We packed our car right up to the roof, full of our luggage and supplies. Then we left Wloclawek for another European roadtrip! Artur was thrilled about his new GPS toy, and especially about its speed camera and cop warnings. As you approached a speed camera or a place where cops often hide, the GPS warns you, and counts down the metres until you reach it. Very helpful on the Polish roads!
Artur was still recovering from his alcohol poisoning, so he decided to share the driving with Loren. Although, this was easier said than done. The last time Loren had driven a car was about 6 months ago. She also normally drives an automatic car and in Australia you drive on the left side of road. Not to mention that the speed limit on European highways is 130km/h, compared to the maximum of 100km/h anywhere in Victoria.
Loren faced the task of driving on the right hand side of the road for the first time in her life, in a manual car at 130km/h! Not an easy task! It was a little shaky at first, and Artur's plan to sleep never eventuated, as he was too scared. Loren struggled to keep the car in the centre of the lane, as it felt more natural to be further on the right side of the lane. Unfortunately for Artur that was the side he was sitting on, so he felt like we were centimetres from the other cars on that side. No sleeping was achieved, but he did get a break from driving for about 130km of road.It was a long drive that day, as we were hoping to make it all the way to Vienna. We made our last stop in Poland at Cieszyn, where we filled up on petrol and lots of Polish sweets and snacks that we knew we wouldn't be able to find anywhere else. We also had to buy a sticker for the Czech Repulic so we could drive on the motorway. Unfortunately, they only had stickers for a whole year, so we were forced to pay a high price, despite only needing it for a day.
Despite purchasing the highway sticker, we were redirected around a highway that was closed, and ended up driving through Slovakia instead. We had to buy another sticker for this country as well. Additionally, the GPS got confused and took us on a road parallel to the highway, so we spent a good half an hour trying to get back on again.
It was pouring with rain, and we kept driving on dodgy roads, so we weren't feeling too happy. Camping wasn't looking too enticing for that evening either. We kept driving though, and found some good highways again. Miraculously, the rain had began to subside as we drove closer and closer to the campsite in Vienna. Then finally, after 800km and 9 hours of driving, we made it there!The camp reception was closed when we got there, so we just decided to set up and check in the next morning. It was dark, so we had to leave the car lights on to light the area where we were setting up the tent. It didn't take us too long, but the noisy pump for the mattress probably woke everyone up around us.
The campsite was pretty cool actually. It had nice little stretches of lawn for the tents, and the more luxurious section had thick hedges between tents and caravans for privacy. There was a laundry and kitchen area, a little convenience store, a cafe, an entertainment area with pool tables and outdoor seating.
Cycling in Vienna
The next morning, we woke up refreshed after trying out our brand new mattress. We grabbed some bread to go with our breakfast, and ate on our little table and chairs. It was so refreshing to eat outside, and not just outside like in a courtyard, but with trees and grass around. We decided we were really going to enjoy this trip.
After breakfast, we hired some bikes from the reception, and then planned our route to the city via the GPS. It was about a 10km ride, and the GPS had routes for pedestrians, cycles and cars, but unfortunately, it didn't have a record of the bicyle paths.
On the way, we went across a huge bridge that had a highway running across it. Underneath the road, and beside the bicycle path was a metro line. It was really clever use of space. There were really great views from the bridge as well. The river was really pretty, and there was a beautiful and huge church sitting on its banks.
We were thrilled as we rode into the city itself, as all the buildings that surrounded us were truly beautiful. Most were white and with big pillars and carved windows. Quite a few had old sculptures and monuments out the front as well. 
Soon we found the tourist informations office, and collected a map of all the bike routes. We used these maps for the rest of the day, as the GPS battery didn't last for very long.
After breakfast, we hired some bikes from the reception, and then planned our route to the city via the GPS. It was about a 10km ride, and the GPS had routes for pedestrians, cycles and cars, but unfortunately, it didn't have a record of the bicyle paths.We rode along the sidewalks for most of the way, until we found the bike routes ourselves. We were very impressed with them when we found them. They reminded us of the ones in Copenhagen, but even better. The paths were on a section of footpath, so you weren't close to the cars at all, and they had lights for bikes as well as pedestrians.
On the way, we went across a huge bridge that had a highway running across it. Underneath the road, and beside the bicycle path was a metro line. It was really clever use of space. There were really great views from the bridge as well. The river was really pretty, and there was a beautiful and huge church sitting on its banks.We were thrilled as we rode into the city itself, as all the buildings that surrounded us were truly beautiful. Most were white and with big pillars and carved windows. Quite a few had old sculptures and monuments out the front as well. Soon we found the tourist informations office, and collected a map of all the bike routes. We used these maps for the rest of the day, as the GPS battery didn't last for very long. Karlskirche Church
Our first sightseeing stop was the Karlskirche Church. It was simply spectacular as you approached it from the huge square in front. There was even a fountain and pond out the front. The church was visible from all around the city, as it was really tall, and the green domed roof is very distinctive.
