On to Italy: Trieste

After Ljubljana, we took the bus to Trieste (you can only get there by bus from Slovenia) to see more of the Adriatic coast. Interestingly, it was also in some ways a history lesson, considering Trieste was one of the oldest parts of the Habsburg empire, having been "collected" in 1382 by Leopold III.

Though once part of ancient Illyria, and more Slavic than Italian (the city was only annexed in 1918), Trieste is today a part of Italy for mostly political rather than cultural reasons. An important port during the Renaissance and the crossroads between Venice and Vienna, Trieste became Maria Theresia's favorite way to keep the Slovenians and Croatians under her thumb, by promising trade and wealth and baroque buildings painted yellow. French troops occupied the city during the Napoleonic Wars, though the city retained relative autonomy because for some reason (unlike the other large Habsburg cities) German-speaking Austrians could not be persuaded to move there. For example: only 5% of the population in Trieste spoke German at its peak (most spoke Slovenian) compared to 51% in Prague, and roughly 60% in Budapest.

I just finished a history of the Habsburgs borrowed from the library - can you tell?

Here are several photos of Piazza Unita d'Italia:

Anyway, on to the present, with just another dip into the past! Since ancient Illyria was invaded by the Romans, there are plenty of delightful ruins left by Cesarean occupants, like this lovely amphitheater:

And the most delightful experience: around the amphitheater there are lots of stray cats (as pictured below) and a little boy with his grandparents came up to the railing and started saying, "Meow!" He reached out to pet one of the cats, when his grandmother said, "Non toccare il gato!" (Don't pet the cat). The cat ran away and the the little boy waved, saying, "Ciao, meow!"

And, of course, there is a castello in Trieste. We went and took pictures. There was also a museum, which houses Roman artifacts, but none of my pictures really turned out.

Another Roman arch

We also took a trip out to Miramare, built in 1856, which was the summer home of Archduke Maximillian (brother of Franz Josef) - the one who inherited the title Emperor of Mexico from the Spanish side of the Habsburgs, and upon arrival in Mexico was executed. It's not easy being emperor of a country you've got no emotional ties to...

We took a tour of the castle, and the gardens, and had a picnic. The weather held for most of the day, and we were rained out at night, when we had to duck into a bar to get out of a downpour. Yes, unfortunately, it was not the Italian weather most of us anticipate, but it is April. And you know what they say about April showers...!

a break in the gardens

All in all, Trieste was a bit of a disappointment after Ljubljana, mostly because it rained more, but also because the vibes of the two cities are so incredibly different. To me, Trieste seemed very static, stuck in the past, a sort of shy younger sister to Venice, whereas Ljubljana had a much younger, more resourceful and less staid atmosphere. Even as an outsider who had never before been, I could tell: things are changing in the former Yugoslavia. Tourists? Stability? A capitalist economy? It's on the verge of something.

Back to Austria

...and fianlly, we got to Austria! We stayed the weekend in Vienna before Callie had to go home. In which time, we saw Don Giovanni, ate way too much "typical Austiran cuisine" i.e. delicious yet fattening cakes and delicious yet fattening fried foods...and Knödel, which are OK (depending on my mood, delicious even) when my mom makes them every once in a while, but overkill when they are one of two vegetarian options at not one but several restaurants...

For those Austrians in the audience, YES, MY AMERICAN MOM MAKES KNÖDEL!! We have German heritage, which is incredibly common in Wisconsin. 

Me and Callie in the Staatsoper Wien 

One of the things I had been waiting to do with Callie is what she called the "palace tour" : all the remnants of Austria-Hungary we could puzzle together in a weekend. Our itinerary was:

1. Don Giovanni at the Staatsoper - set in Venice, written by Mozart, you can't get a much better finish to our trip than this! The very idea of seeing the opera basically incorporates everything we did for two weeks...

2. Schönbrunn palace and gardens: this was my 3rd time seeing Schönbrunn, but it just gets better with familiarity. Every trip I discover another portrait of Sisi I hadn't remarked upon before. Sure, she was Empress of Austria, Queen of Hungary, etc., but that woman had a bit of a complex. Vain much? Also, many a story* and portrait of a young Marie Antoinette - I have yet to visit Versailles, but that, too, is on my list of places (and palaces) to see. 

3. Hofburg: the Royal apartments, extensive royal kitchen wares/place settings/silverware collection, and even more pictures of Sisi! I had never been to Hofburg, so it's yet another thing to check off my list. In hindsight, perhaps Schönbrunn would have been good enough.

The inspiration for "Franzi"

4. The Spanish Riding School (and the Lippizaner horses)...we didn't take a tour, just loitered in front of the stables (like 90% of the other tourists) and came up with a fabulous idea to sell to Disney. About a gay Lippizaner named Franzi. It will be the next Bambi, I guarantee! I'm sure at least GLAD will be smitten with the idea.

5. Sachertorte and coffee at the Sacher Hotel although expensive - put it on our list of splurges made throughout the trip ;) - one simply must eat Sachertorte at the Sacher Hotel. Anything less just will not do in Vienna!

