Vienna is a fairly big city, spread out over a large area. There was lots of interesting stuff to see. In addition to the fun/quirky stuff I shared in my previous post, we saw two really pretty churches (or cathedrals), and a bunch of other architectural interestingness, too.
I’ll save the church pics for the next post. Here are some of the other cool buildings we saw in Vienna on day one.
The first couple of pictures were taken in the neighborhood near our apartment. The closer we got to the center of the city, the more ornate the buildings became.
Those designs are etched into the plaster.
We suspect that is a TV tower.
Fancy residence?
A small section of the parliament building.
Statue in front of the parliament building.
Another small section of the parliament building.
Hotel housed in a building dating back to 1900/1901.
That building isn’t very old (in the big scheme of things), but it has history. The hotel’s website says…
The Neuer Markt, also called Mehlmarkt (translated: Flour market) is one of the oldest places in Vienna. It’s first mentioned under the name of “Novum Forum” in 1234. Next to it is one of the most popular shopping miles in town, the Kärntner Straße. In its former times, the Neuer Markt was used as a grain market. Until the 19th century grain, flour and legumes have been sold here. In 1739 the beautiful Donnerbrunnen became the centre of the place and attracts many people now. The buildings around this place have the character of prestigious middle-class houses.
Rathaus (town hall)
Cool Sky
Random Fountain
Just some random buildings.
Statue on Building Corner
Pretty building.
Motorbike Parking Spot
Another random pretty building.
Fountain
Cool statue on corner of building.
Side street in shopping district.
Building facade in shopping district.
Ornate statue.
Modern building amidst the older ones.
Cool Reflection
Pretty Fountain
Pretty building facade.
Cool building.
Another cool building.
It really is a pretty city. The pictures don’t do it justice. The churches or cathedrals we entered were amazing, and we only entered two. There’s so much more we didn’t see, but we thoroughly enjoyed the things we did see. Wait ’til you see the churches.
The other day I realized I’d never finished sharing pics from our European road trip. A trip that was six months ago! At this rate, if I don’t catch up, my next vacation will overlap that one, and then things will REALLY get confusing.
I have lots of images to share. Vienna was a very interesting place. I’ll try to keep the explanations brief.
Very Large Sign (Czech bottled water ad)
Entering the Republic of Austria
View from our apartment balcony, on the outskirts of Vienna.
Happy-looking Bus
We didn’t ride the tourist bus, we made our way around via foot and public transit.
Signage for Priority Seating on public tram/streetcar.
Brazilian Embassy (captured from bus)
Colorful Truck
Ornate streetlamp base.
Just another scooter commuter.
Ducks!
Creative Bread
Viennese Sausage Cart
Cute pair of scooters.
The Pokemon game took hold in Europe, too.
There is a surprising amount of graffiti in the cities.
More Graffiti
Very interesting ATM at the Prater.
There’s a very large public park in Vienna called the Prater. That’s where the Wurstelprater — the world’s oldest amusement park — is located. It’s kinda cool that you can ride public transport to a full-blown amusement park right at the city’s edge, no?
Tired Feet
We did walk a lot that day. And it was hot.
Group Selfie at Lunch
Wurstelprater
Fun pic of Annelies and Yves with a giant snake.
A Wild Mouse rollercoaster!
Happy Austrians at a beer garden.
Wiener Water! Actually it’s Viennese Water.
Prater
Me and Annelies (I forget who the men are)
Dinner at the apartment.
We were all exhausted after a very long day, so we decided to have a lite dinner at the apartment consisting of various meats, cheeses, and other goodies that we had on hand. There was a supermarket on the opposite end of the same block that housed our apartment building. Very convenient (I planned it that way).
There are a lot more pics from that day. I couldn’t put them all into this one post. We saw lots of interesting architecture and two amazing churches or cathedrals that day, too. Those pics will be included in the next two posts.
I think Spring weather may actually be here to stay now. It was here in February, which was just weird. Early-March was pretty mild, too. Many of the flowers and trees bloomed early, and then it got cold. Freezing cold. So now lots of the flowering plants are coated in blooms that look half-dead. That means actual Spring days like yesterday won’t appear as bright and cheerful as they should.
Oh well. Even if the days are not visually appealing, I’ll take the Spring temperatures. Yesterday, the highest reading I saw on my thermometer was 78.8 F (26 C). There were lots of clouds in the sky, but they held their moisture, so we had a dry, warm day for riding. There was no chill in the air at all. It actually felt a little weird at first, feeling warm wind through the mesh of my jacket.
