 |
Wien
Most people visit Vienna with a vivid
image of the city in their minds:
a monumental vision of Habsburg
palaces, trotting white horses,
old ladies in fur coats and mountains
of fat cream cakes.
And they're unlikely to be isappointed,
for the city positively
feeds off imperial nostalgia – High Baroque
churches and aristocratic
mansions pepper the Innere Stadt,
monumental projects from the late
nineteenth century line the Ringstrasse,
and postcards of the
Emperor Franz-Josef and his beautiful
wife Elisabeth still sell by the sackful. |
|
|
 |
Retaining much of its
labyrinthine street layout,
it's the city's
main commercial district,
packed with shops, cafés
and restaurants.
The chief sight here is the
Stephansdom, Vienna's
finest Gothic edifice,
standing at the district's
pedestrianized centre.
Tucked into the southwest
corner of the Innere Stadt
is the Hofburg, the former
imperial palace and seat of
the Habsburgs,
now housing a whole host
of museums, the best
of which is the Schatzkammer,
home to the crown jewels. |
|
