17th of May 2023 - Vienna

Our first stop in Vienna was the Vienna Art History Museum.  Sadly this visit was very short so we only had a chance to see paintings from the Netherlands.  The following two paintings are by Breughel and Vermeer.

After we left the Vienna Art History Museum we walked through the grounds of the Hofburg Palace which is the former principal imperial palace of the Habsburg dynasty.  The Hofburg Palace is located in the centre of Vienna and served as the imperial winter residence.  Schönbrunn Palace was the imperial summer residence.  The Hofburg Palace was built in the 13th century and expanded several times afterwards so has a variety of architectural styles.  Since 1946, it is the official residence and workplace of the president of Austria.

We then moved from the Hofburg Palace grounds into the centre of Vienna itself.  Again, the weather was not kind as it was raining heavily.

Our guided walk end at St Stephen's Cathedral.  This cathedral is the most important religious building in Vienna and was consecrated in 1147.  With its multi-coloured tile roof, St Stephen's Cathedral has become one of the city's most recognizable symbols.

I went into the cathedral after the guided walk to light a candle in memory of loved ones.

I decided to get out of the rain and have a coffee in one of the many cafés.  This café appealed because of its beautiful decor however I had to leave before ordering otherwise I would have missed the coach back to the ship.

After dinner we listened to some delightful music from the Pressburger Duo. Their repertoire comprises masterpieces of classical music, operetta, jazz, and Slovak folk music performed on a variety of instruments including piano, accordion, violin and numerous pipes.  The pipes included a Fujara, a special kind of pipe that exists only in Slovakia.