Hubby planned a circuitous route for us to get a late lunch at our favorite fast-foodish burger joint in Front Royal, Spelunkers. Part of that route involved the northernmost third of Skyline Drive, from the Thornton Gap entrance on US 211 to the start/end of the road in Front Royal. So we got to twist the throttles a bit further than we should have and enjoy our favorite local twisties as we climbed Thornton Gap.
It can be a dangerous stretch of road, as evidenced by the warning signs specifically addressed to motorcyclists at the top and bottom of the mountain that say “High Crash Area.” There’s a 35 MPH speed limit, too. But that’s because of the descending radius turns that catch many riders off-guard. We’re used to the turns, though, so didn’t think twice about having some twisty fun before hitting Skyline Drive.
Line of vehicles waiting to enter the park.
Our enjoyment didn’t go unnoticed. One man was so impressed, he decided that I deserved a performance award in recognition. In truth, he said we both should have been similarly recognized. I was the one in the rear, though. So I’m the one who got to sit on the side of the road, admiring that line of vehicles, while the man from the Rappahannock County Sheriff’s Department recorded and then presented me with physical proof of my not-so-prestigious award.
He was nice, though, and used the lowest speed he’d recorded. And that’s a good thing, because Virginia has some hefty fines for speeding. Exceed the posted speed limit by 20 mph or exceed 80 mph no matter the posted limit, and that’s considered reckless driving. That’s a criminal misdemeanor. You could be sentenced to as much as a year in jail, have your driver’s license suspended for six months, get assessed up to $2500 in fines, and have a criminal record that could follow you around for the rest of your life. Also, the points stay on your driving record for 11 years, and we all know what that does to insurance premiums.
I really need to keep that law in mind. I don’t feel bad, though, because I know I was riding cautiously and well within my comfort zone. Plus, I’ve been riding for a lot of years and that was my very first “award.”
It didn’t spoil the mood even a little bit. It really was lovely. People were out in droves enjoying the many attractions Shenandoah National Park has to offer, such as the scenic views, hiking, cycling, waterfalls, bird-watching, etc. The parking lots near the most-popular trailheads were literally overflowing. There were lots of motorcyclists and bicyclists out, too.
A large portion of the northern section of the drive appears to have been recently repaved, too. Another plus.
We topped the day off with a fabulous lunch at Spelunkers in Front Royal.
Yes, it was as fabulous as it looks.
It was a co-worker of Mike’s who clued us in on the deliciousness at Spelunkers.
The burgers are always fresh and perfectly cooked, as are the fries. They’re so good, we’ve never eaten anything else. The Philly cheesesteak is supposed to be their signature sandwich. Sadly, we’ve never have room for ice cream. That’s a “first” I can happily look forward to.
I’ve got a trip coming up in May. For me, part of the fun of upcoming trips is the anticipation. The planning. Plotting fun routes to things I’ve been wanting to see. Imagining visits to places I’ve never been.
Virginia is a really big state.
This trip is different though. It’ll be like the trip I did in 2015 down the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP). I’m going to set out with a general idea of direction/destination, armed with all my favorite maps, and my smart phone, and see where each day takes me. Hubby will be staying home.
He’s got a trip of his own in the near future. He likes to cover long distances in short periods of time, speeding right past all sorts of interestingness on his land yacht. I like to meander from place-to-place, enjoying the natural landscape, capturing interesting images, doing what I want to do when I want to do it.
I know I’ll be going south and west, I just don’t know how far. I’ve been toying with the idea of going to Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, the three states in the contiguous US I have yet to visit. But they’re pretty far from Virginia. And if I ride back roads like I enjoy, it’ll take FOREVER to get there. If I visit those states, I’d kinda like to take time and enjoy the foods I want to sample in New Orleans, the beaches I want to explore in Mississippi AND Alabama.
Besides, there are LOTS of roads and places in VA, NC, TN, SC, GA, KY, and WV I have yet to experience. Not to mention roads and places I want to revisit, like the Cherohala Skyway. There are a couple of personal checklists I’d like to complete, too. Or at least add some new tick-marks.
What kind of checklists? I’ve been to about 90% of the counties in Virginia. I’d like to make it 100%, and five of the counties I have yet to set foot in — Russell, Dickenson, Wise, Scott, and Lee (if I remember correctly) — are in the far southwestern corner of the state. Silly? Maybe. But I bet I’ve covered more ground in Virginia than most people reading this.
