Wagner, No not the Composer, the Architect

Have I mentioned that I love Art Deco architecture? Maybe growing up in Syracuse where the glorious Niagara Mohawk Power Building with its Spirit of Light is located was formative.  Anyway, serve me up some Art Deco along with my Art Nouveau and you have a very happy camper.  And that is exactly what Otto Wagner does.

Otto Wagner was a widely esteemed architect who pioneered mixing functionality and the use of modern materials.  Two of his pupils, Josef Hoffmann and Joseph Maria Obricht  were founding members of the the Vienna Secession which he also joined.  He evidently did an entire redesign of Vienna but his urban rail network was the only component adopted.   Today the U-bahn lines 4 & 6 and the S-bahn use the same lines.  Several buildings were designed in the Jugendstil mode, but as he leaned more towards functionality he transitioned into a style that is more reminiscent of Art Deco.

When we were doing a walking tour of the 6th district we exited the subway and a row of lovely houses caught my eye.  I snapped several photos and later realized that one of them was an Wagner house with a lovely tile front.  Along the sides are balconies which don't show up as well.   Very Jugendstil. 

Majolikahaus 1898, Mariahilfer district (6th)

On another day we went to Karlsplatz where 2 of his original rail stations still stand.  They stand facing each other not far from the current U-bahn station.  One is now a museum and the other is a cafe. 

Karlsplatz Cafe

 

Disclaimer 2

We have returned home, but I am going to continue blogging about our experiences for a bit.  The advantage is that now the pictures will be 'authentic'!

Meeting Up With Friends Part 2: Lori & Lisa

Since we had a second bedroom, we tossed out an invitation to our dear friends Lori & Lisa to visit us for a few days.  As it turned out, Lisa had a training session to run in England at the time of our trip.  After visiting friends in England they took a quick hop on a plane and viola, arrived in Vienna and spent a few days with us.  Alan ran an 'orientation' tour the first day and then they had fun exploring Vienna on their own.  They even used the community bike system.  You sign a bike out and return it within an hour and there is no charge.  So by using the right sequence they used the system to travel about all day and not pay anything.
In the evening we had great fun drinking good beer and eating some good authentic Austrian cuisine.  We were able to revisit some of the place we had really enjoyed including Schweizerhaus, (see 'Eating pig like pigs').
I should mention that Lisa speaks German (she spent a year as an exchange student), so we made great use of her as translator during the time she was there.  Thanks Lisa!

Lori and Lisa

One Pork Shank - we ate 2!

Jugendstil Schmuck at the Leopold Museum

I love that the German word for jewelry is schmuck.  In English a schmuck is someone who's stupid, obnoxious, a jerk.  The English meaning comes from Yiddish (if you want a real surprise look up what the real Yiddish definition meant), while the German comes from low German.  It doesn't matter, it's a great word to say.

At the Leopold Museum we saw an exhibit on Jugendstil Schmuck (or Art Nouveau jewelry) in Europe.  Some pieces were done in metal and semi-precious jewels, others featured colorful enamel.  It was a feast for the eyes and a very easily digestible exhibit which really showed the vast range of artistic talent involved in this movement.

Joseph Hoffmann Brooch 1905

Rene Lalique enameled brooch

Kirchgaessner & Kraft, Pforzheim, belt buckle, ca. 1903-1905

Gustav Klimt and the Beethoven Frieze

On the bottom floor of the Secession building is Klimt's masterpiece the Beethoven Frieze.  The room that houses it is roomy and expansive and the frieze itself takes up the upper half of the room.  The piece was done for an exhibition held in 1902 whose central theme was to honor Beethoven.  It follows in the Jungendstil tradition that Klimt is most famous for.  It is an interpretation of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and humanities search for happiness.  The picture I am attaching shows facing the 'Hostile Forces'.  The shaggy creature is part ape and part serpent.  Its eyes are made of mother of pearl which gives it a decidedly creepy look.  The three women on the left are his daughters the Gorgons and the three to the left represent Lasciviousness, Wantonness and Intemperance (large belly).  Behind the Gorgons are Sickness, Madness and Death.  (Thanks to the very clear explanation that was in the pamphlet provided by the exhibit.)