We bought tickets at the door to see the 'panorama of the church'. We weren't sure what to expect, but we assumed that like most churches there would be steps to climb that were built into the churches structure originally. However, when we went in there, we saw that they had built an enormous structure of scaffolding in the middle of the church, so that you could go to the top by steps or by elevator! It was the ugliest, most inappropriate thing to be built in a church ever! We hoped that it was not a permanent structure, as we can't imagine anyone being able to pray inside a church in that situation.
Scaffolding aside, the interior of the church was spectacular. The main altar was probably the most beautiful one we had seen thus far. There were huge cream coloured pillars dominating the sides, and gold cupid and angel statues were hung from them. Above the altar, were enormous white sculptures of saints and angels mingled amonst the golden rays of a sun.
There were many other little altars in the church with enormous paintings behind them. The balcony that housed the pipe organ was spectacular as well. Frescoes covered the ceiling above the organ, as well as the ceiling of the dome of the church itself.
The idea of the elevator, was that you could go and see the frescoes on the ceiling up close. So we decided to go and check them out. It was so high up there, and quite scary. The scaffolding didn't feel very safe, and we could see all the way down to the floor of the church. Unfortunately it was hard to take pictures because there was wire mesh covering everything.
It was nice to see the frescoes up close, they were more detailed than we expected. Obviously no one is supposed to see them from up that high, so you never really know how much detail the artists use.We walked up some more steps and saw the view over the city from the top of the church. The windows were pretty small and far away from us though, and there was more mesh on the windows, so there wasn't much to see.
After seeing the church, we visited a gallery that the church was inside another part of the church. It was a modern christian art gallery. It was great to see that the church was taking an interest in modern art, but we still remained quite unimpressed by it. There were pieces of plastic, bent slightly, and paintings with splashes of red. Not all that inspiring for us.
Next, we ventured to the Australian Embassy, so that Artur could get some papers witnessed by the officer there. He was trying to help a friend in Australia get Permanent Residency status. She succeeded, congratulations Liina! Sacher Torte
After that we went to have some lunch on Karntner Strasse, a pedestrian street. Artur tried the Austrian bratwurst, in a roll like a hotdog. It was delicious. Then we went to the famous Cafe Sacher.
This cafe is attached to the Sacher Hotel, and has been around since 1832, and serves the world's most famous chocolate cake - Sacher Torte. The cafe was so busy that there was a queue all the way out the door, so we decided to buy some torte to take-away. They had a serving counter that looked like something you'd find in a designer boutique. We asked for two pieces, and the lady gave them to us, packaged individually and place in a fancy bag. We felt very special.
We ate them just outside on a public bench, so it was as close to being in the cafe as possible. The torte was absolutely delicious, well worth the visit. We admired the hotel from where we were sitting. It was extremely posh looking, and if the service and quality is anything like it was in the cafe, the place would be well worth the money you paid to stay there. Although the cost would probably make some of us homeless. Glorious Vienna
After our lunch, we decided to head toward the Opera House, which wasn't too far away. We admired its unusual roof as we went past, but we didn't go inside to look around. Instead, we continued walking along the beautiful old street that ran past it.
We saw horses pulling carriages all along this street. And there was a cool shop that sold wooden toys. One of the things that they had on display, was a lifesize wooden motorcycle!
On our way, we saw an old church, Augustinekirche. It had a very simple white interior with some cool chandeliers hanging all over the ceiling, and a nice wooden altarpiece.
As we came to the end of the street, we saw a big square, surrounded by old and expensive looking buildings. This was Michaelerplatz, and one of the huge buildings was the entrance to a building called Schatzkammer, which lead to the rest of the Hofburg Palace Complex.In the centre of the square, there were the uncovered ruins of an ancient building on display.
We decided to go inside the Schatzkammer building, but as we walked in, we heard the most beautiful music. We found that the source of the music was a young musician playing a cello inside the entrance to the building. This section of the building was quite hollow with thick walls that reverberated the music. There was a big crowd of people watching him, as his music was so beautiful. We could have stayed and listened to the music all day. We wandered into the huge grounds that housed the Hofburg Palace and many other incredible buildings. Many of the buildings are now being used as libraries or museums.
