Vienna
Vienna is the centerpiece of our voyage and, by a big margin, the largest city that we shall visit on this voyage, with a population of one and half millions. For our orientation, something unusual but remarkably effective had been organized. Within minutes of departing the ship we were boarding the Reisen Rad, the elegant ferris wheel made famous in Carol Reed's The Third Man. Sipping champagne in the elegant carriages, we obtained a stunning overview of the city. Below Prater's wheel, a cyclorama of Austrian history from Roman times to the mid-twentieth century provided a complimentary overview of the area's history.
After circling the Ringstrasse - with its many monuments to Strauss and Schubert, Goethe and Radestsky - we began a short walking tour of the city center, visiting the winter residence of the Habsburgs, the Hofburg, and its adjacent Spanish riding School where several Lipizzaner horse could be seen in the stables. We walked past Demmel's, the celebrated coffeehouse where a Lipizzaner horse made entirely of chocolate cake was displayed in the window, before turning a corner and viewing St Stephen's Cathedral at the heart of the old city. Lunch - Wiener Schnitzel, of course - was in the delightful Griechenbeisl restaurant, although none of us were deemed celebrity enough to be asked to sign our names of the ceiling of the Mark Twain room.
In the afternoon, however, we certainly felt like celebrities with a private opening arranged for our group of the personal art collection of the Prince of Liechtenstein. The collection is housed in the prince's former Viennese residence, a baroque palatial structure with elaborate ceilings and statuary. Art works include an impressive collection of works by Rubens and the celebrated badminton cabinet. In the entrance lobby is preserved the family's ceremonial coach.
Following this we returned to the ship for an early buffet dinner to enable many members of the group to attend evening concerts and opera performances.
Vienna is the centerpiece of our voyage and, by a big margin, the largest city that we shall visit on this voyage, with a population of one and half millions. For our orientation, something unusual but remarkably effective had been organized. Within minutes of departing the ship we were boarding the Reisen Rad, the elegant ferris wheel made famous in Carol Reed's The Third Man. Sipping champagne in the elegant carriages, we obtained a stunning overview of the city. Below Prater's wheel, a cyclorama of Austrian history from Roman times to the mid-twentieth century provided a complimentary overview of the area's history.
After circling the Ringstrasse - with its many monuments to Strauss and Schubert, Goethe and Radestsky - we began a short walking tour of the city center, visiting the winter residence of the Habsburgs, the Hofburg, and its adjacent Spanish riding School where several Lipizzaner horse could be seen in the stables. We walked past Demmel's, the celebrated coffeehouse where a Lipizzaner horse made entirely of chocolate cake was displayed in the window, before turning a corner and viewing St Stephen's Cathedral at the heart of the old city. Lunch - Wiener Schnitzel, of course - was in the delightful Griechenbeisl restaurant, although none of us were deemed celebrity enough to be asked to sign our names of the ceiling of the Mark Twain room.
In the afternoon, however, we certainly felt like celebrities with a private opening arranged for our group of the personal art collection of the Prince of Liechtenstein. The collection is housed in the prince's former Viennese residence, a baroque palatial structure with elaborate ceilings and statuary. Art works include an impressive collection of works by Rubens and the celebrated badminton cabinet. In the entrance lobby is preserved the family's ceremonial coach.
Following this we returned to the ship for an early buffet dinner to enable many members of the group to attend evening concerts and opera performances.
