We both were a little surprised by the interior of the famous St. Stephens Cathedral. The most important church in Vienna, dating back to 1578 and built on the ruins of an even older 12 century church, its soaring 450 foot spire and multicolor tile roof make it instantly recognizable. The exterior is meticulously decorated with carvings and statues, truly an impressive vision.
The interior however, while admittedly ornate, struck us both as rather dark and depressing. There was very little color, mostly shades of gray – although to be fair, looking back over the pictures we took there, the more sensitive camera eye did pick up more color and light. But I think it was the contrast between the church interior and the interior of the mosques we had visited the previous week that made it seem so stark in comparison.
For example, a church generally has rows of pews which take up most of the interior, making it feel a bit cramped or crowded when walking around. The spires and steeples require support columns which also break up the space. Typically there are wood, tile, or stone floors, which combine with the stone walls to give you that kind of echoey feeling.
The mosques on the other hand tend to have spires as external structures around a large central dome. This gives you a large, uninterrupted interior. Further, there are no pews to take up space, and since shoes are forbidden the interiors are carpeted, reducing echoes. The ones we visited all had a lot of natural light, as well as plenty of elaborate electric lighting. Extensive use of color and gold in the décor and painted tiles, combined with the light, the open space, and the carpets gave them a rich and warm interior.
Just a small example of how travel and exposure to different cultures can really be an incredibly rich experience if you open yourself up to it.
We also visit the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, or Art History Museum. Although there were a few stunning works of art and culture, plus a room of Egyptian artifacts including mummies, we were much more impressed with the building itself.
And speaking of culture, that brings me to a must-see stop in Vienna I need to mention. The Vienna State Opera House.
Opened in 1869 as a home for the hot Vienna opera and ballet scene, this is an imposing and beautiful building on the outside. You can wander about and take pictures of the exterior – and we did – but if you want to see the inside, there are only two ways; either buy a ticket to the opera or ballet, or pay 13 euros for a scheduled guided tour. Well, I guess a third way would be to perform there, but I didn’t pack my tutu.
Guided tours must be signed up for in advance on the Vienna Opera website, and are only offered when they will not interfere with rehearsals or performances. Even though our guided tour was included with the Vienna Pass, we still had to schedule online.
It is definitely worth the 13 euros, less than $15 at the moment, to take the tour. It takes about 40-45 minutes, and you are led through intermission rooms and special waiting areas, get to sit in premium box seats, and get up close and personal with the orchestra pit and stage.
Most of us have probably seen the interior of the opera house in movies, but as usual nothing compares to actually being there. It is even more beautiful than you can imagine, and the seats were surprisingly comfortable. A few things surprised me. The building itself is huge, but the house holds only just over 2200 audience members, including 547 as standing room only. It seats just 1709, which is only about 80 more than our Tennessee Theater back in the US. Also, the stage was surprisingly large, twice the size of the auditorium, to allow for fast set changes during intermission.
Our next stop was rather creepy. It is called the Kapuzinergrupf, or the Imperial Crypt, and it is just what it sounds like. Since about 1632, over 150 people, mostly members of the Hapsburg family, have been placed there in sarcophagi ranging from simple copper coffins to elaborately decorated tin, brass, and bronze monstrosities. I say “placed” rather than interred, because they are all just arranged in neat rows or tucked into cubbies, so visitors can walk through the many rooms of the underground facility. There are 12 emperors and 18 emperesses, some children, and even five “heart urns” in the complex. Best not to say too much about the heart urns.
Incredible enough, to me anyway, is that it is still being used. In fact, the first day we tried to visit it was closed, because they were having a ceremony to install the latest tenant, Archduchess Yolande of Austria, wife of Archduke Carl Ludwig, that very day. Several main streets were closed to traffic to allow the guests and sarcophagus to arrive by horse-drawn carriages.
After our Opera House tour we were so impressed that over lunch we decided it would be foolish to pass up the opportunity to see an opera while we were in town. Neither of us had ever been to an opera before – in fact, like most of my generation when I hear the word “opera” I hear Elmer Fudd in the back of my head with his spear and magic helmet singing “Kill the wabbit, kill the wabbit!”.
Opera tickets in Vienna can run 200 euros each or more, but all the seat for this night’s performance of “Tosca” were sold out. However, during our tour we learned that standing room tickets could be bought for as little as 13 euros. Which is why the idea of buying a ticket instead of taking a tour is a real option. In fact, we met a couple from England during the first intermission who did just that – they bought their standing room tickets, then arrived a half hour early to wander around taking pictures.
So after a quick verification that there was no dress code for the Opera House – I had also forgotten to pack my white tie and opera cloak – I jumped online and bought us two standing room tickets for 15 euros each, reasoning they would be better than the cheapo 13 euro ones.
When we got to our assigned places however, we were in literally the very last row in the highest point possible, backs against the wall and heads brushing the ceiling. Worse, we were skewed to one side and had a pole partially blocking our already restricted view of the stage.
Oh well, we were still in the most famous opera house in the world to witness one of the most popular operas.
All was not terrible, as there were screens you could setup to get English translations of the lyrics being sung, and we had read a brief synopsis of the plot before attending. And despite the viewing problems, the acoustics were perfect. We could hear the music and the performers perfectly, and although our legs were a bit tired, it was a wonderful experience and one we will always remember – and a reminder of why we are out and about in Europe in the first place.
We also visited the Sisi Museum, and some those photos are below as well, another great meal at The Savoy where we were by now greeted as members of the family, and a test of the subway system to get a ride downtown to the Danube and a wonderful Indian lunch.
Before I close, I would be remiss if I did not give a shout-out to the Vienna public transportation system. They have a system of subways, electric trams, and buses that cover the whole metro area. You can buy a pass that gives you just a ride from point A to point B, a yearly pass that allows unlimited use, and everything in between.
For instance, we bought two 48-hour passes that allowed us to use any conveyance as often as we wanted during that period for 14.10 euros each. You can buy a physical card at various locations, or just download an e-ticket like we did on your phone. Pretty standard for most modern metro areas, right?
But here’s the interesting part – there are no turnstiles and no ticket scanners. True, if you bought a physical ticket, the first time you use it you are supposed to insert it into a handy blue box at the entrance to get your initial time stamp, but that is it. Otherwise, it is all on the honor system. If you’ve ever used a subway in the US before, you understand how much time that saves you and how it cuts down on lines of people fumbling with their tickets or passes and trying to get them to scan right.
Even the train we took from Vienna to Prague for the next leg of our trip had no one taking tickets. There was a conductor to help you on and off the train and to find your seats, but they never came around asking to see your ticket.
So why buy tickets at all, you may ask? Well, I’m told that once and a while a conductor or a transit person will do a spot check, and if you are caught without a valid ticket there is a fine and some considerable public shaming from the folks around you.
In summary, we loved Vienna, and we wish we could have spent a few more days there. Indeed, we may plan to return someday for a longer visit.
One alteration in our plans occurred that would be a harbinger of things to come. We had originally planned to use our next to last day in Vienna to take a day trip to Budapest in Hungary. We had the train tickets and were all set, but the day before I started feeling bad once again. Mostly a fever and just very tired. We decided it wasn’t worth pushing ourselves, so we stayed in Vienna. It turned out to be a good call, because I ended up sleeping most of the next day anyway.
I was feeling better by the morning, although Rita was starting to drag a little, as we packed and prepared to catch our train to our next stop and halfway point in our planned travel, Prague in the Czech Republic.
