Continuing with my series of photographs (finally!) from the most epic European dad-daughter trip of (probably?) our lifetime –
29 days from December 2023 to January 2024 via planes, trains and automobiles.
Having thoroughly enjoyed our four-day stay in the enchanting city of Prague, we hopped aboard an ÖBB train from Prague to Vienna (about 4 hours, very comfortable) and checked into the Hotel Royal in the Historic Centre of Vienna, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Our hotel just happened to be around the corner of Austria’s most important Gothic building, St. Stephen’s Cathedral.
Arrival in Vienna
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St. Stephen’s Cathedral
St. Stephen’s Cathedral is one of the true centerpieces of Vienna. Construction of the cathedral began in the 12th century and its interior changed repeatedly over the centuries until it was finally given its current Baroque appearance. With its multi-colored tile roof, it has become one of the city’s most recognizable symbols (more on this in a future post!).
Österreichische Galerie Belvedere
The Österreichische Galerie Belvedere is a museum housed in the Belvedere palace, which consists of two Baroque palaces (the Upper and Lower Belvedere). It is both one of the oldest museums in the world and a remarkable venue for contemporary art.
The Galerie is also home to one of the most recognizable paintings in the world, “Der Kuss” (The Kiss) by the Austrian Symbolist painter Gustav Klimt.
View the FULL POST HERE
A short walk from the Upper Belvedere is Belvedere 21, the modern (and more bizarro!) counterpoint: a cultural center and museum of contemporary art in a 20th-century, glass-fronted building.
Albertina Modern
Nearby is another (far less bizarro!) art museum, the wonderful Albertina Modern. With its collection of over 60,000 works by 5,000 artists, Albertina Modern ranks among the world’s largest museums of modern and contemporary art. View the gallery HERE!
Hofburg – Imperial Palace
The Hofburg in Vienna, also known as the Wiener Hofburg, is a former imperial palace and one of the largest palace complexes in the world, encompassing 18 wings, 19 courtyards, and 2,600 rooms
“Amorem Meum Populis Meis” is a Latin phrase meaning “My love to my people” or “My love for my people.” It is a quotation from the will of Emperor Francis II of Austria. The phrase is inscribed on a statue of him in the sprawling Hofburg complex.
St. Michael’s Square (Michaelerplatz) is a baroque, star-shaped square that functions as the point of intersection of several inner-city streets – the Kohlmarkt, the Herrengasse, the Schauflergasse, and the Reitschulgasse.
Konzerte im Haus der Industrie – Wiener Royal Orchester
One of the highlights of our stay in Vienna was sitting in the front row watching the Vienna Royal Orchestra perform music from Johann Strauss Jr. and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the beautiful ballroom of the Haus der Industrie, a mere 15 minute walk from our hotel.
Christmas Markets
Then, of course, you have Vienna’s Christmas markets – considered one of the finest in the world. The most famous is on Vienna’s Rathausplatz, the square in front of the town hall (more images in a future post!).
Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna
The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna is one of the foremost museums in the world, with rich holdings comprising artworks from five millennia – from Ancient Egypt to the late 18th century. More on this absolutely fascinating museum in a future post.
Maria am Gestade
One of the many pleasant surprises from our trip to Vienna was stumbling upon the stunning Maria am Gestade, (“Mary at the Riverbank”), the second-oldest church in Vienna and one of the few surviving examples of Gothic architecture in Vienna. The present building was built between 1394 and 1414 in gothic style.
The little church also enjoys a little contemporary fame as a Hollywood location. Holly Martins uses the steps leading up to the church in The Third Man. And the young lovers in Before Sunrise visit the building as they wander through Vienna. Why it has “Riverbank” in its name despite being nowhere near a river (or water!) remains a mystery(!)
I added a gallery below…
The Franciscan Church (Franziskanerkirche), erected in 1603
Votivkirche
Following the attempted assassination of Emperor Franz Joseph in 1853, the Emperor’s brother Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian inaugurated a campaign to create a church to thank God for saving the Emperor’s life. That church, the Gothic Votivkirche (Votive Church), was completed twenty-six years later on April 24, 1879. We’re not Catholic but being that it was the first year that we were not going to be amongst family for Christmas, we attended a solemn midnight mass on Christmas Eve at this cavernous church. It was one we’ll always remember.
We’re just getting started with images from Vienna, more from this historic city coming soon –
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All photographs in this post taken with the Sony A7RV using the Sony 16-35mm f/2.8, Sony 24-105mm f/4 and Sony 85mm f/1.8 lenses, as well as the remarkable Xiaomi 13 Ultra, a camera phone that features a variable aperture 1-inch main camera and Leica co-engineered lens.
CLICK HERE to view all galleries from our epic father-daughter European Christmas vacation
