Wien, Ӧsterreich ~Part 2

Today due to being overheated the past few days and the expected 90 degree weather we decided to do some Museum hopping. All of he major buildings including museums are located on the Ringstraße. The old city wall made way for this street in 1857 commissioned by Emperor Franz Joseph I. The wall had been built in the 13th century with funds acquired from the ransom of Richard I of England.

• Kunsthistorisches Museum (Classical Art Museum)

Here at the Kunst we saw the works of Rembrandt, Rafael, Pieter Bruegel, and more. They also had an Egyptian Museum where they showcased mummies, Roman pots, jewelry, Coins, and other artifacts found in the sands of Egypt. This is perhaps one of our favorite museums that we have seen so far. There was just so much to look at.

• Schloss Hofberg (Hofberg Imperial Palace)

 Although we were not able to go into the Hofberg we did stop and see the Imperial Treasury

• Schatz kammer (Habsburgs Imperial Treasury) 

The Crown of the Holy Roman Emperor

 The Imperial Treasury was somewhat of a letdown. The Treasury contained more robes and weapons than crowns and jewels like you would expect to find in a treasury. The main attraction for me however made up for the lack of glitter; the crown of the Holy Roman Emperor. This Crown was worn by all of the Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire (most notably Charlemagne) since the founding of the Holy Roman Empire around 800 AD.

• The Austrian Parliament Building

The Rathaus can be seen from the steps of Parliament

• Votivkirche

The Votivkirche or Votive church was the site where in 1853 an attempt to assassinate Emperor Franz Joseph I was made. This Church was built to commemorate the Emperors survival and those who helped apprehend the attempted killer.

Like a lot of the churches that we have seen so far, it is also under restoration. The courtyard in front is full of weeds and the outside is blackened from the soot of car exhaust. Part of it is already restored and is simply beautiful.

• Rathause

We were not able to go inside, but I thought I would include it here.

Wien Rathause (Town Hall)

We should be in Salzburg on Sunday.

See you all soon,
Jeremy

Wien, Ӧsterreich ~Part 1

Hi everyone,

We have been exploring Wein for a couple of days now. It has been incredibly muggy here these past few days and we have been sweating like pigs. :) It was about 90 degrees yesterday.

Stephansdom has to have one of the most spectacular roof lines. This Cathedral is just Huge! It was built in the 14th century (or 1300-1401 AD) and is currently under restoration.

 We also visited Schӧnbrunn the Habsburg's summer palace located just outside Wein. Originally a hunting lodge, the Habsburg's rebuilt it as their summer retreat away from the bustling City life, but, not too far away to keep an eye on their government. Schӧnbrunn at one time was home to over one thousand servants and court members. Napoleon stayed here twice during the his occupations of Wein during the Napoleonic Wars.

For some odd reason- home just doesn't seem that far away....

See you all soon,
Jeremy

Europe 2011

Well here we go again! We are travailing through Europe. Our itinerary is as follows:

1. Wien, Ӧsterreich (Vienna, Austria)
2. Salzburg, Ӧsterreich
3. Tirol, Ӧsterreich
4. Venice, Italy
5. Bayern, Deutschland (Bavaria, Germany)

Our flights from the U.S.A.:

1. We flew out of Seatac at 7:20 PM (PST)
2. Arrived at Heathrow at 12 PM (BST) and caught our next flight at 3 PM (BST)
3. We arrived in Wien, Ӧsterreich (Vienna, Austria) at 6 PM (CEST).

In Total: 12 hrs
Our flights went rather well. We didn't sleep much on the first flight but by the second we were too tired not to sleep.

Across from our Apartment there is a Dӧnner and Kebab restaurant which upon arriving we immediately acquired two chicken and three beef Dӧnner pita wraps. YUM! :)

We went to sleep almost right away. My sister fell asleep sooner than I did! :)

I still have a bit of Jet-leg and have been doing a lot of walking. It's been a blast!

