Vienna has palaces everywhere but you have to see the imperial residences of the Hapsburgs. The Hofburg, known as the winter palace, is situated inside Old Vienna not far from the Bristol Hotel. The Schonbrunn Palace, known as the summer palace, is about 5 kilometres away in what used to be the countryside. The two palaces are connected by Mariahilfer Street, a great pedestrian mall, with a large assortment of shops, cafes and bars. Gym and his dear wife would explore both properties on this trip over about three days. Each site has a main palace and multiple associated green spaces, museums and attractions that one can visit.
The Hapsburg dynasty reigned over Austria and at times, a good chunk of central and southern Europe. The length and breadth of the Hapsburg dynasty brought tremendous wealth to the family and Vienna benefitted from that wealth. The zenith of the dynasty probably occurred during the reign of Franz Josef I, who served as Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary and boss of much of Italy and Germany for various portions of his long reign. He was the longest serving ruler of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, sitting on the throne from 1848 to 1916. He married his 16-year old first cousin (Hapsburgs did this a lot), a Bavarian Duchess named Elisabeth. Today much of what you see when you tour these two imperial properties is just as it was when Franz Joseph and Elisabeth lived there.
The first part of the Hofburg Palace complex visited by our intrepid travellers, was the Spanish Riding School. Mrs. Gym wanted to see the famous Lipizzaners and so, Gym dutifully agreed to check that out first. The Vienna Pass allowed entrance to a training session of the younger stallions. Unfortunately, they wouldn't allow pictures or videos but it was fun to see the trainers working out with these younger horses. One could see how horse and rider worked together to develop the trademark skills required to join the more mature horses in the formal performances. Mrs. Gym did get some pics of the horses in their stables across the street from the arena.
A subsequent whole day was spent exploring several exhibits in the Hofburg Palace complex. Gym and his dear wife did not see everything but in one day they checked out the Palace, the Silver Collection, the Sisi Museum and the Butterfly House. It was another hot day and there is no air conditioning in any of these places, so it wasn't ideal conditions to visit but as Mrs. Gym always says, you've got to "suck it up", so, Gym did.
The Silver Collection was over the top. Gym could just imagine what is must have been like to be served several courses out of silver and gold plates, using gold utensils and staring down the table set with large, ornate candelabras and terrines. The exit from the Silver Collection leads you to the Entrance to the Palace Tour which includes the Sisi Museum. Sisi was Empress Elisabeth's nickname and you get a good feel for what she was like by viewing her private chambers. The Butterfly House is connected to the complex but it is on the other side of the building facing the Palace Garden. It is a huge greenhouse where the perfect environment for butterflies is maintained.
Yet another very sticky day was spent visiting the Schonbrunn estate. Our undaunted duo set off up Mariahilfer Street on the day of their visit and did a little window shopping on the way. When they arrived at the park, they acquired a ticket for a set time to tour the palace, but it was a couple hours until their entry was allowed, so they decided to go to the Schonbrunn Zoo. The zoo is situated all the way across the estate in a wooded, hilly area that used to be part of the royal hunting reserve. It is a world class zoo and maybe somewhat better than Calgary's zoo because they still had a Giant Panda Exhibit. Gym never saw the Pandas when they were in Calgary, so this was a first for him. All the African animals were happy that hot day but Gym thought that he and the polar bear looked and felt the same way, a little disheveled.
Notwithstanding the heat, about half an hour before the palace ticket became effective, our travellers hiked back across the estate and through the beautiful palace gardens to main floor of the palace. Then they climbed the stairs to start the tour. As it was in the Hofburg Palace, the Schonbrunn was just as Franz Joseph and Elisabeth left it. The apartments of Emperor Joseph and his wife Sisi were similar to those in the winter palace, but the tour also allowed access into the many other interesting rooms decorated by Franz Joseph's predecessors and their wives. The most impressive room was the Great Gallery a 40x10 meter room where receptions and balls were held. It is famous as it was the venue John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev used for the Vienna Summit in 1961, after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion. Other opulent rooms included the Blue Chinese Salon, the Porcelain Room and the Rich Room. This tour is highly recommended by Gym.
Full days of touring like this were usually followed by dinner in Old Vienna. There were dozens of restaurants within a three-block radius of the Bristol and no, you didn't have to eat Weiner Schnitzel every night. Our travellers had fish and chips at Flanagan's Irish Pub, pasta at San Carlos, good steaks at Steak Point and south asian cuisine at Asiam. The hands down surprise of the trip though, was the tacos at a little hole-in-the-wall place called Chrugerno10. The owner and sole employee at the time of the visit, made the best taco and burrito that Gym and his dear companion had ever eaten.
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