Sissi Museum
We decided to see the 'Sissi Museum', which was also displaying a section on silverware and other items from the Royal Palace. We arrived just in time to get into the museum, but they told us that we could have audioguides because there wasn't enough time to listen to it all. Once we were inside, we decided that was a silly idea, so we asked for them anyway, saying we only wanted to listen to one section, not all of them. They agreed, but after all that hassle, we discovered too late that one wasn't working. Artur kindly let Loren take the one that was working. We tried to turn up the volume so we could share, but it was hard to hear.
Sissi was an Empress of the Hofburg empire, but she was very unusual, and became quite an icon after she died. She was the wife of the Emporer Franz Joseph, who was a good man, and loved her very much. We saw his study, which had pictures of her all over the place. He loved her long hair, so his favorites were of her with her hair out.
Sissi was a beautiful woman, but she was not keen on performing her duties as an Empress. She was taken to bouts of depression, where she would only want to stay in her room. She hated the attention of the public, and preferred to stay out of their sight.
She was very obsessed with the way that she looked, and preoccupied with fashion. She was a big fan of any new beauty rituals that she heard of, and bathed her hair in special concoctions. She had several rooms dedicated to bathing, dressing and even one which had exercise equipment attached to the walls. She was determined to keep her figure, so she used on of her rooms as an exercise room. People in the palace were not happy about the look of the equipment hanging from the doorframes and walls, but she put it there anyway.
After she turned 30, she refused to be photographed or painted. She could always be seen carrying parasols or fans, so that no one could get a close look at her face. She wanted to preserve her aging from the public.
Sissi also had several children, but she struggled in motherhood as well. She liked one of her children better than the others. This one was quite like her, and only this girls photo was hanging in Sissi's chambers, along with some old photos of her parents families.
Sissi had many dark days, where she could not leave her room, and where she thought she would be better off dead. Her children knew of her suffering and they suspected that she wished she would just die. Some of her letters and journals reflected this as well.
Sissi was very interested in travelling, as it was a form of escape for her. She visited many different countries by land and sea, and had lots of favorite places to go. However her travels ultimately led to her demise.
Sissi was staying incognito at a hotel in a foreign city, as she usually did. Someone had leaked it to the press that she was there, and unfortunately, there was an assassin in town who was planning to kill another monarch as a political statement. This monarch had a change of plans and didn't show up, so when the assassin heard that Sissi was there, he thought he'd won the jackpot.
As Sissi was boarding the ship to return home, he mingled in the crowd, and stabbed her in the chest with a small, fine blade. Sissi, felt a pain in her chest, but did not realise what had happened. She continued boarding the ship, and ended up dying there. Her family was devastated, but they knew that she died in a way that she probably would have wanted. Still young, with not too much pain involved.
Sissi became a bit of a legend after she died. People felt sorry for the beautiful and unhappy empress. She was popular during her lifetime, but she became extremely so after her death.
Sissi was an Empress of the Hofburg empire, but she was very unusual, and became quite an icon after she died. She was the wife of the Emporer Franz Joseph, who was a good man, and loved her very much. We saw his study, which had pictures of her all over the place. He loved her long hair, so his favorites were of her with her hair out.Sissi was a beautiful woman, but she was not keen on performing her duties as an Empress. She was taken to bouts of depression, where she would only want to stay in her room. She hated the attention of the public, and preferred to stay out of their sight.
She was very obsessed with the way that she looked, and preoccupied with fashion. She was a big fan of any new beauty rituals that she heard of, and bathed her hair in special concoctions. She had several rooms dedicated to bathing, dressing and even one which had exercise equipment attached to the walls. She was determined to keep her figure, so she used on of her rooms as an exercise room. People in the palace were not happy about the look of the equipment hanging from the doorframes and walls, but she put it there anyway.After she turned 30, she refused to be photographed or painted. She could always be seen carrying parasols or fans, so that no one could get a close look at her face. She wanted to preserve her aging from the public.Sissi also had several children, but she struggled in motherhood as well. She liked one of her children better than the others. This one was quite like her, and only this girls photo was hanging in Sissi's chambers, along with some old photos of her parents families.
Sissi had many dark days, where she could not leave her room, and where she thought she would be better off dead. Her children knew of her suffering and they suspected that she wished she would just die. Some of her letters and journals reflected this as well.
Sissi was very interested in travelling, as it was a form of escape for her. She visited many different countries by land and sea, and had lots of favorite places to go. However her travels ultimately led to her demise.Sissi was staying incognito at a hotel in a foreign city, as she usually did. Someone had leaked it to the press that she was there, and unfortunately, there was an assassin in town who was planning to kill another monarch as a political statement. This monarch had a change of plans and didn't show up, so when the assassin heard that Sissi was there, he thought he'd won the jackpot.
