Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Vienna

Vienna is the capital of Austria and one of the newest favorite tourist destinations. There have been some very important happenings that have gone on in this city. First, this is where the Habsburg empire ruled from. This may sound familiar as they were the ones who started WWI when Franz Ferdinand was killed. Ferdinand was supposed to be the next ruler of the empire in Vienna.


Most people visit Vienna for the Habsburg palaces or the picturesque view of the white horses trotting around. These people typically not disappointed. Vienna tends to fulfill all of those nastagic stereotypes. But there is also more to the city than what you might think. From museums to castles to architecture to cathedrals, this city really has something for everyone.


One of the most popular places to visit is the Schonbrunn Palace. Don't be mislead by the name, this is not just one building. This is where the Habsburg led from and the palace shows the personality of those that were in charge over the centures. The palace is made of a main palace, gardens, a zoo, and even some Roman ruins. The palace (shown) was built during the beginning of the 1700s and is still one of the main features of the city. Not to mention the obvious beauty and personality that it shows. An entire day could be spent at this tourist haven.

Another must see highlight is the St. Stephen's Cathedral in downtown Vienna. This part of the city used to be all there was to the city. There were walls built around it which were later torn down to build a road. Popular tourist guide (Rick Steves) lists this as one of his favorite places. The lighting on the cathedral at night is supposed to be one of the most spectacular sights. The architecture is so precise that the shadows are very prominant and distinguished. This cathedral is still being used, so hours are limited for tourists, but well worth a visit.

1 comment:

  1. Vienna looks really cool! If I could go on vacations whenever I wanted, I would probably go to some place with the ocean and beaches all of the time. But once I got tired of that, I would probably go to Vienna. St. Stephen’s Cathedral looks pretty intense also. And it looks like I could probably tour the Schonbrunn Palace for about the whole vacation and not even see all of it!

    Have you been there before?

    This is a good entry! I also like how you added a little bit of history in there.

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