Saturday 21 May: Schloss Schönbrunn

Class today consisted of discussion of a first hand account of Vienna written by German enlightenment figure Johann Pezzl. Pezzl was to the Holy Roman Empire what Voltaire was to France. He first came to Vienna as a librarian and became known here for his enlightenment writings and depictions of the city life. In his later years, his body of work sharply criticized his earlier writings. Although Pezzl’s credentials are well established, his writing we discussed is full of issues of heavy personal slant. His dislike for the church is mentioned a lot. Which is not surprising as he is writing during the time of Joseph II, who took the complete opposite approach to the church as his mother, Maria Theresia. Where Maria Theresia created morality laws to force the populace to attend services and gave the church figures powers in society, Joseph II began to resend these during his time on the throne. Under Joseph II it no longer was illegal to worship freely. Prior to this, the only religion authorized by the state was Catholicism. Maria Theresia worked during her reign to keep the Jewish and Protestant religions from worshiping. The line between Church and State was nonextant. Pezzl also discuss some context of city life which leave a very undesirable taste of Vienna. He recounts the dust was so bad, it was like a fog and attributed much of this dust to the city being encircled by the fortress and the multitude of horses in the walls of the city. As a result of this dust, many of the Viennese doctors prescribed fresh air for their clients, and the area outside of the city walls became a place of refuge for many, including Beethoven.

After class we began our travel to Schloss Schönbrunn, the imperial summer palace built during the reign of Maria Theresa. It is built largely in the Baroque style and designed after Versailles in France built by Louis IV, the Sun King. The Schönbrunn complex is a sprawling estate originally commissioned by Emperor Leopold I as a hunting lodge designed by Baroque architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach for his son, soon to be Emperor Joseph I. Today’s excursion through Schönbrunn was a chance to explore the vast gardens surrounding the palace. One of my favorite palaces in Europe, Schloss Schönbrunn has sprawling gardens that surround the main estate. Much of the statuary in the gardens is dedicated to Poseidon, as the name Schönbrunn means beautiful water or fountain.

Since it was a quick trip to the estate, I had a late lunch at one of the cafes on the site. Althought a bit more expensive then I would have preferred, the food was amazing. I had a staple of Viennese eating, winerschnitzel. Winerschnitzel, so names after the city of Vienna, is a piece of meat – mostly veal – that is pounded flat, dredged through breadcrumbs, and pan fried served with lemons. Most often the Viennese eat it with a vinegar based potato salad. With mine, I ordered fries. A not about this café is you are charged for the tap water (although not sure it was tap water that was ordered) and condiments. A bowl of ketchup was 1,50 euros.

Afterwards, I decided to head back to the hostel where upon I explored the local neighborhood scouting out points of interest here besides the Naschmarkt. This area is gem with a multitude of cafés located on every corner. The café in Vienna is often just an extension of the local’s living room. Often times a cheap meal can be found without any issue just by perusing the menus and ordering consciously. Of note about this area, it sprawled to life under the hands of architect Otto Wagner, who spearheaded much of the bringing Vienna out of the medieval wall city into the modern age at the turn of the twentieth century. Remember the Ringstraße…

After a quick exploration, I prepared myself for one of the most exciting moments of the trip: Das Ring Der Nibelung. Das Ring der Nibelung, often shortened to The Ring Cycle, is a set of four operas composed by Richard Wagner (1813–1883) intended as a total work of art, or gesamtkunstwerk. For more on The Ring Cycle, the Wikipedia article provides a good starting point. IF you have never heard of it, it is worth checking out.

Afterwards, I ventured to the hotdog stand across from the Staatsoper. It’s a popular food stand with opera goes and everyone alike. I ordered a “hotdog mit käserkraner,” which is a cheese sausage stuffed in a bun. Being the mustard fan I am, I had mustard added in the bun. For a cheap meal, it is almost impossible to beat it.

Today I walked 17,455 steps or 7.4 miles.