Wien

I know it's been awhile, but let me continue from where I left off - Austria. Vienna, City of Music.

Vienna is so rich in a history and culture I had never really considered before. I didn't know much about Austria before going there; I hadn't realised that so many types of food, art and music had originated there - food, art and music that I'm actually really familiar with.

Viennese sausage

For instance, while I was in Austria, I learned at some point that Wien is the German name for Vienna (which is pronounce Vi-en). And that the German word for Viennese is Wiener. I had never thought about it before, but back in Canada we called those special rolls of meat reserved for hot dogs wieners. Well actually, it's just a Viennese sausage - found sold by street vendors all over the cities in Austria. 

Sachertorte

Sachertorte is another Viennese specialty. It is a dense, rich chocolate cake created by Franz Sacher in 1832. I had seen this cake in cookbooks and menus before, but didn't realise it originated in Austria. Cindy and I tried the sachertorte from the world famous Sacher Hotel. I had to make a journey specifically for the cake the morning we were leaving. It was about half an hour from our hostel, but it was definitely worth it. If you are in Vienna, don't miss out on it. In fact, the baked goods and pastries all over Austria were to die for. 

Death and Life, Gustav Klimt

Setting Sun, Egon Schiele

Another thing I didn't know about Austria was that one of my favourite artists, Gustav Klimt, was Austrian! I had seen his paintings in an exhibit at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto and fell in love with them. But I didn't really look into his background much further than admiring his paintings. Much to my delight, there were a few galleries strongly featuring Klimt paintings in Vienna. One is called Leopold Museum. This one features a collection by Rudolf Leopold, who had focused on Egon Schiele, who was heavily influenced by Klimt. When Leopold began collecting Schiele paintings, they were unknown and inexpensive. In fact, I believe Leopold may have had a hand in bringing Schiele to recognition. The museum features the largest collection of Schiele paintings in the world, as well as many Klimt and a few other artists. I absolutely loved it. 

The Leopold Museum is in an area called the MuseumsQuartier. It is full of museums, each showcasing a distinct genre or artist. There were options to buy tickets to visit a single museum, or multiple ones. Unfortunately, we didn't get there until the evening so we only had time to visit one museum. Cindy went off to the MUMOK (Museum of Modern Art) while I was at the Leopold Museum. If you have a full afternoon, definitely invest in the combined ticket and see as much as you can!

If you like Klimt, another must-see is the Oberes Belvedere. This gallery is part of a Baroque palace called Schloss Belvedere and features art from the late 19th- and early 20th-centuries. Klimt's most famous painting, The Kiss, is showcased at this gallery, which was the highlight for me. There's also a garden outside of the palace, which is probably really nice in the summer, but was pretty bare at the end of October. 

Oberes Belvedere

The Kunsthistorisches Museum has a wide range of art from various eras and areas. These art pieces were collected by the Habsburgs (an important royal family that ruled the Holy Roman Empire between 1438 and 1740 - thank you Wikipedia). Some of my favourite artists presented there were Rubens and Caravaggio, but the collection is so large there is definitely something for everyone. Besides which, the architecture, both on the outside and in, was stunning.

Kunsthistorisches Museum

There are SO many museums, galleries, palaces and gardens to choose from in Vienna. It was hard to choose what to prioritise in only 3 days, but I think we did a pretty decent job. Aside from the museums I mentioned above, we also went to the Hofburg (Imperial Palace - home the Habsburgs from 1273-1918) and Stephansdom (a Cathedral).

View from the Stephansdom

I would like to tell you about the hostel I stayed in, because it was fantastic, but I will leave that for my next post. For now, I hope you enjoyed reading a bit about Vienna!