I gave a clue in my last post for our next round of Where in the World Were the Geipels Last Weekend? Here are some more: Coffee, Lipizzaner Stallions, Sisi, Coffee, Opera, Coffee, Ballet, St. Stephen’s Dome, Coffee, waltzes,Cafes, Coffee… Yep, you are right to detect a theme. That theme is your biggest hint…. We were in Vienna – the city with a rich history of, among other very notable things, Cafes and coffee drinking.
The cafes were the heart of the important art, music, writing and philosophical movements to come out of Vienna’s history. What’s not to love about a history built in Cafes over cups of kaffeemilche?
The cafes are marvelous on several counts:
1. They are cavernous in size but not appearance. The
y have beautiful, bright chandeliers and two-story windows letting in every ray of light possible, even on the wintry, grey days in Austria and Germany,
y have beautiful, bright chandeliers and two-story windows letting in every ray of light possible, even on the wintry, grey days in Austria and Germany, 2. Buying one cup of espresso allows you to sit, undisturbed, at your table for as many hours as you want and, because of the sheer size of the cafes (see #1 above!), this is possible without inconveniencing other people who want a table as well,
3. They serve fantastic food in perfect proportions (what in America is be
coming the new “small-plated meal” trend - a sorely needed trend for many reasons, which I won’t digress into here). Of course, the “perfect proportions” are also mentioned in the context of the wonderful desserts also available! 4. They make a perfect stopping place for caffeine, heisse schokolade, and sustenance breaks in a city that demands it be a “walking city” even on wintry days..
Oopsie Daisy
We left for Vienna on the day that the “storm of the century” was predicted to hit Europe. This storm was even named like a Hurricane is named: the “low pressure system, Daisy” and it made the top of the fold headlines on the major papers in Europe. Over two feet of snow predicted – both in Germany and in Austria – along with bitter cold temperatures. Our plane took off on time but was one of the last to do so. Frankfurt airport spent the next 24 hours over-run with passengers as many flights were delayed or cancelled. But, the snow accumulation was a
bout 4 inches, not 24! Daisy fizzled.
We left for Vienna on the day that the “storm of the century” was predicted to hit Europe. This storm was even named like a Hurricane is named: the “low pressure system, Daisy” and it made the top of the fold headlines on the major papers in Europe. Over two feet of snow predicted – both in Germany and in Austria – along with bitter cold temperatures. Our plane took off on time but was one of the last to do so. Frankfurt airport spent the next 24 hours over-run with passengers as many flights were delayed or cancelled. But, the snow accumulation was a
bout 4 inches, not 24! Daisy fizzled. And, in the kids’ estimation, she fizzled BIG TIME! We had our long johns, our boots, our parkas, hats and mittens. We were ready to tromp around Vienna in two feet of snow and actually looking forward to it! As it turned out, the temperature hovered just above freezing and we spent Saturday splashing through slushy puddles rather than climbing through snowbanks. Had we planned a trip to London, we would have had our snow – they spent the week literally buried in the most snow they’ve had in decades.
How do they do that?
The Lippizaner "dancing" stallions are world famous and trained only here in Vienna. We watched them train on Saturday morning. Such “stables” you’ve never seen. No pictures were allowed but, imagine a glamorous ballroom from the 18th Century – candle chandeliers, beautiful plasterwork, murals painted by famous artists, beautiful waltz music, all the glamour of the ballrooms of that time. Except…. The floor is not tile or wood, it is mulch! This is the practice domain of the Lippizaners. Amazing to watch the training for just an hour or two. It takes six years of training before a horse performs.
The Lippizaner "dancing" stallions are world famous and trained only here in Vienna. We watched them train on Saturday morning. Such “stables” you’ve never seen. No pictures were allowed but, imagine a glamorous ballroom from the 18th Century – candle chandeliers, beautiful plasterwork, murals painted by famous artists, beautiful waltz music, all the glamour of the ballrooms of that time. Except…. The floor is not tile or wood, it is mulch! This is the practice domain of the Lippizaners. Amazing to watch the training for just an hour or two. It takes six years of training before a horse performs.