 One of the more amazing things is what good shape the frieze is in.  It was not intended to be permanent and was purchased after the exhibition.  The collector had the frieze cut into 8 pieces (along with the underlying support structure).  Later it was resold, and stored away during WWII.  After the war it was moved but continued to be in storage. 
It is an amazing piece and an absolute must see if you ever go to Vienna 

Rathaus Film Festival

All summer long there is are free outdoor film festivals in Vienna.  The one at the Rathaus specializes in opera and dance films.  We went last Sunday to see OperaVox, which does animated opera shorts. 
Before the film, you can visit the food and drink vendors.  We had both spanish and israeli food and (of course) beer.  The really interesting thing is that they do NOT use disposable anything.  The plates are china, the silver is real and the beer is sold in glasses.  Very cool and a great example of how to be green.
We saw three animated operas, Das Rheingold, Rigoletto, and Turandot; each condensed down into 30 minutes.  The best was Das Rheingold, but they were all interesting.  This was one of those experiences that so often you miss when you are staying for just a few nights.  How lucky we are to have had such a long time here.

Meeting Up With Friends Part 1: Markus

One of the best things about traveling is forming new friendships.  It doesn't happen very often, someone may start a conversation helping out with the menu or directions, but usually either you or they are preoccupied and in a moment the encounter is over.  But sometimes there is a special karma at work and that is how Alan and I first met our German friends Markus and Heidi.  We met in Trier, Germany.  We were having dinner next to each other in a restaurant and Markus struck up a conversation. (I think he was telling us a dish/desert he thought was especially good, but I might be wrong about that.)  We were going to be in Frankfurt for an over night where they live and they invited us to call them when we arrived, which we did.  A friendship was born.  
This year the gods were with us and Markus had a business trip come up in Vienna while we were here.  He managed to get the afternoon free (thank you ECB) and we met up for lunch and a great deal of catching up.  It was delightful, the only sad part was not seeing Heidi, but we spoke briefly by phone.  We hope to meet their 2 children (Marius, 3 yrs old and Malin about 4 months old) in the not too distant future. We are very lucky to be able to count them among our friends.

The Author

The basic question Alan and I had when we formulated this vacation was: Will it be conducive to writing? Our hope, of course that away from the distractions that are always surrounding you at home that writing be more focused.  So, here's the update.  Since we arrived Alan has edited one chapter he had written and completed  5 new chapters!!  The experiment (and vacation) can be declared a success. 

Cool snakes & lizards

We went to the Haus des Meeres in the Mariahilf (6th) district.  This is located in an old flak tower that the Germans built as an anti-aircraft tower.  There are several in the Augarten near where our apartment is located, but here they turned the tower into an aquarium of sorts.  They actually had a very big emphasis on snakes and lizards.  There were several species including huge boas, a mamba, several types of monitor lizards and gila monsters.  There were lots of fish and a small tropical area where birds were able to fly about freely.  Species weren't always clearly labelled, but kids would really enjoy this place.  This was right next to the Museum of Torture which was located in an underground bunker.

Green Mamba Snake

Torture: The Museum

So, we went to the Museum of Torture for two reasons.  1) it was mentioned in Michelin's Green Guide as a sight with Amnesty displaying an exhibit there; 2) on the outside it had explanations about the museum in german, french, italian, english and spanish so we thought there would be enough english to understand the exhibits.  The real torture was going through this museum with very tacky exhibits, very poor quality  mannequins (I've seen better in most halloween shops), and of course no english.  Now, I do not necessarily expect exhibits to be labelled in english - and am generally grateful when they are.  It just felt a bit misleading to have all the different languages on the outside and only german inside.  And, Michelin...say something is really tacky if it is.