I’d also like to see Breaks Interstate Park. It straddles the border between KY and VA, hence the name “interstate.” Hubby and I were very close in late 2010, but close doesn’t count. It’s been nagging at me ever since.
And we can’t forget all those new LOVE signs.
I was hoping to meet-up with a Motoblogger pal and her hubby, but they’ll be off gallivanting around the desert southwest.
There’re lots of roadside oddities I have yet to experience, too. Those are important. Maybe I’ll even grab a burger and fries at Pal’s this time.
Pal’s in Kingsport, TN
I may not be planning in the technical sense, but I do have lots of fun, pleasantly distracting ideas floating around in this old brain.
How many of you would rather make a long quick jaunt to the Gulf Coast than spend a week or so poking around in the mountains? Just curious.
You know it’s hard to keep track of how many LOVEworks there are to visit when even the Virginia travel folks can’t pin down the exact number!
In this blog post from February, the travel folks said “more than 65.” That’s technically true, but the number is now higher than 70! I’ve physically visited and captured pics of at least 50 LOVEworks.
The two latest I saw are here…
Mineral, Virginia
Lake Anna
It’s really hard to keep track of how many I have yet to see. Why? They keep adding more!
I’m in the process of planning (sorta) a May getaway. So I figured I’d make a list of sculptures I need to visit. There are 22! Even I was surprised at how many are on that list.
Some of them are really far away, or at least hard to get to, like the one new one near Chincoteage on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. That would either involve another trek through Maryland or a journey to Norfolk/Virginia Beach then across the bay bridge tunnel. The one in Gate City, in the far southwestern tip of Virginia, is reported to have reappeared, too.
I might see some on my upcoming adventure. Then again, I might not. This is another of those trips where the plan is NOT to plan. I’ll just head out with my maps and a general idea of direction and/or destination. I may end up on the Gulf Coast. Or I might have so much fun in the mountains that I’ll end up staying there.
It’s fun for now trying to imagine where my bike might take me.
If I remember correctly, Annelies chose Kutna Hora because of its location and its attractions. But it could just be the attractions. There are a couple of important cathedrals, one of which isn’t actually a cathedral, and a very unique bone church.
The first church we visited was the Church of Saint Barbara. It sure looks like a cathedral, but it’s actually just a church that’s built like a cathedral. I say “just” a church, but in an area known for its gothic cathedrals, this particular church is actually a standout.
Church of Saint Barbara
It’s sure big for a church, right?
The ornamentation inside these large religious structures always amazes me. The structures themselves are incredible, but then there are all the murals and statues, stained glass and carved wood, and painted ceilings. Very, very high ceilings at that.
Painted Walls
Painted Ceilings
Stained Glass
Carvings
“That’s wood!” said Mike. Who knew?
Yep, it really was wood. This was the first large church/cathedral we’d seen with pieces like that made of wood instead of stone.
Wooden Figure Close-up
If you look closely, you can tell it’s wood.
Amazing stuff.
It always takes us forever to wander around these things.
Kind of hard not to be impressed.
Best Candle-holder Ever
“Simple” Wall Decor
It always takes longer than expected for us to see these huge religious buildings.
Storm Drain
Exterior Ornamentation
I have no idea what these things are called, the little statues sticking out that serve as outlets for water downspouts, but I was delighted to see the next one…
Frog!
I’d seen some that sorta looked like a frog before, but none that were so clearly a frog.
This chapel dates back to the 1300s, I think.
There’s a nice view of the town from just outside of the church.
Overlooking Kutna Hora
From there, we headed to the outskirts of Kutna Hora to see a VERY different kind of church, The Ossuary (bone church) at Sedlec. There IS a cathedral near the ossuary, but we had a long day on the road ahead of us, so we skipped it.
Kutná Hora is known for the curious “Bone Church” or Ossuary (in Czech, Kostnice). It is located in the suburb of Sedlec. The Ossuary is in the undergroud chapel of the Church of All Saints. It contains the bones of about 40,000 people who died of the plague in 1318 and during the Hussite wars in the 15th century. They were originaly buried at the church cemetery. When the cemetery was closed at the end of the 15th century, the exhumed bones were transferred to the chapel and compiled into pyramids. In 1870, František Rint of Česká Skalice arranged the bones and skulls into creative decorations that include bells, the Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and a chandelier.
It was cool to see, but creepy. I mean, those are real bones of people.
