I finally made it to Vienna

I finally made it to Vienna in the middle of August.

This was my first time to a city that I had been itching to go for ages but somehow fate always seemed to intervene.

But my frieghbor ( half friend, half neighbor ) in London invited me to stay with them for a few days at their home in Vienna so I gladly accepted.

They have a lovely terrace with the most amazing view of Vienna. 

That's the city hall with the Wien 

( Vienna in German ) banner hanging from it.

Paris, London, and Rome have their own distinct branding but 

Vienna doesn't seem to have one so I didn't have an image in my head of what to expect as people have of the 

Eiffel Tower or the Colosseum for example.

Vienna is the former capital of the Hapsburgs, one of the ancient royal families who also were Holy Roman Emperors along with their other kingdoms spread over central Europe.  

I was so very lucky when my host had arranged a private tour to the  government offices at the Hofburg Palace, the former Viennese home to the Hapsburgs and now the office and official residence of the President.  This section opens one day a year but the other sections of the palace are open year round.

I didn't mind the bits of scaffolding and the computer screen as they are working offices. See the adjoining office chair?

 This is still the official reception for visiting dignitaries as it has always been.

The cornicing was so tasteful unlike the ones at Buckingham Palace.

That big white thing in the corner is a ceramic radiator that kept the rooms warm in the winter. I would love something like that instead of the modern versions.

That is our little group in front of this clock below that was placed in front of the mirror. But do you notice that it is inverse?

That's because the respective emperor had their bed next to it and would look into that mirror to tell the time. 

The original floors still as beautiful as the day they were installed.

( I take home decor inspiration anywhere I can.)

Ivory portraits of the Hapsburgs that normally have blinds to conserve the delicate artwork.

Yet with a history steeped with the fortunes of the Hapsburgs,

since the first world war all aristocrats and royal titles have been abolished and the most prestigious title legally allowed is Doctor. 

England really is a land of titles because even people in the East end of London get called Guv'nah willy nilly.

A modern spartan apartment block typical of the Red Vienna period



There are architectural reflections of the period between 
1918 - 1934 just after the abolition of the monarchy
 referred to as Red Vienna.

For architecture buffs out there, Vienna is the place to go.

It has traces of differing architectural styles but the best representative of the Art Nouveau movement anywhere in the world.

The Vienna Secession building
The inscription says, To every age its art, To art its freedom

The one below is one of my all time favorite buildings.

How I would love to rent a flat there for a month although then I wouldn't get to look at it so I would love to rent a flat across it.

This is it - the Wagner building which is a block of flats.

This is the view straight out of the train station.

Normally the white building next door would get kudos but it just seems rather ordinary compared to the Wagner block.

Can you tell I really like it?

The location is superb being a few blocks away from the 

Cafe Museum designed by the famous architect Adolf Loos.

The cafe opened in 1899 and the interior was groundbreaking for the time and still is a meeting place for artists.

The Viennese take their cafes even more seriously than the Parisians and have much better quality and range of coffee.

Every cafe I went to had a huge range of reading material.

It is through the importance of cafe culture that arose the art of lounging in comfortable and stylish chairs such  as the ones from Thonet.

They are a firm favorite and very collectible item quite synonymous with Viennese style.

Have you read The Hare with the Amber Eyes?

If not, drop what you are doing right now and get the book.

It was one of my favorite books of the last decade.

For those of you who have read it, here is the Palais Ephrussi.

I thought it quite poignant that the building is now the offices for Casino Austria.  How apt that its headquarters are the home of one of the wealthiest families in Europe who lost most of their fortune.

To the rear of the building, there was a Starbucks...

I wonder what room that used to be - the servant's quarters?

This was the front door that had seen many events.

I visited Schonbrunn Palace which was the summer residence of the Hapsburgs.

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This edifice needs to be seen and properly explained because it is the little touches that make this palace as most homes special.

Picture taking is banned inside the palace so I had to rely on internet pictures to give you a glimpse of the elegance and level of workmanship of this palace.

This room is the Porcelain Room.

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The quality of the pictures is disappointing and so I am doubling up to give you a better idea.

But this is one of the most impressive rooms I have ever seen.

Blue and white chinoiserie at its very best.

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What you have to know is that the Hapsburgs didn't just tell the builders what they wanted but they were involved in the first and poshest DIY projects you have ever seen.

The prints on the wall were all drawn and copied after Boucher and Pillemont. 

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But Emperor Franz and a few of his talented children drew them freehand!  The pictures up close were of such a superb level that I couldn't believe that they were done my amateurs let alone members of the family.  But they wanted their own touch and they also put some of the family members into the drawings for fun.

Below is the Millions Room called that because an incredible amount of money went into the decoration.  

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Once again, 

all the images with gilt framing were cut out and scrap booked by the children of Empress Maria Theresa, one of the daughters being the infamous Marie Antoinette.

The room below was called the Miniatures Room.

It seems almost normal now that once again the member of the Hapsburg family drew all the family portraits and were involved in the decoration and stitching of the curtains.

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There are so many amazing rooms to view but 

for those of you not planning to visit anytime soon please click here for a tour of the palace.

Sometimes the marriage of contrasts result in what made Vienna such a vibrant and ground breaking city in all aspects at the turn of the 20th century.

There was a thriving Jewish community that was very much part of the mainstream society in Vienna until WW1.  
What must have resulted from an intrinsic Jewish inclination to question existence coupled with the Catholic custom of confessions surely was psychotherapy. 

 

Vienna was the birthplace of this relatively new science and 

Freud one of its founders.

This was the building that housed his home and office.

The foyer leading up to his studio.

The lovely window looking out onto the courtyard just before the front door and Freud's front door where many patients must have waited nervously.

Freud's cane and hat still at the foyer and the waiting room intact.

Vienna was voted the second most livable city in the world recently.
As a former Melbournian whose city was voted #1, 
I can see why it ranks so high.

Views of the Blue Danube

I was invited to my host's friend's most lovely home which was still within the city limits.

Most lovely homes are the same as another but I was surprised that having vineyards next door was not considered to be the countryside.

Austrian wine is still very much underrated and Vienna boasts some great producers.  There is a local Viennese institution equivalent to a wine pub called heurigers. 

They sell the most local recent vintages with simple food.

We went to a heuriger in the 19th district of Vienna that 

had origins from 1642.

We started with a traditional Austrian bar snack of kaiser rolls and a cheese dip called liptauer.

Don't even ask me what I am having at an Austrian restaurant. 

It is always going to be a schnitzel!

I couldn't go to Vienna and not have a Sacher torte 
at the Sacher Hotel.

A tip from the locals was not to have a slice of the torte 
but ask for the Sacher cube.
Much more moist and more chocolate.

This city is a must see and don't wait as long as I did to visit if you haven't already!