As Sissi was boarding the ship to return home, he mingled in the crowd, and stabbed her in the chest with a small, fine blade. Sissi, felt a pain in her chest, but did not realise what had happened. She continued boarding the ship, and ended up dying there. Her family was devastated, but they knew that she died in a way that she probably would have wanted. Still young, with not too much pain involved.Sissi became a bit of a legend after she died. People felt sorry for the beautiful and unhappy empress. She was popular during her lifetime, but she became extremely so after her death.
Stephan's Church
After seeing the museum, we headed to the huge Stephan's Church. We were amazed by its size, it seemed to barely fit in the square that it was allocated. There were colourful tiles all over the top section fo the roof, and a big tower on one side.
Inside, it was even more beautiful. It was hard to take it all in at once. Every few metres there was another enormous pillar covered in sculptures and with huge paintings attached. The ceiling was made of huge arches of white, with tudor style black lines. The floor was covered in white and dark brown tiles, like the colour of the roof. The pews barely seemed to exist in this enourmous church. There were just so many beautiful things to catch the eye.
After seeing the museum, we headed to the huge Stephan's Church. We were amazed by its size, it seemed to barely fit in the square that it was allocated. There were colourful tiles all over the top section fo the roof, and a big tower on one side.Inside, it was even more beautiful. It was hard to take it all in at once. Every few metres there was another enormous pillar covered in sculptures and with huge paintings attached. The ceiling was made of huge arches of white, with tudor style black lines. The floor was covered in white and dark brown tiles, like the colour of the roof. The pews barely seemed to exist in this enourmous church. There were just so many beautiful things to catch the eye.Rathaus
We found our bikes again, and went riding to the Rathaus or Town Hall. We walked through the gardens and admired the huge building. As we approached, we were surprised to see huge numbers of chairs set up in front of it, and a huge movie screen set up on the front of the Rathaus itself.
We found out that there was a free film festival dedicated to classical muisic. That evening they were going to screen the concert of the biggest opera tenors from Rome. We liked the idea, so we decided to come back later to check it out.
In the meantime, there were still a few things that we wanted to see. We decided to ride around the city in a big circle, so that we could be sure we had seen everything. It was a great way to see the spectacular architecture of Vienna. We saw the University, the Parliament House, and the Burgtheater.
We also went for a ride along the Danube river, which was really lovely. There were a lot of restaurant boats there and some that had been turned into bars or nightclubs. One that we came across had a swimming pool attached to it. It was a full sized pool just floating away on top of a boat! It was a bit cold for swimming though, so no one ventured in.
As we finished our big circle, we passed by the Magnificent Hofburg Palace, where the Habsburg dynasty used to reside. We also checked out the museum quarter of Vienna, that we had not yet seen. This area was enormous, with huge buildings that looked like Palaces. There were so many museums in this area, that you'd have to dedicate a great deal of time to get through them all. Museum District
We wandered into the courtyard of one of the buildings. There were several restaurants out the back, and lots of funny looking purple chairs. The chairs looked like concrete, but they were actually padded with styrofoam, so they weren't too bad for relaxing on.
In one of the other courtyards, we saw a huge map of Vienna, painted across the ground of the entire courtyard. It was pretty cool to look at, see al the buildings from a satellite, bird's eye view.
We headed back through a huge garden square. There was a huge statue in the centre, and enormouse identical buildings faced in from both sides. We just couldn't avoid coming across enormous places that just blew our minds. Vienna was fast becoming one of our favorite cities.
Film Festival
We finally made it back to the Rathaus, where the party was really starting. Outside in the park, there were temporary restaurants set up everywhere, and little bars and pubs. There were literally no empty tables and the queues to get food and drinks were long.
Eventually we managed to buy ourselves some Austrian bratwursts, with potato wedges and mustard, mmmm. We also got a large beer each, which was well deserved after our long day of cycling. We found some good seats on the grandstand because the restaurants were full and the show was about to start.
Eventually we managed to buy ourselves some Austrian bratwursts, with potato wedges and mustard, mmmm. We also got a large beer each, which was well deserved after our long day of cycling. We found some good seats on the grandstand because the restaurants were full and the show was about to start.
After the concert, we headed back to the campsite, which was still a healthy 10km away. By the time we got there, we were exhausted and very ready to sleep. We had many great things to dream about, and we were so happy with our visit to Vienna.We think that to see Vienna properly, you probably have to spend at least a month there. There are just so many things to see and do. You could spend a month alone just seeing the museums.
To see the photos from the post in slideshow mode, click on on the link below:
Vienna pictures
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