Day 14 – 19 Jun – Schönbrunn Palace, Operas & A Reunion with Dr. Therese!
Having arrived into Vienna the day before, I was able to orientate myself on my surroundings, which was around the area of Wien Westbahnhof. My hotel, Ibis Wien Mariahilf is located just on the edge of the Old Town – in between Schönbrunn Palace and the city, which was a pretty decent and convenient location to stay at. Despite the skies turning shades of grey, I started the day with a walk to Schönbrunn Palace, which is a former imperial summer residence for the Habsburg monarchs and currently a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. I’ve been to countless palaces in Europe – Buckingham, Holyroodhouse, the Palace of Versailles and many more, but Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace, along with the Château de Versailles, have got to be the among the most impressive that I’ve ever seen. I bought a Classic Pass on a student discount which gives me access to not only the main palace, but also entrance to the surrounding attractions as well. I was greeted with a beautiful panoramic view of the palace with Vienna in the background at the Gloriette located on the top of the Palace Gardens, while I also took some time to visit the Roman Ruins and the Labyrinth situated within the palace grounds.
Neptune Fountain
At the Gloriette, with the palace at the background
The Roman Ruins
Heading into the Old Town next, I visited key attractions such as the Town Hall (Rathaus), Austrian Parliament Building, MuseumQuartier, the Vienna State Opera and the Hofburg Palace, before meeting Dr. Therese at St. Stephen’s Cathedral. Dr. Therese, who taught the module Fables, Folklore and Literature at NTU, happened to be in Vienna on vacation as well, and we decided it would be nice to meet up for dinner. We took a tour of the Romanesque and Gothic cathedral, learning about its history and symbolic significance, before heading to Mozarthaus to learn more about the famous composer of the Classical era. It was at Mozarthaus, that I witnessed first hand on Dr. Therese’s proficiency in languages, as she conversed with the receptionist in a slew of fluent German.
Rathaus – The seat of the mayor and city council of Vienna
I couldn’t get nice pictures of St. Stephen’s Cathedral as they were doing restoration works to the exterior of the building
As evening approached, it was time for us to grab dinner. Dr. Therese graciously treated me to a meal of Viennese Schnitzel, widely touted as the national dish of Austria. There are many variants to the dish, such as using pork or chicken as the main ingredient, though veal is still the preferred and most traditional way of preparing the thin, breaded pan fried cutlet. Following the scrumptious dinner, the two of us went for a short stroll in the Historic Centre of Vienna, culminating once again at the Vienna State Opera where I’ve been at earlier. The Wiener Staatsoper, as it is known in German, screens live performance of various operas on a large screen outside of its premises for free from time to time, and they were just about to play Mozart’s Don Giovanni when we got there. We stayed there for a bit, enjoying the performance of Don Giovanni attempting to seduce the Commendatore’s daughter, Donna Anna, with Dr. Therese kindly providing me with an English commentary of the act.
Dinner with Dr. Therese
We ended the day at the Church of St. Charles (Karlskirche), a baroque church located somewhere on the south side of Karlsplatz. It had started to drizzle (again) when we left the church compounds, and Dr. Therese walked me to the metro station, where it was a quick hop on the U-Bahn back to where I was staying. A great day out in Vienna, and I enjoyed the company of one of my favourite professors of my varsity stint, as I looked forward to another reunion in Linz the day after.
Dr. Therese snapped this photo of a rainbow outside Karlskirche as soon as I hopped onto the U-Bahn
Day 15 – 20 Jun – From Vienna to Linz – A Reunion with an Old Friend
Linz wasn’t originally in my tour’s itinerary. In fact, despite being the third largest city of Austria, Linz is generally not popular as a port of call for tourists, with many preferring cities such as Salzburg, Graz and Innsbruck instead. The reason for the detour to Linz was actually to meet up with a dear friend of mine, Gek Theng (or Baby as we affectionately call her). I last met up with Gek Theng two years ago (see Farewells & Goodbyes), just before she left Singapore to pursue her studies in the art of dance. I had mentioned in Farewells & Goodbyes that she was offered a scholarship at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in the United Kingdom, but had subsequently transferred to the Institute of Dance Art at Anton Bruckner University in Austria to be with her partner, hence my diversion to Linz.