Cycling: The 'other' July Tour

Like many Americans, I didn't become aware of cycling until Greg LeMond won the Tour de France in 1986.  In the pre-internet, pre Lance Armstrong age it was generally difficult to follow the Tour de France and there was no news of any other races.  What I love about cycling is the combination of factors that contribute to someone becoming a winner.  There is the chemistry of the team, the strength and determination of the individual rider, how much pain you can suffer and the use of strategy and the dynamics of physics that all need to come together, as well as luck.  I love the strength of will the riders display as they ascend the peaks of a mountain and their fearlessness on descent.  
On Sunday we were able to see the final stage of the Tour of Austria as they entered Vienna.  Yes, the Tour of Austria is the 'other' July race, much shorter than the the big Tour.  Alan compared it to the triple A teams of baseball, which is a very apt comparison, I think.  A-list riders are in the big tour, those either still honing their skills or compromised for other reasons (injuries, etc) will ride here.  The skill level is still superior and it is thrilling to see these riders whisk by. 

Riders on the final laps around the Ringstrasse in Vienna, 7/10/11 

We also had the chance to see the Tour de France final laps in Paris - this was the year rider Floyd Landis 'won' - later to be disqualified due to doping.

What do Karl Marx, Beethoven and Mahler have in common?

The answer: Dobling, the 19th district which lies outside Vienna.  

Karl-Marx Hof located right outside the U-bahn stop

Heiligenstadt: We took the U-bahn and started our visit here where the Karl-Marx Hof is located.  This housing complex was opened in 1930 when Vienna's Austro-Marxist council was in power (1919-34).  In contained small apartments, laundries, grocery co-ops, kindergartens (which are more like what we would call a day care) and a library for the working class.  

Beethoven lived in the white house, now a Heuriger.
You can see the steeple of St. Jakob's

Beethoven: We then took a bus (38a) a short ride to Pfarrplatz.  This square contains a simple church, St. Jakobs kirche, and one of the many place Beethoven lived.  Beethoven loved coming out here in the summer, and wrote many of his works (Eroica, Second Symphony) while staying at various places in the area.  The house is now a Heuriger, Mayer am Pfarrplatz.  Since we were there before it opened, we could not enjoy a glass of wine there.  We walked up the street to another house B. lived in which is now a museum.  Unfortunately we forgot to check our info and it was closed.


Grinzing: Back on good old bus 38a, we went into Grinzing in search of Mahler's grave and Heuriger.  

Gustav Mahler

Mahler and The Loveliest Girl in Vienna:  We climbed up a steep street to the cemetery to pay homage to Mahler.  In a nearby row is the grave of his widow, Alma Mahler Gropius Werfel.  Tom Leher paid homage to her after reading her obit.  She had many famous lovers (Klimt among them) and married Gustuv Mahler, Walter Gropius, and Franz Werfel (Song of Bernadette).  Click on the link under her gravestone to hear the song.  Alan took my picture standing next to her grave.  That won't be posted until I return to the states.

Tom Leher sings The Loveliest Girl in Vienna 

Grinzing

Heuriger are establishments that sell new wine and simple food.  Unfortunately many of the authentic ones we saw when we visited in May 2003 are closed for vacation and most of the ones opened at this time of year cater to tourists (which of course we are).  We found a heuriger to enjoy the wine and food and took the tram home.  
  

Our Apartment

I haven't mentioned how nice our apartment is (though you would have heard plenty if it wasn't nice I bet).  It is located in the 2nd district (Leopoldstadt) which is on an island with the Danube canal on one side and the Danube River on the other.  It is very roomy and the air-conditioning works very well.  There is a small kitchen, but we aren't doing any real cooking (it's a vacation, right?)  There is also a washer-dryer which is very convenient, a real time and $$$ saver.  It is also quiet - which the writer half of this couple is very grateful for.  The landlords are also great as is the weekly cleaning person.  We have been very lucky as we are neophytes in arranging this type of vacation.  We also have a lovely terrace.  No view, but we can sit out there and sip wine or I can sit out and read.  Quite a luxury.  