We particularly enjoyed watching the stallions as about 10 years ago, when we still lived in Iowa, we had tickets to a Lippizaner Show (they travel the world doing performances) and missed it because we thought it was on a Sunday only to pull out our tickets and find it had been on Saturday! A mistake we still remember well because of the price of the tickets…
Molly and Audrey went with Gary that evening to the Nutcracker ballet at the Opera House. Yet another occasion to wonder “how do they do that?” as the girls marveled at the skill of the very young ballerinas, no older than 10 or 12.
Why do they do that?
We never intended to start this theme for our travels, it was sort of thrust upon us: interesting toilets a
nd bathrooms! I know, it’s right up there with tacky souvenirs… when you travel with the Geipels, will show you a first-class experience!
We never intended to start this theme for our travels, it was sort of thrust upon us: interesting toilets a
nd bathrooms! I know, it’s right up there with tacky souvenirs… when you travel with the Geipels, will show you a first-class experience! But, this cries out to be documented and chuckled at: the picture here shows the public toilet in a pedestrian underpass that includes food stores, souvenir shops, etc. The picture does not do this “Opera Toilet mit Musik” justice. As you walk through the turnstile, you see the gilded opera balconies painted with patrons, the ornate toilet stalls, and – of course- the opera and waltz music at full volume!
Later in the day, we had a mid-day meal at the very nice, Art Nouveau-themed café. Audrey returned from the restroom, grabbed t
he camera and left again. The sink was very cool. Bubbling up from the steel grate is the water to wash your hands. Too find a “bubbler” here and for this purpose was almost too much for Audrey. She is a dedicated water-drinker throughout the day and bemoans frequently the lack of water fountains (known to Milwaukeeans and children of a Milwaukeean as “bubblers”) in public, at school, etc.
he camera and left again. The sink was very cool. Bubbling up from the steel grate is the water to wash your hands. Too find a “bubbler” here and for this purpose was almost too much for Audrey. She is a dedicated water-drinker throughout the day and bemoans frequently the lack of water fountains (known to Milwaukeeans and children of a Milwaukeean as “bubblers”) in public, at school, etc. Where else but Vienna can you have fun just going to the bathroom?!
Please, don’t do that!
Of course, you can’t help but go to Vienna and engage in some cultured activities as well. We were stunned with the history, ornateness and extravagance of the Shonbrunn palace (home of the Hapsburg empire), St. Stephen’s cathedral, listening to the Vienna Boys Choir at a Sunday Mass and “experiencing” the Belvedere.
The Belvedere deserves special mention. We were eager to see the art housed there – some Klimt (turned out to be my particular favorite) Schiele, a few Monet and Manet. We arrived and went upstairs to start the tour – both a tour of the palace (turned museum) and the art now displayed. We first entered a large ballroom with beautiful view to the gardens. A hand-printed sign on an easel greeted us and, in four different languages, invited us to yell as loud as we could!
Well, our family along with every other family with children thought: “perfect, we’ll get it out of their systems before we enter the art galleries.” Loud yells made the lights dim dramatically and a loud recording of heavy, scary breathing emanate throughout the room. Hmmm…
Molly was not well pleased. She was distracted the whole time with the yelling that could be heard regularly throughout the museum as we wandered and couldn’t stop registering her displeasure. We read in a brochure later, this was not after all a strategy to get the wiggles and boredom out of young children. It was a temporary exhibit of “work of modern art.” All I can say is at least it wasn’t offensive as much of the “modern art” we have unintentionally stu
mbled upon has been!
We soon stumbled upon further proof that there is something for everyone at the Belvedere, several dozen of these sculptures, Messerschmidt’s “canonical grimaces,” are on display and truly fun to wander around:
For more: http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2006/06/23/the-art-of-franz-xavier-messerschmidt-1736-1783/
mbled upon has been!We soon stumbled upon further proof that there is something for everyone at the Belvedere, several dozen of these sculptures, Messerschmidt’s “canonical grimaces,” are on display and truly fun to wander around:
For more: http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2006/06/23/the-art-of-franz-xavier-messerschmidt-1736-1783/
So, we returned home with good memories and perhaps the best tacky souvenir yet (a bobblehead, after all, must reign King of the Tacky Souvenirs!). And, the airport in Frankfurt was back on schedule, minimal snow to shovel and at least a little enthusiasm for returning to school after a three-week break!
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