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VIENNA IN 72 HOURS
DAY 1
The royal palace of Hofburg
At the heart of the old city, on the occasion of a
tour of the private apartments and staterooms,
you can still admire the splendor and magnificence of the Austro-Hungarian reigning family’s daily life. Many museums and collections
represent the artistic sense of the Emperor.
The “Hofburg”, the palace that housed the
Imperial family until 1918, was originally a fortified castle from the 18th Century, which with
the increasing power of the Habsburgs and
the extension of their territories, was gradually
transformed into a sumptuous residence.
The Imperial Palace houses today the seat of
the Presidency of the Republic, a major conference center and numerous art collections.
The spanish riding school
The Spanish Riding School in Vienna is the
only institution in the world that preserves and
cultivates, without transforming it, the classic
equestrian art of the Upper School, from the
Renaissance to our days.
Years of training have finally welded horse and
rider, forming an inseparable unity. This is an
unforgettable moment that the viewer can enjoy as the precise movements of the Lipizzaner
are in harmony with the music.
Representations and gala events allow the public to attend horse shows unparalleled in the
best arena in the world, in a spectacular setting
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designed in 1729-1735 by the baroque architect Joseph Emanuel Von Erlach. At the time,
it was there that the young nobles learned to
ride. The morning workout music gives a nice
overview of the exercise program to which are
subject white stallions. As for the guided tours,
they also make a detour through the stables.
DAY 2
The Schonbrunn Castle
The Schonbrunn Castle, the former summer
residence of the imperial family is considered
as one of the most beautiful baroque palaces
in Europe : some 400 rooms of the imperial
Saint Stephen’s cathedral
apartments are evidence of the splendor of
court life at the time of Maria Theresa.
It stands in the heart of the capital and culmi- And the admirers of the beautiful Empress Sisnates at 137 meters: the Southern arrow of the sy find many souvenirs in the salons where she
Gothic St- Stephen’s Cathedral, nicknamed lived. Property of the Habsburgs since 1569,
“Steffl”. Each stone of this emblem of Vienna the wife of the Byzantine Emperor Ferdinand II,
holds centuries of history. If enjoying the splen- built on the site of a castle holiday in 1642, and
dor of this imposing building is not enough which she first named “Schonbruun” (meaning
while you want to unlock its secrets, you can beautiful fountain). The castle and the gardens
enjoy a guided tour or visit the Museum of the built since 1696, after the Turkish siege was
Cathedral and the Diocese.
completely reconstructed during the reign of
Maria Theresa after 1743.
The Secession
The greater part of the year, the Habsburgs
resided in many private apartments required
“To every age its art, to art its freedom”. This by an imperial family, in addition to the offimotto is inscribed in golden letters over the cial apartments. A few steps from the castle,
entrance to the Exhibition Pavilion, which was the collection of Historical Cars includes the
designed more than 100 years ago by the Art superb Coronation Carriage. The Theater of
Nouveau architect Joseph Maria Olbrich.
Puppets deploys imagination and love of detail
When it was built, at the turn of the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries, this magnificent building was also the tangible testimony of an era
of prosperity for the sciences and the arts. Like
all buildings designed by Otto Wagner (Metropolitan Pavilions, the Post Office Savings Office) or the Loos house on the Michaelerplatz
(Michael’s square)…
Page de guache :
Enceinte du palais Impérial
Le château de Schönbrunn, résidence d’été
de l’empereur
Ci dessous : la cathédrale Saint Etienne