Day 4: Frohe Ostern

Happy Easter everyone!!!

We've had an amazing day today.  It is shortly after 10pm.  Most of the kids are already in their rooms and sleeping while a few others are catching up on some news from home.  I am in the lobby of the Hotel Arion once again.  The wifi at this hotel is really strong and it makes composing this blog a little easier.  I am keeping my fingers crossed that the rest of this trip finds similarly strong connections.

Today, for breakfast, the hotel had colored eggs out for the guests.  I don't eat hard boiled eggs, but for many of us, it was a nice way to start the day.  Even more special, however, was the Easter present that I received from Bianca...I am pretty sure I saw her passing one out to everyone too.

Chocolate Easter Eggs make the start of every day better!!!

The delicious treat wasn't the only thing I had today.  I also ate a healthy, albeit normal, breakfast.

My usual European breakfast consists of a sandwich. Today, I had some salami, ham, and cheese.  I accompanied the sandwich with some scrambled eggs and bacon.  The bacon was a little different than I expected.  It looked like someone had sliced a hotdog into strips and cooked them...it tasted a little bit like that too.  I also had some granola and yogurt.  I topped it all off with a strong cup of Viennese coffee and two glasses of apple juice.  There are lots of other options here, but I kept it to the basics.

We left the hotel for our guided tour of Vienna.  Our local guide was Margot, we greeted her with some authentic German greetings coached to us by Gina.  I think we did a great job of saying Hello and Happy Easter.  It set a positive tone and the tour began.  Margot was a really good guide.  She was super knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions.  As we drove through the city, we saw many interesting sights.

One of the most bizarre things was the Hundertwasserhaus.  It was designed by an Austrian painter and philosopher.  He believed that people should be able to decorate their own living space, the straight lines were boring, and that we should share our space with nature.  All of these aspects are part of his design in an apartment building in the city.  We had a few minutes to explore his unique way of seeing the world.

After touring this little piece of Vienna, we continued our tour.  We had a few minutes of travel time before reaching the Summer Palace of the Hapsburg family and so, I kept my camera at the ready for other cools images.  I was so pleased to see a little bit of home along the way:

[Author's note: Mr. Jones and I were trying to explain to Gina what the Kowloon Entertainment Complex was all about. It's harder than you think.]

I also saw something very nice...

The weather forecast had predicted showers all day and a cold temperature, but overall, I don't think we saw a single rain drop...instead, the sun kept trying to poke out from behind the clouds.  We were cold, a little bit, but, the day turned out to be great.

The drive to Schonbrunn Palace took a little longer than expected, but when I glanced ahead, I understood why we were going so slowly...

Sunday driver...

Taking up two lanes...

We reached the palace and Margot took us inside.  There is a strict "no picture" policy so I will try to explain a little about what we saw.  Basically, it was the summer palace for Maria Theresa.  The Winter Palace is also in Vienna, but this one was out in the countryside...back then.  The palace hosts of 1400 rooms.  It needed them all, because Maria Theresa, in addition to running an empire, had 16 children.  The tour we saw didn't cover all of them, but it hit some amazingly decorated rooms.  We entered into a grand ballroom, we saw many cabinets, and we saw the Rich Room.  The cabinets were smaller rooms with specific designs.  I think members of the royal family used them as living rooms, but not for the whole family.  A couple of them were inspired by Chinese designs and art.  One was painted to look like it was made of porcelain.  The Rich Room is called that because of the bed that rests inside of its walls.  The sheets are made with gold and silver fabrics.  The tour walked through a sealed container prohibiting humidity from entering the room.  The bed was used to present newborn children to the courts of Hapsburgs.  This type of destination isn't really the favorite of most American kids...and I get it.  We don't teach out kids about architecture.  They don't learn about tapestry designs or the nuances of court life.  Even our White House isn't as intricate as this summer home.  The connection is somewhat limited, but I tried to remind the kids that people lived here...and worked here.  This wasn't always a museum, this was a home.  Each cabinet had some furniture, but it also had a large decorative heater.  The heater was fed wood through hidden chambers behind the walls in each room.  Royals could sit there, reading or painting, and never see the staff members feeding the fires to keep them warm.  It is just a different world...but a real one.  It isn't just a fantasy.  

An illegal photo taken inside the Grand Ball Room.  The artwork is almost visible.  I wish I had a better shot for everyone.

The horse and buggy that almost took my life, lol.  It got a little too close for comfort.

The Palace from the front.  I slipped and didn't get many other pictures.

After completing our tour, we had an option.  We could walk the gardens or visit the Easter Market.  Our group divided and did both.  I walked into the Easter Market not really knowing what to expect.  It was really fun.  The garden is also really nice, from what I heard and read, and deserves a visit on my next trip to Vienna.

The Easter Bunny's Workshop had live entertainment.

Dalia and Nicole dancing with Steve behind them.

I think he was there for the children...I am not sure it was fun for the little ones, lol.

Kristen and Natalya ordering snacks

Kaiserschmarrn - Pancakes covered in Apple Sauce...some kids got plum or chocolate

These girls had an eggceptional time at the Market.

After the visit to Schonbrunn, we headed back into the city center.  We broke off for lunch and souvenir shopping.  Some of us went to a couple of the other Easter Markets and some visited museums.  The weather got chilly, but stayed dry. 

One of the things that is really common here are horse and buggies.  We had seen them at the palace and they are scattered all over the city center too.  Adriana, Bianca, and I decided to try one out.  Our guide was really nice as he tried to explain what we were seeing. His English wasn't nearly as good as Margot's and I'm not sure I understood anything he said.  At the conclusion of the ride, I asked him for a picture.  He had a wonderful time.  He took so many pictures, lol.  He concluded the ride by telling us that he has been riding for 36 years.  I think he took a picture for every year he has been working!!!

It should be noted that we all matched today.  I wanted to take a second to thank the SHS Alumni Association for buying us matching sweatshirts.  Not only have they kept us warm, it helps when tracking down kids who have spent too much time in a gift shop.

After our ride, it was time for dinner.  Tonight's main course was a loaf of meat...it looked like a hamburger, but tasted like meat loaf.  It was really good too.  It was accompanied by whipped potatoes.  I am pretty sure everyone liked it.  Here are some traditional dinner photos:

Meatloaf, Viennese style.

An artsy table in an artsy pose.

With dinner behind us, Gina suggested that we head to a small amusement park.  We took the metro and many of us decided to ride the Ferris Wheel.  As someone who doesn't love heights, I stayed below.  We had some good shots throughout the night of the kids in their cars.

A few of the brave souls who did not ride the Wheel.

Prater is the Amusement Park

Look closely, you can see some kids.

The day was complete.  I hope it was a memorable Easter for the kids.  I was speaking with Mrs. Morando about the day, we think it was a success.  We hope that year's from now, these kids, with families of their own, will be telling stories from this Easter, in this city, and with smiles on their faces.

Tomorrow, we are headed to Prague. The weather still looks sour, but I am hopeful that the charm of that city transcends the inclement weather that we might face.  There is even the possibility of snow...I know, right.  With that said, I was able to successfully go live today on Facebook.  I am hopeful to do that a couple more times on the trip. I hope I am successful.  We have a long bus ride ahead of us, but Norbert is up to the task.  Gina instructed the kids in basic Prague Geography and we taught them how to download offline maps to their phones for use when they don't have data.  The E in EF stands for Education.  We have to make these trips about learning...and these kids are so willing to learn. It has been an absolute pleasure so far...even if tomorrow marks the halfway point!

Mr. Lavoie, in Austria wishing you all a wonderful Easter.