The table where great writings occur with the kitchen in the background

The terrace, need I say more?

FOOD: I Love Pizza. Really?

I haven't said anything about the FOOD!  Traditional Austrian food is similar to German - sausages, potatoes, good goulash.  A Beisl is similar to a tavern or pub - they serve traditional simple food, good beer and a warm atmosphere.  We have been to a few nice ones so far.  The main problem is that I get tired of this rather heavy food fairly quickly, so we decided to mix in ethnic food.  We ate one night at a Turkish restaurant called Cafe Kent which was excellent, just the other night we ate at an italian place.  The food was very good, but it was short on atmosphere (very cafeteria-like).  But last night we hit the mother lode of Indian cuisine at a place called (I am not making this up) I Love Pizza.  They are located here in the 2nd district and have an extensive listing of pizzas, but also do the most divine indian food.  We ordered our food spicy, not hot and it was perfect.  The interior of the restaurant is simple, but atmospheric enough.  The food is ordered in meals - I got chicken in a creamed spinach sauce, which was not bland at all.  We were even eating the rice plain it was so nicely spiced.  The cost for 2 beers, a pizza we split as a starter, and two entrée meals was 38 euro with tip.  Which is another advantage to Vienna - the food is not outrageously expensive.  We have mostly eaten in the outer districts, which are less expensive than the inner district, but even there I think the food is much less expensive than last year in Belgium and the Netherlands.  

Bratislava: our first side trip

Bratislava is theoretically an hour away by train - it's closer to 2 by the time you add in the trip to the train station and the bus ride into Bratislava's Old Town.  But it was well worth it.  We formatted a town walk out of the info we brought from Fodor's.  Much of the central old town has been renovated, so tourism is fairly brisk, but on our walk we saw many other parts that were crumbling into rubble.  It must take a lot of $$ to renovate and even though Braitslava is the capital of Slovakia money must be hard to come by.  It was a very hot day (36C), but sunny, so it was a very nice walk.  We went into the National Gallery but were too late to enter the Primates Palace.

St. Michael's Gate: the lower half is 14C, the upper portion was added in the 18C.  The only remaining city gate

Slovakian National Theater build in 1880

Pretty in Pink: Primacialny palac or Primates Palace

Disclamer

Since I am not working on my personal computer the pictures I am attaching have been found on google.  They are representative of pictures I have taken and what I have actually seen.

Also, please note I am sadly lacking in the areas of spelling and grammar.  Remember that Alan is the one with a 'way with words'.

Vienna Secession: the Artistic Movement and Gustav Klimt

 The Vienna Secession was formed by a group of artists that did not like the trend of historicism that was prevalent in Austria at the time (c. 1897)  The joined together and built the building known as Secession Gebaude for exhibitions.  This building is an architectural beauty.  The movement was fairly diffuse but it followed along with the arts & crafts movement.   When I look at this building I can see elements  of both the then current Art Nouveau movement (called Jungendstil in German) and the Art Deco movement that would follow much later.  The architect was Josef Maria Olbrich and it houses a huge frieze by Gustav Klimt, a founder of the Secession.  We did not go in, but may go back to see the Klimt frieze.  

