Vienna, Gloomy city

This heavy-hearted city under the cloud capped sky is the home of spectacular art objects. The city is rewarded  with the best artists in the world like Klimt, Mozart, Schiele and many others. 

A view from the city

 



 SIGHTSEEING

Why do we travel?  Have you ever questioned it? Sometimes I ask to myself, why do I love travelling? Do I like to see new cities? Do I want to meet with new people? Do I want to try something different? Only one answer comes to my mind. -ART- But when I say art, I mean everything related to art like painting, archeology, music, writing, architecture…

Before making my travel plans, first I research the museums, writers, artists of the cities. It’s really important for me to see an important painting or watch a good play. I can say  art is my religion and all the museums are my temple. Those are the places where I find peace.
So love art. It will give you the inner peace.  Don't be afraid of art just because do not understand it.You don't have be an art expert to love and respect art. The key is feelings. When you see a Klimt Painting, ask to yourself how do I feel? If you like it you'll start to search beyond visible.
You don’t have to know it’s an impressionist painting or not, but learn. Lack of knowledge can lead to fear and learning is a necessity.
Most importantly please respect art. Do not ridicule with art just because it doesn't fit your moral standards. I always respect cities, countires which respect art and protect it. Vienna is one of those cities. It's an ordinary European city with tidy and clean streets. If you ask my opinion there is nothing charming about the city. But just because it hosts so important artists and respect them it's a wonderful city.

 "I’m sure I’m not particularly interesting as a person. There is nothing special about me. I’m a painter who paints day after day from morning till night."

I believe in the immortality of all creatures

The essence of realism is its negation of the ideal.

Those humble and witty words are giving me comfort. It’s nice to know once upon a time our earth welcomed those kinds of smart and extraordinary people.

I don’t want to talk about how great The Kiss is or why Egon Schiele rebelled the traditional training in Vienna Academy.

Go to Belvedere & Kunsthistorisches  Museums and admire all those great artists. When you visit Egypt Section of  Kunsthistorisches  Museum  do not forget and always remember those pieces were belonged to people who lived thousand and thousand years ago

When you see a little bronze statue do not ignore it by its size, it could be a god, once upon a time people could worship it and hope for help.

When you see a head statue, don’t say “just a statue”, maybe you are looking at an emperor.

When you see the The Kiss think for a moment why did Klimt use so much golden yellow and do not forget nothing occurs without a reason.

Kunsthistorisches  Museums

Kunsthistorisches  Museums-Egypt Section

Kunsthistorisches  Museums



Kunsthistorisches  Museums -Marie Antoinette



Kunsthistorisches  Museums - Rubens

Belvedere-The Garden



Kunsthistorisches  Museums - Babylon Tower

     

Wiener Staatsoper

Opera House is one of the landmarks of Vienna. 

This poor building was not the most popular building in the city. When it was being built, people of Vienna did not like it at all. It was criticized by so many people. So the architects, Eduard van der Nüll committed suicide, Sicardsburg had a heart attack. So neither architect saw the completion of the building. 

The opening premiere was Mozart’s Don Giovanni. The Opera Haouse was bombed by the Americans at the II. World War.  Nowadays Wiener Staatsoper is one of the busiest opera houses around the world.

The Opera House

Mozart Haus

The proud of Austria lived in Vienna from 1784 to 1787. Mozart Apartments are located Domgasse 5. Well, there is nothing to say about Mozart Haus. If you think live emotional moments or bond an emotional tie with the great composer, think again. Because there is nothing to see in the House. It is literally empty.  There are quotes from Mozart on the walls, you can listen his composition but do not be in expectation.



Entrance-The Mozart Haus



Kunst Haus Wien

You must see this architecturally interesting building. (Actually it’s an art gallery.)

 The architect of the building is Friedensreich Hundertwasser. 
Friedensreich Hundertwasser believes people have 3 segments.  No;1 is our skin,  No;2 is our clothes, No;3 is walls which  surround us. As a consequence buildings should be in a harmony with human nature. In the nature nothing is smooth or plain so the buildings must be built rough and uneven.

Which is why Kunst Haus Wien is not an ordinary building. It’s not flat or plain. It’s splashy like a candy and funny.

Nationalbibliothek

Another” think twice before you act” place.  Before the visit I was assuming I’ll see a huge library with lots of books. Yes, there were lots of books, but in their shelf’s. So I could only see the covers. It’s a small place with nice ceiling paintings. There are nicer places than Nationalbibliothek in Vienna. Do not waste your time and money with visiting it.

Nationalbibliothek-Entrance

 EATING

I would like to say that Vienna is famous with its schnitzel, so do not expect so much from the food.

The best place for schnitzel is Figmüller. There are two Figmüllers; No:1 is in Wollizeile 5 and open between 11.00-22.30. No:2 is in backerstrabe 6 and open between 12.00-24.00. I ate “Cordeon Bleu and Sirlian Steak”. I tried 2 different beers. Radler and Otto Kringer. I loved Otto Kringer. It's lemonade beer and tastes really good.

But, I can’t labialize same displeased words for the famous Viennese cakes. The name of the cake is “Original Sacher-Torte”. A chocolate cake with a divine taste, http://www.sacher.com/en-original-sacher-tart.htm and Cafe Sacher is the right place. I went to another café to try the cake, Café Demel, but it was closed.  I guess the café  closes very early. So consider the time before going there.

If you would like to go a fancy place, try Tien Cafe. They have nice vegetarian foods.  It’s at Seilerstatte 16. http://www.wien.info/en/shopping-wining-dining/restaurants/vegetarian-restaurants.

For Italian food you can try in Il Temp0. It’s at 1010 Wien Wallnerstr.  With pizza try Schneider Wisse Tap 7. It’s a wheat beer, dark and sweet. I loved it.

SHOPPING

Vienna is an expensive city for shopping.  It’s almost not possible to find cheap things there, so not the best place for shopping. But there is a street called as Mariahilfer Straße.  Mariahilfer Straße is the city’s longest and most lively shopping street. I have covered the territory but could not find something interesting.  For souvenirs the best places are museum shops I guess.

An useful Info

Before starting to do some sightseeing, get a Vienna Card (You can find it at airport and tourist information points) for 19.90 EURO. You'll get discounts at museums and public transport will be free