Slice Of The Past – Baby’s Farewell (2013)
In any case, I left Vienna for Linz on the 1130 train from Wien Westbahnhof, the journey taking approximately an hour and a half. Gek Theng and her boyfriend (Yan Zong) were already waiting to receive me at the arrivals of Linz Hauptbahnhof when I got there. Gek Theng had invited me to stay over at their home, giving us more time to catch up, especially when the two of them still had classes to attend to during the duration of my stay in Linz. In fact, right after I had settled down at their residence, they had to rush back to school for classes.
My hosts were studying at Anton Bruckner, a prestigious school specialising in Music, Drama, Dance and the Arts (Photo Credits: Wikipedia)
While they were away, I took the time to settle some issues regarding my convocation as well as to clear my emails, which have been piling since the day I left Singapore. It wasn’t long before they returned to pick me up for dinner, as they took me to a Chinese restaurant which served pretty good Asian food that were similar to those of Singapore. Following a hearty meal of 虾枣 (Prawn Rolls), Curry Beef, Sambal Kangkong and 八宝粥, they introduced me to a few of their classmates at Anton Bruckner, before heading to Linz Casino as a group later in the night. I had visited a few casinos before, in Macau and Vegas, but had never tried my hands at it. Feeling lucky, I decided to risk a few quid on the fruit machines and roulette, eventually losing 20 Euros to the banker. At least I got to try Linz’s famous Linzer Torte and enjoy a glass of bubbly whilst at the gambling table, so it wasn’t that much of a loss overall.
Dinner with my awesome hosts
Linzer Torte – Crumbly pastry with cinnamon, lemon and redcurrant delight!
Day 16 – 21 Jun – Hiking up Pöstlingberg and Biking to Pleschinger See
Despite being out till late last night at the casino, the three of us woke up pretty early for a morning hike up Pöstlingberg, a hill located on the left bank of the Danube. The site of Wallfahrtsbasilika (a pilgrimage church dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin Mary), Pöstlingberg also provides for a beautiful view of the city at the viewing platform located at its summit.
At the summit of Pöstlingberg
Taking the tram down back into the city, I went to explore the town on my own as Gek Theng and Yan Zong had to attend rehearsals for their upcoming Phantom of the Opera showcase. While Linz isn’t your typical tourist hotspot, it is still worth visiting if you have time to spare in Austria. The Old and New Towns of Linz serves as a connection between modernity and Austria’s long history, with a good blend of contemporary and historical architecture. The points of interests that I covered includes; Hauptplatz (Main Square), Landhaus, Ursulinenkirche and the impressive Mariendom (New Cathedral), the latter being the largest church in Austria.
Mariendom – Austria’s biggest church
I was reunited with Gek Theng and Yan Zong later in the afternoon, where we went to the Street Food Market, where hawkers from all over the world come together to present their most delicious recipes. There, we had a smorgasbord of cuisines, such as American Steak Sandwiches, French Crêpes, Indian Samosas and many more, after which we went to the beautiful Pleschinger See, a recreational lake about 20 minutes away from their residence by bike.
Mouth-watering foodfare from Linz’s Street Food Market
I would have gone for a dip in the lake had I brought my bathing suit with me
We began making our way back home as the sun began to set in the distance. As I was leaving Linz early next morning, the three of us decided to have an early night so I could have enough rest before my arrival at my next destination – Stockholm, Sweden.
Click here for part IV of the series: My footprints in… Europe Part IV (An Unexpected Surprise and 66 Hours without Nightfall)
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