We have been exploring Wien. Our Apartment that we are staying in is about ten min. outside of the Altstadt (old City) and we have been taking the subway and tram everywhere.

We leave for Salzburg on Sunday.


See you all soon,

Jeremy

P.S.
I have also posted pictures on Picasa: https://picasaweb.google.com/JRRaymond.06/Europe2011?authuser=0&feat=directlink
More Pictures and Blog to follow.

Winthrop, Leavenworth and Beyond

Off again in our RV. 31 ft of fun filled adventure. We left Everett around noon and made our way north up I-5 to Burlington and wound our way east past small rural towns down through gulls and up hills reaching the towns of Sedro-Woolley and Concrete.

The terrain grew steeper after that and windier as we drove, bounding off of the green majestic hills of the North Cascade National Park. The Mountains loomed before us like slumbering giants covered in thin snowy blankets. The Evergreens towered high above clinging to the face of the menacing cliffs. We stopped only twice on the trip in to Winthrop once at the Seattle City light town of Newhalem and then at a lookout overlooking the Diablo Dam. Those stops were blessed. Carly and I got a little car sick from all the jostling should be better tomorrow though as we are staying here for a day before heading to Leavenworth.

Here are some shots that I took with my new Canon Rebel T1i:












We arrived in the Town of Winthrop around 4 in the afternoon. The sun was brightly shinning and the town charming with its rustic Wild West setting. The boardwalks stretched out in front of the storefronts inviting visitors to wonder off of the dusty streets and into the shops. We did not stop as we wanted to get to our campground so we could pitch tent (as it were) at the local KOA.

As KOAs go it's pretty typical, parking lot style full hookup sites, pool, free WiFi, and pricey. This should be a fun trip.

Tomorrow we go into Winthrop to have a right good old time.

See you are later this week,
I will post more soon,
Jeremy

The Town of Winthrop

Winthrop General Store

signs dotted the byways in colorful array.

With its hoedown charms Winthrop, stands peacefully in the Methow valley. It's tam a barren hills echoes of times past. The verbal sound of gunfire and the clicking of pick axes off of the hills where mines were once in abundance ran through our minds as we perused the shops.



The weather was excellent and my Camera and I have been busy taking photos! :)

More Boardwalk Pleasures

We stopped at this local ice-cream parlor for a small bite to eat.

Some saddles for those little wranglers. :)

 

While in the Methow Valley we also stopped in to see the fish hatchery.

Salmon looking yummy!

More Fish Going after cat food.

Tomorrow it's on to Leavenworth!

See you all soon,
Jeremy

Last Day

Boy we have had a very enjoyable week. We flew from Seattle on Thursday Aug 27^th spent the first day in Disneyland, the second day we went crazy going to Hollywood and made a stop in Santa Monica. The Third day we spent half the day in California Adventure and the other half in Disneyland. We had lunch at the Blue Bayou and on the fourth day we stopped at Universal studios visiting the back lot. Day five we went to San Diego and splashed around with the killer whales.

Now I am sitting in the Airport after a few hours spent at California Adventure waiting for our plain.

I will be landing in Seattle at about six o'clock tonight. I can't wait to get home. :)

SeaWorld San Diego California

Today we visited Sea World! It was lots of Fun. We saw beluga whales, polar bears, sea otters, walruses, penguins, dolphins, eels, sting ray, orcas, clydesdales, dogs, cats…. Lots and lots of animals….

The pack at the pet show

Beluga whales getting fed

Beluga Whale swimming upside down

Penguins having a party in the shade

Our time with the killer whales got pretty wet. Here is Shamu getting the audience wet.

Me and mom were up in the upper belchers and let the others get drenched.

The girls got up and personal with some stingray.

We also saw a great Dolphin Show. The crowd got wet here as well.

On our way back to the hotel we made a pit stop for a cool treat.

What a busy day.