Photographic Meanderings/Tauck Bridges Danube Cruise 2015

It was a rainy day, fitting for a covered carriage tour of Old Town Vienna followed by a visit to the crypts of St.Stephen’s Cathedral  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Stephen%27s_Cathedral,_Vienna and, most interestingly, it’s catacombs. Remember that this edifice was constructed upon the remains of an earlier church and founded in 1137. Remember, too, that this place saw not only the bubonic plague https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Plague_of_Vienna , and served as the final resting place of part, the entrails, of the Habsburg royals. Here is a quote from the internet: http://www.findagrave.com/php/famous.php?page=cem&FScemeteryid=639506

Habsburg Entrails
The entrails of the Habsburg Emperors were buried separately from their bodies from 1600 to 1872. The bodies were buried in the Kaisergruft (Imperial Crypt) of the Capuchin Church, their hearts were buried in urns in the Augustiner Church crypt, and their entrails were buried in copper urns in the crypt of St. Stephen’s Cathedral. These copper urns contain the entrails of such famous Habsburg rulers as Ferdinand III, Leopold I, Karl VI, Maria Theresa, Maximilian.

We did visit, with photography not allowed, the private worship areas of ranking clergy, the tombs of some ranking clergy, and the storage crypt for sealed copper vessels containing Habsburg entrails. Those of Maria Theresa, mother to 16 living children, required one of the largest containers, while those of infants needed a container about the volume of one quart.

After this, we were free to walk the Karntnerstrasse, a pedestrian only street lined with high-end shops and the famous conditorei, Demel. I’ll include pictures from the 2013 visit to give you an idea. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demel

You might wish to visit the blog from our Tauck Danube River Cruise 2013: barrett915.me

One the way back to the boat for lunch, we traversed a part of the Ring Strasse, the circumference of the Old Town where the wall had been. We passed many public buildings. I want to show you the Parliament https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrian_Parliament_Building built between 1874 – 1883 in the Greek Style, and the Rathause or Town Hall built about the same time in a Neo-Gothic style.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rathaus,_Vienna

And, finally, the Secessionist Building.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secession_Building,_Vienna containing a Beethoven Frieze, 1901  painted by Gustav Klimpt in celebration of the composer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beethoven_Frieze – Description Klimpt, an avant-garde artist was one of a movement to break away from convention as this building demonstrates.

After lunch on the boat, and an afternoon’s rest, we set out to the Prater, a large amusement park in town. The following are only some of the rides.

On returning to Swiss Jewel for our last supper in Vienna, we passed, yet again, the St. Francis of Assisi Church:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Francis_of_Assisi_Church,_Vienna