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Summer 2003 -- Vienna, Austria . . . and thereabouts

July 2003

A quick visit to Vienna to see Elke

Sooty downtown Vienna, the landmark Stephansdom, St Stephan Cathedral, built mostly from 1304 onward, and until recently the most impressive architectural edifice in the city, until F. Hundertwasser built his Spittelau trash incinerator and took everyone's breath away -- with its majesty, not with its trash.

Quite an impressive cathedral and nothing that a good washing-up wouldn't fix.

Tourists and gypsy beggars in Vienna (Kristin in the foreground)

Free Abdullah Ocalan!! (Kurds Rule!)

The Art History Museum, a stunning place with enough rooms full of Dutch Old Masters to keep us shuffling along the marble floors for a week.

The Art History Museum again: the ceiling of the coffee shop.

This is all part of a timely visit to friend Elke in the Grinzing suburb, home of the ancient heurige wine-bar culture. Here's Kristin trying on Elke's bhurka, and preparing to visit Mödling and its ancient heurige wine bars the next day. Heurige: Forget bratwurst -- think quiche!

Here's charming Mödling, on a dreary grey day, however.

Kristin in the Mödling high street (left); Kristin and Elke darting over to check out the parish church

Another day, the classic Danube riverside drive, out to see (amongst other cute places) Dürnstein, in the castle looming above which King Richard the Lionheart, just trying to get home from his Crusade, spent two years in nick (1192-94) waiting for his guys to come up with a 150,000 marks ransom for Emperor Henry VI and for his brother John Lackland to screw up another rebellion back in England.

Kristin posing next to a Chicago police car on the hike up to Dürnstein castle

A welcome pause on the way up to the castle to catch our breath and take a few telephone calls.

Elke and Kristin high above the Danube . . .

. . . with the Danube below.

Several levels of the castle ruin running down the rocky spine above the village

"When's lunch?"

King Richard the Lionheart would have done a lot better at a Motel 6, where at least there are usually fewer things growing in your room.

Tourists posing in what may long ago have been Richard Coeur-de-Lion's own prison cell.

Shoppers in the Dürnstein (pop. 960) high street

Lunch at a classic heurige {Forget bratwurst -- think quiche!} . . .

A Danube steamer, the Stadt Wien ("City of Vienna")

and a ferry across the Danube.

Feedback and suggestions are welcome if positive, resented if negative, Dwight Peck at . All rights reserved, all wrongs avenged. Posted 8 November 2003, revised 30 July 2007.

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