Vienna: Lots of Hapsburgs and Walking

Today we explored all around the old town of Vienna. It is very big and well maintained. Lots of nice shops. The old buildings are still very well maintained. All in all – I would say, even though Vienna is a pretty big city, it’s really nice.

We went to the Hofburg Palace where the Hapsburgs ruled for centuries. The tour of the imperial apartments covered Sisi, a queen who recused herself from royal duties, so it was a bit odd given the extensive history of the family. We saw her workout room with rings on the doorway.

Then, we went to the Treasury, which housed the immense treasures of the Hapsburg family, including Holy Roman Empire regalia. There were also personal treasures such as pieces of the cross, the spear used to pierce Jesus, and a nail from the cross. There was a magical unicorn horn (narwhal horn actually), but I’m still sure it could cure poisoning. At this point, the kids seemed…bored.

This chest holds all the keys to the crypts for the Hapsburg family…they ruled here for hundreds of years and built this enormous palace. A couple from a tour group definitely tried to open one of the drawers and set off an alarm while we were there. In their defense, the hand sign is in German… 😳

After the Hofburg, we explored the rest of the old town.

A cool gothic church…a little of the beauty was taken away from it by the KFC on the side of it that is under construction. The worst part is we could not a KFC to eat at, so we settled for a Hungarian restaurant where David ate “clear meat soup.”

We climbed St. Stephen’s south tower. From the tower, a good view of the city.

So many beautiful buildings, statues, fountains and gardens.

The kids got into the European way of life. Apparently they did not want to walk any more. Not sure why – we have been walking 15k-20k steps each day.

All in all it’s safe to say that the Hapsburgs ruled for hundreds of years and built most of this. They were one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization.

We made it back to the hotel and ate tacos again.

Binder Family Travel Adventures

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