

Exchange students under the dome ceiling. Me, Greg, Kevin, Emily, Gabrielle and Allie.

After leaving the palace area we walked along the Graben. The word Graben translates to "ditch." Today the street is one of Vienna's most elegant streets but up until the 12th Century it was a ditch that marked the city's western limit.

Church of St. Peter.

The Column of the Plague located on the Graben. This is a monument in tribute to the Holy Trinity as a sign of gratitude for the end of the plague epidemic. It was erected in 1687 under the order of Leopold I.

Looking down the street.

After walking through Vienna's streets for a bit we went to the National Library: Homage Hall. It is considered one of the most beautiful libraries in the world and I will vouch for that. It is an early 18th Century Baroque style building. We only visited part of the Library, that being the Main Hall.

I apologize in advance - the pictures are not the greatest. Flash photography wasn't allowed. After I realized my camera has a setting for cases like this so next time the flash isn't allowed my pictures won't be so dark.

Looking into the library when we first entered the room.

One of the many bookcases. Books are not arranged by author or alphabetically but by size.

Anyone has the ability to read the books but they are not to be taken out of Library. Depending on the age and condition of the books, different precautions are taken. Some books require stands so when reading it the spine isn't damaged. Also for some books you must wear gloves. Nowadays there are about 200,000 books printed from the years 1501 to 1850 in the State Hall section of the Library.

Part of the ceiling. The frescos represent heaven and peace. Opposite it are frescos depicting warfare and other profane topics. The "heavenly" part was the former entrance for the Emperor and the members of court.

The public were unable to access the Library. If someone wished to visit the library they would have to go through the court. Nowadays there is a staircase opposite the emperor's entrance where everyone enters. The staircase had to be build as before there was just a wall at the end of the room.

Looking towards the Emperor's and the members of Court Entrance.

The fresco on the ceiling of the cupola. It illustrates the apotheosis of Charles VI, the owner of the Court Library.

Part of the ceiling.

A marble statue of Charles VI in the center of the State Hall.

Our tour guide showed us one of the books. This particular book belongs to a set of children's books. (Much different from today's children's books) The pictures were hand etched and filled and the text was stamped in. Books were only for the privileged as they were very expensive. This book would have cost over a years salary of an average man. The books had a particular smell to them, not a bad or potent one. The paper they used was made of cotton and is very durable. It is like the material of paper money.

Each bookcase had a section that opened up and led to a room behind it. When looking at the building from the outside there are many windows but from inside the state hall there are very few. This is because the bookcases were built in front of the windows. Sunlight can be very damaging so the less windows the better. The rooms behind were used as reading rooms as the natural lighting was very good. Today there are different reading rooms if you wish to read a book.

Bookcase and staircase leading to the upper balcony. There were more shelves located on the balconies.

In this library you don't go and grab a book off the shelve. You request a book and a library attendant will go and find it for you. Since there is no real ordering system if a book isn't marked when taken off the shelve it may never be put back properly.

The Austrian National Library owns more then 7.8 million books and objects. This collection is growing. Each year the Library purchases everything that was printed in Austria - ranging from newspapers to encycolopedias.

After leaving the Library we had twenty minutes to walk around St. Stephen's Square. I decided to visit the Cathedral.

St. Stephen's Cathedral.

This Gothic style building has origins dating back to 1137 but it didn't acquire its current appearance until 1304 when a large remodeling project took place. The roof has 230,000 enameled tiles, creating a striking sight. These were placed during 1952 when the Chapel was repaired after being damaged in World War II.

The Cathedral is being repaired. The scaffolding has been covered with a screen that has the same design as the real building.

Inside the Chapel.

Looking up at the ceiling.

A few of the pews.

Part of the Chapel was gated off and you had to pay to go and see the front end of the Chapel. Unfourtunately I didn't have time to go and get a closer look. The picture above was taken through the gate.

Exterior of the Chapel.

Looking up at the side wall.

After our twenty minute walk around we had lunch. After lunch we all got on the U-Bahn and went to Schönbrunn.

Schönbrunn Palace was the summer residence of the Habsburg. It is located on an old estate that Emperor Maximilian II bought in 1567. (He used it as a hunting reserve) Construction on the 1.76 square km, 1,441 room palace began in 1696. The architect was commissioned to build it to be more lavish and larger than the Versailles Palace. (This didn't happen) The project was stalled for many years until Empress Maria Theresa took interest in 1744.

There are several other buildings on the property other then the main Palace. There was the winter riding school building, (now a Wagon Museum) the Palace theatre, the zoo and the Palm tree house. (Palmenhaus) The only building we passed by was the Palm Tree House.

The Palm Tree House. This Greenhouse was built in 1883 from steel and glass. It is the World's largest Greenhouse of its kind.

Gardens

The pathway leading to the Palace.

The Bandstand (atop the hill) and the Fountain of Neptune. They are located across from the Palace.

Bandstand and Fountain of Neptune.

The Palace.

A statue, one of many that lined the pathway.

Small Garden beside the Palace.

A side entrance to the Palace.

In the main courtyard looking at the main façade.

Looking across the courtyard. Fountain of the Nymphs.

Horse and Carriages in the Main Courtyard.

Our group had the option of walking up the hill to the bandstand or a tour of part of the Palace. I went on the Palace tour. It was very beautiful and the displays were well laid out. Unfortunately picture taking was prohibited.

Saturday evening we attended the Opera at the Volkshopper! The opera house was built in 1898. The interior was beautiful! The show, Der Barbier Von Sevilla, told the story of "Count Almaviva's devoted attempts to win the heart of the gorgeous Rosina and wrest her guardian, Dr. Bartolo with the assistance of the clever Figaro." If was very well done: the set was creative, the voices magnificent and all together a pretty good show. I didn't understand what they were saying (It was in German with some Italian) but I was able to follow the plot.

The next day we had a city bus tour. Ingrid, a Rotary director, explained things as we drove through the city. After driving for a bit we got out of the bus to visit the Hundertwasser House.

The Hundertwaser House is an extremely unique council building. It was named after the controversial Viennese painter Friedensreich Hundertwasser who designed this colorful building without right angles of straight edges. It was built from 1983 to 1985.

Hundertwaser House

Our next stop on the bus tour was Belvedere.

Belvedere consists of two Palaces, Upper and Lower. They were meant to become the Summer Residence of Prince Eugene of Savory but only the lower palace (Unteres Belvedere) was used as this. The Upper Palace (Oberes Belvedere) was used to host official receptions and parties. In 1997 the Palaces were transformed into the Austrian Museum of Medieval art (Lower) and the Austrian Baroque Museum. (Upper)

We walked around the property.

Looking at the Upper Palace.

Looking at the gardens that separate the Palaces. The Lower Palace is the long building at the far end of the gardens. Behind that is a view of Vienna's old quarter.

A fountain in the garden.

Looking at the backside of the Upper Palace.

Gate leading from the Upper Palace gardens to the three leveled garden that separates the two Palaces.

Side view of the Upper Palace.

Looking across the pond of the Upper Palace to the street outside the Palace gates.

The Palace gates.

We then drove out of town to the top of a hill to get a view of the city. It was a bit overcast so the view wasn't so clear. It was still a nice view though.

Countryside.