Domain: Boundary in the Architectural World: Austria and the Alps

Everybody has Birthday wishes. Some people want to spend their Birthday with those closest to them: family, friends, or whoever that may be. Some people want large scale parties for their birthday with everyone they know, other people like just small gatherings and parties. There are endless numbers of ways people choose to spend their birthday. My Birthday was a little different than usual this year. Being that I am so far away from home I didn't have the option to have a party with my family, girlfriend, and many close friends of mine who are still at my 2 homes in both Irwin and Kent. I did, however, make the most of the opportunity I have here in Europe and myself and three of my best friends traveled to Austria, including both Vienna and Salzburg, with a bus ride through the beautiful Austrian Alps, all in a single weekend. Although I would have loved nothing more than to spend my 21st birthday with my family and friends at home, celebrating my birthday in 2 snowy cities in Austria is an experience I will certainly never forget and I thank my friends who were able to be there to celebrate it with me, and all of those who wished me a Happy 21st from afar as well.

Vienna

The town of Vienna is one that really surprised me with many of its qualities. Although Vienna is an extremely important city to the country of Austria, it is not inhabited by tourists nearly as much as many of the destinations we have and will be traveling to. Even many of the important monuments in Vienna which we had learned about in some of the architectural history courses I have had, I had actually forgotten about and was surprised to walk up on them in Vienna. In Vienna, we started with a guided walking tour of the city which led us through the central market of the city, past the Vienna Secession building, an important monument in the development of architecture, and the Vienna opera house, one of the most famous in the world which we attended later that night. It then took us more in to the city center which included a building designed by Adolf Loos, a few important statues and fountains, and ended at St. Stephens Cathedral. We then visited the interior of St. Stephens, ate some of the native Austrian cuisine, went on a tour of the Schnapps museum, and went to the Opera. The next morning we visited the Schonbrunn Palace and had a snowball fight in the gardens there. Yes, I am aware we are trouble makers. We then returned to the hostel and boarded the bus for the three hour commute to Salzburg.

Otto Wagner Buildings in Vienna

Otto Wagner U-Bahn Station

Pavilion in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna Secession Building

Vienna Secession Facade

Vienna Secession Building Entry

Vienna Secession Building Door Header

Vienna

Glass Exterior Elevator in Vienna

Vienna Secession Building and Statue

St. Charles in Distance

"Golden Orb" on Vienna Secession Bulding

Vienna

Statue and Bronze Dome

Statue in Vienna

Memorial in Vienna to Jewish Holocaust Victims

Vienna

Statues on Building in Vienna

Ornamentation on Building in Vienna

Building in Vienna

Statue and Building in Vienna

Cathedral in Distance

Vienna

Vienna State House

Bronze Dome in Vienna

Statue and Building in Vienna

Different Type of Dome in Vienna

Detailed Ornamentation on Building in Vienna

Tower in Vienna

Dome and Ornamentation in Vienna

Adolf Loos Building in Vienna
(well known for its "unornamented" facade where the only
detail present on the structure is within the marble material)

View Down Vienna Street

Vienna

Statue Detail in Vienna

St. Stephens Cathedral

Modern Architecture in Vienna

St. Stephens Cathedral

Interior of St. Stephens

Me Inside St. Stephens

Interior of St. Stephens

Exterior of St. Stephens

Modern Architecture in Vienna

Vienna Horse and Buggy

Vienna Buildng

Schonbrunn Palace

Me at Schonbrunn Palace

Panorama of Schonbrunn Palace

Schonbrunn Palace "Gardens" - Snow Covered

Schonbrunn Palace Gardens

Fountain at Schonbrunn Palace Gardens

Schonbrunn Palace and Gardens

Pond in Schonbrunn Palace Gardens

Pavilion in Schonbrunn Palace Gardens

Schonbrunn Palace Gardens

Snowball Fight in Schonbrunn Palace Gardens
(Photo by Courtney Lutke - Facebook.com)

Bratwurst in Vienna

Apple Strudel in Vienna

U-Bahn in Vienna

Schnapps Museum Office in Vienna

Schnapps Museum in Vienna

St. Charles Church in Vienna

Ceiling of Vienna State Opera House

Vienna State Opera House

Frankfurter in Vienna

Salzburg

Salzburg is an absolutely gorgeous town situated in the heart of the Austrian alps. If you ever have the chance to visit any city in Austria for a day, Salzburg is the city I would most recommend. Although Vienna was amazing as well, Salzburg just has a charm about it that can't quite be matched. In Salzburg we walked around the city and acclimated ourselves with the surroundings, visited a brewery, and went up to the Hohensalzburg fortress for the best view of the city.