We did go to the Oberes Belvedere which houses Klimts renowned painting the Kiss.  It was interesting to see some of his other works and how he incorporated aspects of them into the Kiss.  The biggest problem with the Kiss is over exposure.  You see so many prints of it everywhere it dilutes the impact.  We also saw his painting of Judith and the Head of Holofernes.  The story is found in the Book of Judith (apocrypha).  Judith (meaning Jewish woman) ingratiates herself to the Holofernes, general of the Assyrian army, who plans to attack and destroy her people.  One night he gets very, very drunk and passes out.  Judith prays to god for strength, and cuts off Holofernes head.  When she returns to her people, the sight of his head emboldens them and they attack and the Assyrians are routed.  In Klimt's picture Judith looks absolutely orgasmic after cutting off Holofernes head.  Enough said

Karlskirche

Here's the thing - what church interior is worth 6 euro?  I have to admit not Karlskirche.  The high altar is beautifully baroque, but we aren't talking St. Peter's in Rome.  The exterior though, is exquisite.  Two columns rise on either side of the entrance, intricately carved, spiraling upward.  They offset the center dome in a way that I haven't seen before.  It is easy to imagine the exterior without the columns, in which case it becomes just another church.  To my mind it is the slender, graceful columns that make this exterior so unique. 

 

More on 'Why Vienna?'

Vienna is a beautiful city, but it is not the only city we considered.  We looked at London, Paris and Berlin mainly.  So why did we end up here?  What was the criteria we used?  A city with  ambience was one and all fit into that category.  An available apartment we thought would be comfortable and affordable.  London was difficult, because we thought staying somewhat central was preferable to staying farther out.  Paris, I decided, would be too intimidating (more on that at a later date).  So it came down to Berlin or Vienna, and Vienna - with its lovely architecture won.  Not that Berlin doesn't have some amazing architecture of its own, but so much is new it has a whole different feel.

Why Vienna? Why three weeks?

Usually if you go through travel books you will find the headings 'If you have three days..., If you have five days...'  and almost everyone agrees that five days is more than enough time to 'see' Vienna.   So why are Alan (my husband) and I spending three weeks here?  Alan has been working on a writing project for the last couple of years.  He seldom has time to do much writing during the school year, so at the end of the spring semester he reviews whats he's done and begins in earnest.  Then, inevitably, he turns his attention to our summer travels.  this not only takes time away from his writing, but the flow is interrupted by our 3-4 weeks away.  By the time we return he only has a few weeks before he must turn his attention to preparing for the upcoming semester.  (No, not all college professors waltz into the classroom and spew off the top of their heads - as a matter of fact most don't.) So this year we decided three weeks in one city to cut down on research and to make it a 'working vacation' with Alan spending his mornings writing

Eating pig like pigs

Last night we ate at a Biergarten in the Prater (large park in Leopoldstadt) and had a pork shank.  Yes, it's true and we actually finished it.  To give you an idea of how big this thing was, there were 4 men at the table next to us sharing theirs.  We washed it down with 2 dunkels (dark beer) apiece.  Then we waddled to the U-bahn station

Walking and walking

Yesterday I walked along the Danube canal from our apartment up to the Gurtelbrucke (outer ring road bridge) which was quite a distance, then I had to hustle to get back in time to stop at the local Brilla (grocery store - nice but no Wegmans).  In the afternoon Alan and I did a nice little walk along a portion of the inner city.  We found some charming courtyards and twisting charming side streets.  These are the streets where you hear no English so you know you are a little more away from the central tourist zone.  It, of course, rained at the outset so we could get nice and wet, but it was lovely all the same.  My legs were pretty tired by the time we returned to the apartment in the evening

Thank you Babylon

Learning to do laundry when your only directions are in German is a challenge.  So here is a shout out to Babylon website.  Enter it in German press translate and you get the English.  

The Plane Ride

We flew over on Air Berlin - very nice crew but it was (I think) an airbus 330.  The designers of said plane obviously felt the need to rise to the challenge: how many people can be seated in a given space.  The seats were very cramped and there was no leg room.  In addition we hd about four babies seated in the vicinity.  The babies were mainly busy asking their parental units (using the international language of babies, of course) "What are you thinking?  Why are you messing up our sleeping and eating schedule?  Is it day or night?  Mommy, Daddy, why are you doing this to us?"

The surrounding passengers were wondering the same thing