Wilkommen in Austria, the land of Edelweiß.

Well, 4:00 AM... definitely not fun to wake up so early. The plane ride was nice though, I got to catch up on sleep for an hour or so; there is really not a lot to see at 4AM anyhow. Arriving in Vienna meant two things, first, we left Germany and got to Austria, and second this was the end of the trip :-(

We had a great breakfast at the Café der Provinz, close to the Hotel Zipser. Best crêpes I have ever had! Then we took the subway to Karlsplatz and went to the Wien Museum. Here we met with our tour guide who took us back 2000 years to Vindobona, the Roman outpost that was to become the modern city of Vienna. Vindobona was a military camp to fend off against Germanic tribes from the northeast. Eventually it became a city and as such received fortifications during medieval times. The wall was completed by the end of the 12th century with funds obtained from the ransom of Richard the Lionheart... yes, the Richard the Lionheart from the Crusades. Then St. Stephen's (Stephansdom) was also completed, with only one spire. The roof burned down during WWII so the church that stands today is reconstructed. Vienna survived two Turkish raids, and story says that during the first siege, the cathedral had a symbol that resembled that of the Turkish flag. The Turks actually retreated due to winter the first time and did break through the wall the second time. The wall the second time was better built and was finished barely in time to try to repel the Ottoman empire. The use of tunneling and gunpowder, however, allowed the Turks to break through it. In the end the king of Poland and other allies helped the Viennese drive the Turks back.

We then went to St. Stephen's, where we visited the cathedral and the catacombs. This was a very interesting tour. Most bishops and cardinals are buried underneath the church and a few Habsburgs and Dukes are buried there, with their bodies mummyfied and their organs in vases. But, there were also the 'new' catacombs, which actually look a lot older that the 'old' ones (confusing, huh?). These were used as mass graves and as a public cemetery. In essence you can see EVERYTHING, including the mass graves used during the Plague. Here around 41,000 people were buried. We were prompted to imagine the nice smell on a hot summer day at that time. There was a plaque commemorating Mozart there, but he was actually buried in a mass grave because he was poor.

Our first day in Vienna ended with free time, and many of us decided to rest up from the trip, while others, like myself, went shopping and walking around. For now, that is all.