Vienna, Austria

About six in the morning I felt a big bump as if the ship had hit the dock. I assumed we had arrived in Vienna. When we got up a while later and looked out our window we were greeted by a cement wall. There was a ladder embedded in the side going straight up and joked to Bob that it was going to be our way up to shore. The next time I looked out, the ladder had all but disappeared underwater and we were looking straight out to shore. We had been in a lock the whole time!

While we ate breakfast, our ship arrived in Vienna and we began to make plans for our day. We had not signed up for any excursions because what was offered were things we had already done when we'd visited several years ago during the Christmas markets. This time though the riverboat was not as conveniently located as it had been then so we were a little more challenged--but up to it!

About an eight minute walk from the ship was a metro station and we knew that it wasn't a difficult one to navigate. When we approached the ticket machine, there was a tour leader there from a Viking ship who was helping her guests. She was gracious enough to help us quickly purchase our tickets as well. A round trip anywhere for a senior was only 6 Euros.

The stop for St Stephen's Plaza, a central point of the old town, was only a couple of stops away. Once out of the station, we started walking and soon realized we'd headed the wrong direction. We back tracked a bit and found the familiar St. Stephen's Plaza only minus its colorful market booths that had filled the square at Christmas time.

We stopped inside the cathedral for a few moments and then began to pick and choose what we wanted to see. After a pass by of the House of Mozart, we found The Sacher Torte store was interesting and the cafe attached was hugely busy. It's a special chocolate cake with a chocolate icing. Chocolate on chocolate and more chocolate.

A stop for tea and an upstairs vantage point in the cafe helped us to warm up and people watch. The temps were not expected to get to 60F. While we sipped, we planned to visit a couple more places on my GPS My City tour and then get back for lunch.

One place we had not seen before was the Capuchian Church Imperial Crypt where there are now 145 Hapsburgs interred. The crypt has been around since 1633. The ornate and often huge  sarcophagi seem to go on endlessly. Hapsburgs from the 1600s up to 2023 each have a small plaque telling their accomplishment during rule or their contribution if any to the well-being of their country during their lifetime. 

One of the sarcophagi that had some flowers and drawings placed at it belonged to Empress Elisabeth of Austria (1837-1898). She was born a Bavarian princess and became Empress through marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I. She was celebrated for her beauty and free spirit. Apparently she was a bit of a rebel when it came to the rigid court life of the Hapsburgs. I need to look further as there was mention of movies made about her.

After the crypt, we walked by the Hofburg Imperial Palace and watched a few horse drawn carriages take people for a ride. From there, we found St. Peter's Church with its large green dome. A stop inside revealed an immensely decorative interior. Too much to take in with only a few minutes to visit.

Retracing our steps to St. Stephen Plaza, we found our way back to the metro and back to the ship.

Lunch, a nap, an early dinner and we're ready for a concert.

Our evening concert, dedicated to Strauss was delightful. It was a short twenty minute ride to an abbey that is over 800 years old. We climbed stairs to the refectory where chairs were set up facing a small platform stage for the instrumentalists and performers.

Two violins, a bass, a cello, a piano and a flute made up the musical features. There were two sopranos who sang a couple of arias from Der Fledermaus and a couple who exhibited the wonderful grace of a waltz done well. There were light hearted moments and sweet beautiful music and a light refreshment break in the middle. Everyone was delighted.