Wiener Blut

On our last day in Vienna, the gang finally acknowledged our disparate interests and split up. My mum and Niky went shopping while my dad, Naty, and I went to see the Gustav Klimt artworks at the Belvedere Palace. We found a lot more than Klimt, however, the major discovery of the day being that perhaps a quarter of the exposition on the second floor is the work of Czech painters. After a terrifying visit to Karlskirche, which included an elevator ride to the ceiling of the dome, we reunited at the Schönbrunn Palace, once the summer residence of the Habsburg family. It happens to house the oldest zoo in the world. Our visit to Vienna ended in utter exhaustion at the palace café, where we outlasted all other visitors and only left at nightfall.

 Belvedere Palace
 The gardens of the Belvedere
 The gardens of the Belvedere
 Inside the Belvedere
 A ceiling at the Belvedere
 Inside the Belvedere
 Judith and the Head of Holofernes by Gustav Klimt
 The Kiss by Gustav Klimt
 Avenue of Schloss Kammer Park by Gustav Klimt
 Foliage by Herbert Bayer
Solitary House by Toyen
 More of the Belvedere's gardens
 The inside of Karlskirche
 The ceiling of Karlskirche
 Detail of the Karlskirche ceiling
 Panda at Vienna Zoo
 Red-necked wallaby
 Panda eating
 Panda eating
 Dwarf mongoose
 A fancy building at Vienna Zoo
 Flamingoes and their house at Vienna Zoo
 Waterbuck and their house at Vienna Zoo
 Cheetah
 Humboldt penguin in its cave
 Capybara
 Pfarrkirche Maria Hietzing
 The back of Schönbrunn Palace
 The already vacant café at Schönbrunn Palace

The Schönbrunn at dusk

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Southern Delhi and Other Bits and Pieces

Image
On my last day in Delhi, I managed to cross off the last few items on my sightseeing list. I began by packing my luggage, all the while congratulating myself on having remembered to ask the hotel to do my laundry in advance. That finished, I ordered an Uber to Akshardham, a massive Hindu temple east of the Yamuna River. The opening hours of the temple are not well advertised, and when I arrived by the front gate, I learned it was still closed. For a few minutes, I took pictures of the temple from afar, when suddenly an autorickshaw driver approached me. He reasoned with me that since the temple would not open until ten, I had better come with him and see other sights. I had to admit the soundness of his reasoning and gave him my next address.
Read more

Ireland: Day 8 – County Louth

Image
My plans for my last day in Ireland came together in a very ad hoc fashion. Having seen everything I wanted to see, I searched for interesting sights close to the highway between Dublin and Belfast. These did not include – though I found it the most interesting sight of all – the modest highway sign saying “Welcome to Northern Ireland” painted over with several streaks of dark red paint.
Read more

When the Cows Come Home: The Désalpe in Saint-Cergue

Image
Towards the end of September and beginning of October, many Swiss villages celebrate a tradition known as the Désalpe (or Alpabzug in German-speaking Switzerland and Almabtrieb in Germany and Austria). The tradition celebrates the return of the cows from their summer pastures in the mountains: the more touristy Swiss villages deck out their cows in towering flower crowns and put on shows to fill in the time between the descent of various herds. In Saint-Cergue, for example, the entertainment during these pauses was provided by alpenhorn players, yodelling choristers, an orchestra band, and a singular man cracking his long, supersonic cow whip. There were also two other processions: one composed of cart-dragging Saint Bernards, and another one of men carrying cowbells.
Read more