Enjoying a Melange in the Sacher hotel

Other, less important cakes

Sachertorte

6.  Wandering around Vienna, partly getting lost and partly killing time.

*Oh, about that story. While we were in Schönbrunn, we ran into SIX guided tour groups, each in a different language: German, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Spanish and Italian. We couldn't escape them! And When you have to share a palace with 400+ people snapping photos of the ballroom with their wide angle zoom lenses, suddenly it doesn't seem like much of a palace...BUT! The story, which I overheard from the German guide in the music room was, that as a young boy (I think he was 10 or 11), Mozart came to Schönbrunn with his sister to play for the royal family. Marie Antoinette, just a few months older than Mozart, developed sort of a crush on him. Mozart (the little brat) later told his father that Marie cornered him in the ballroom and gave him a peck on the cheek - this has not been substantiated...Mozart probably made it up. Daddy Mozart then told the Empress, who was less than thrilled. Years later, as the queen consort to Versailles, Marie (now 16 and married to Louis XVI) wrote to her mother to ask if she could contact the Mozarts and engage them to play a concert at Versailles. Maria Theresia wrote back to her daughter (as always, heavy handed), saying ABSOLUTELY NOT! Marie Antoinette dropped the idea. Five years later in 1777, when Mozart did eventually make it to Paris, he did not stop over in Versailles to pay the Queen of France a visit. Perhaps he still had a guilty conscience...

Venezia: Leg One of Italia

Venice, known to some as the Floating City, the City of Water, Queen of the Adriatic, and the former seat of the Venetian Republic, was an important stop on my Easter tour of Italy for a number of reasons:

1. I've always wanted to go to Venice.

2. There is a night train leaving from Amstetten to Venice often (more than once a week) - one of the few international trains that makes a stop in Amstetten! The others I know about go to Budapest and Hamburg.

3. Not only an important part of Italian history and tourism, the city of Venice is important part of Austrian history as well, having been bought off Napoleon by the Habsburgs circa 1797... 

4. Venetian masks have intrigued me for some time. Also, what Grand Tour of Europe is complete without a stopover in Venice?

Callie in front of canal

Other Italian destinations included: Genoa and the Cinque Terre. In Genoa, we met up with our Lawrence buddy Sarah and made our way down to the Cinque Terre (five villages on the Italian Riviera...also a national park) to enjoy some hiking and sunshine and great food!

Our B&B: founded in 1288!!!

But, I will try my best to keep to Venice for this post. While in Venice, we took it easy - leisurely breakfasts in the morning at our amazing (and Rick Steves recommended) B & B; long walks around the lagoon and through the winding streets of Venice; indulging in aperitivi at overpriced canal-side bars...

The Grand Canal 

On Monday, we visited the Palazzo Ducale (doge's palace), former home to il doge, i.e. the duke of Venice - the last being Ludovico Manin, abdicated in 1797. The palazzo is amazing, a great 14th century structure with facades facing the lagoon and St. Mark's Square. AND, if you go exactly at noon, the line is six times shorter than at any other time of day (presumably because this is when all the tourists decide to take their lunch breaks). Admission is  14 euro, but considering the size of the place and all of the restoration work they have to do, it's worth it, in my opinion.

Callie pointing to a map of Venice

Here are some photos of St. Mark's Square:

And even gondolas in the lagoon!

Very romantic.







Considering one of Venice's most famous sons is Casanova, it's no wonder there's a certain "romance" to the city...this may not bode well for honeymooning couples, however...and we saw quite a few! It seems Venice is the "it" place to honeymoon?


And here are pictures of the Palazzo:

the Bridge of Sighs - unfortunately under repair

columns in the palazzo

facade of palazzo

 

 A funny story about the palazzo/ducal prison: Casanova, imprisoned for licentiousness or some such other offense, purportedly escaped the prison by digging a hole through the ceiling...with a file. He then escaped to Paris.

Perhaps the ducal prison didn't have the security of Alcatraz. But it does have the Bridge of Sighs!

photo in piazza of Doge's palace

Tuesday and Wednesday we took it easy, visiting St. Mark's Basilica (Chiesa d'Oro) and the Frari church (which has painitngs by Titian - most famously the Assumption - placed in their original, appropriate spots in the church/sanctum). We also went shopping, and looked at all the beautiful Murano glass jewlery - and other things - and realized how incredibly expensive Venice really is (having previously been warned). Great for a few days, but living here and not being a millionaire would be impossible!

Another interesting fact: the tap water in Venice is superb, mostly because it is sourced directly from run-off from the Alps. Neat, eh?

ceiling in Doge's palace

view from the Bridge of Sighs

Other fun things we did in Venice:

1. Visit mask and costume shops

2. Drool in the windows of all of the pastry shops getting ready for Easter

3. Get "lost" in the narrow, winding streets of Venice (we were never actually lost)

4. Take the Vaparetto all the way down the Grand Canal instead of paying for a gondola ride

 

5. Have REAL Bellinis at Hotel Metropole (and fooling the bartender into thinking we were guests at the hotel)

Click here or here for more information on our sojourn in Venice :)