Trip Journal Part 5: Vienna, Austria

We rejoin our regularly scheduled posting, already in progress....

This is a long post, as it continues my journal of Vienna, Austria. If you are not interested in my personal thoughts on the city and are looking for a recipe, scroll down to the bottom where there is an Austrian recipe for the ever-so-famous Sacher Torte, Genießen Sie/Enjoy!

Next stop? Vienna!

Although Mom and I would have loved to stay in Budapest for another day or two, we ended up loving Vienna. Can you believe it was 95 degrees our first day there?! Even though, we had a wonderful day! (I had a bit of an advantage living in hazy, hot, & humid Atlanta!) Our hotel in Vienna was not only elegant…but extremely safe! Barbara Streisand stayed at our hotel (although her concert was rained out two nights in a row), as well as members of OPEC. One of the OPEC people stayed in the room next to us and our floor had 24 hr. police monitoring - all of whom never smiled! Hmmm….

Vienna, an eastern city, is a melting pot because of its connections to the old empire (Bosnia-Herzogovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia). A lot of the city’s various influences were seen on our travels the first day when we traveled the Ringstrasse (the 3-mile perimeter that surrounds the city’s core and includes “Neo” architecture – Neo-Classic, Neo-Gothic, and Neo-Renaissance.). Then, we visited Kunsthistorisches Museum – the Art History Museum, the Schoenbrunn Summer Palace (used by Maria Theresa Hapsburg), and even a strudel demonstration!

In the evening, we had a tremendous opportunity to attend a Vienna Boys choir concert. (I video taped both, but am having technical difficulties with my computer reading the SD Card. I will try to upload it to You Tube when I can. Maybe M will help me this week!)

Kunsthistorisches Museum was breathtaking, and our guide (Renata) was such a wealth of knowledge. The museum was one of two commissioned by the Emperor Franz Joseph because he found it necessary to have a proper sanctuary for the Hapsburgs' art collection, as well as to make the collection available to the public. Opening its doors in 1891, the museum connected history with the arts, thus having tight links to the Italian Renaissance. As we viewed works by such artists as Bellini, Brueger, Raphael, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Velázquez, Renatta pointed out the amazing progression in the painter’s styles, as well as through the various centuries.

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From the museum, it was off to the Schoenbrunn Palace, the summer residence of Maria Theresa (who had 16 children in 19 years…..Yikes!) Can you believe, the Palace was directly hit by a bomb during WWII, which crashed through 3 floors. Luckily, the bomb was a dud…how’s that for luck?

Located only 4 miles from Vienna’s center, Schoenbrunn Palace’s Baroque exterior encloses 1441 Rococo style rooms. We were able to see the 22 rooms (Imperial Apartments) open to the public, most of which were decorated in Neo-Baroque, along with the gold leaf chandeliers adorned in Bohemian crystal, the ceramic stoves with rear access for the servants to access, and porcelain. With a history dating back to the 14th century, it was Maria Theresa who was responsible for the rebuilding and appointment of the palace, and boy, what a job she did!

We could not take photographs inside, but are a few shots of the glorious gardens.

Other sites we saw/passed:

The Parliament, a Neo-Greek temple of democratic offices with Athena in its front. It is extraordinary and I would have never known it was a government building.

Hofburg Palace, the imperial palace with 640 years of architecture, was the first residence of the Hapsburgs (13^th century – 1913). It is also the home was the Spanish Riding School, Vienna Boys Choir, the office of the Austrian President, and 5000 + government workers, and a museum. The Hapsburgs ruled until 1918.

Judenplatz Memorial Museum remembers the 15^th century Jewish community – one of the largest at that time. A synagogue once stood at the square and a memorial currently stands in its place as a tribute to the 65,000 Austrian Jews killed by the Nazis. The memorial is a library turned inside out, symbolizing Jews as “people of the book”.

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The Golden Cabbage, was created by the Vienna Secession movement –nonconformist artists led by Gustav Klimt and Otto Wagner. The ornate piece of architectural design symbolizes a renewed cycle.

I have two cherished memories of Vienna. The private Mozart and Strauss concert we had at the Palais Auersperg was one unforgettable event. We headed over after dinner, walked up another few flights of grandiose stairs (there is a breathtaking picture on their website), and entered a lovely private room. There, the Vienna Residence Orchestra played the program below. The program included a combination of not only orchestral excellence, but exquisite ballet duets, vocal solos, and vocal duets. The talent that emanated during each piece left me speechless, and at points teary eyed.

The second memory was the laughter; the laughter between mom and I. I will speak to this in the last post, for my mom and I had several funny moments throughout the two weeks. But, there were two or three in Vienna alone that she and I had tear inducing belly laughs. I think back and can't help but smile.

Random Vienna Moments:

Here are some random pictures, with which I haven’t a clue where they were all taken. My notes became quite inadequate at this point - and even less in Prague.

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I bought a great pair of shoes in Humanic, in Vienna. For those who know me, I know they understand the necessity. I hardly have a pair in my closet, and I was in dire need of new 4-inch heels. In fact, there is an echo in my closet because the shelves are so sparse. You can't see them here...but I wore them often after the purchase. (hee, hee, hee!)

The Food...

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And finally, my Austrian recipe ....Sachertorte! We went by the Sacher hotel several times, but never went into the store. We did well enough at Cafe Demel which was photographed and will be posted in a couple of days.

Or, check out my other trip posts! Warsaw, Kracow (1), Kracow (2), Budapest, Prague, and my final thoughts...Café Demel.

So, a Sachertorte..... Now, I bake...but I am not a decorator. My decorating here is a perfect example of when "leave well enough alone" is appropriate. I brought it to Sharon, and she and Jim are my taste testers, so time will tell. Even though its the 10-inch torte for just the two of them...but not to worry...Jim is in training for the NY Marathon and will run the calories off in no time!

Sachertorte
from Culinaria : European Specialties
(which Borders has on sale right now!)

5 oz. chocolate
¾ cup butter, softened
½ cup powdered sugar
6 eggs, separated
¼ cup sugar
1 ¼ cup flour
1 pinch salt
Apricot jam

Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Butter and flour a 10-inch springform pan.

Melt the chocolate over the double boiler and mix with the butter until creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar, then the egg yolks – one by one. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the sugar to form semi-stiff peaks. Turn the semi-stiff peaks into the chocolate mixture. Carefully transfer the batter into the springform pan and bake for 45-60 minutes. Let the torte cool completely in the pan before attempting to remove it. Warm the apricot jam (I only had raspberry) and brush it over the torte with a pastry brush. Let it cook for several hours.

To make the icing, bring 7 oz. chocolate, ¾ cup sugar, and ½ cup of water to a boil, stirring constantly. Then, reduce heat and continue cooking for another 5 minutes, until the icing thickens. Spread the icing quickly and evenly over the whole torte, and serve once it has cooled. If desired, serve with unsweetened whipped cream.