Schonbrunn

Today we had off, so it became the perfect to day spend at Schonbrunn. Schonbrunn is most famous for being the royal residency and summer house of the Habsburgs during the reign of Maria Theresia. However, the palace has a history of its own. It was built to rival Versailles in France, and was at one point owned by the monastery Klosterneuburg (which we toured with the canons) but came into Habsburg control in 1569 under Matthias II. It became a hunting house, with Matthias extending the game park, and remained a hunting palace for several years. Its name was originally 'Schone Brunnen' meaning fair spring, but was later first changed by Emperor Ferdinand II's wife to its current name, Schonbrunn. However, during the second Turkish siege of 1683, the palace was plundered and destroyed.

Under Emperor Leopold I, the palace was rebuilt and Fischer von Erlach was commissioned as its architect. However, plans stalled, and the palace was never completed according to original designs. Charles VI inherited the hunting palace, but gave it as a gift to his daughter Maria Theresia since he only ever used the grounds for hunting. Maria Theresia transformed the palace and completed its construction under the designs of Nikolaus Pacassi. After the palace was completed, a second phase of construction began in 1750, with Maria Theresia transforming the baroque palace into the more rococo style of the late baroque period. The gold floral ornamentations and the heavily tapestried rooms of rich deep colors are quintessential examples of the baroque style, with elaborate details in every corner and large dramatic frescos lining the ceilings and marble walls. The interior is largely rococo, each room composed of a different palate - one room being of yellow and blue fabric on the walls; two oriental styled rooms; the blue room with blue ceramics and sketches covering the walls; rooms filled with landscapes by Bergl; and then the grand ball room with heavy red velvets, marble, and high frescoed ceilings.

Maria Theresia's last contribution to the palace's growth was the gardens - she designed the gardens and hired an architect to construct the Neptune fountain and the beautiful Gloriette - the hill upon which Fischer von Erlach's original palace would have stood.

The palace remained a hunting retreat under Habsburg power until 1918 with the dissolution of the Habsburg monarchy, thus becoming the property of the Austrian Republic and used as a museum.

Our own tour which Sidney and I went on allowed us to look into 40 of the 200+ rooms of the main palace, and gave us entrance into all of the gardens. The Privy Gardens and the Orangery, the Palm House (housing the exotic and tropical plants), the bakery (free apfelstrudel classes!!), and the Gloriette (a cafe with a gorgeous view on top) were all covered in our ticket, giving us a great sense of the palace. The range of gardens is only one manifestation of the vast and expansive power which the Habsburgs held over Austria; the palace, too, as well as the estate as a whole, also demonstrate the domination of the Habsburgs and their incredible wealth and absolutism.

It was amazing to see such progressive techniques and styles throughout both the palace and the gardens (requiring hundreds of servants for upkeep) - the steam heaters used to heat the palace, the french gardens manicured so well, and the large fountain all seem to reflect the constantly changing palace and the forever progressive and dominating rule of the Habsburgs.

Heeresgeschichtliches Museum and the Kunsthistorisches Museum

15 August 2010

After Saturday in Bratislava, it was hard to go back to visiting museums on Sunday. However, we had to go to the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (military museum) and revisit the Kunsthistorisches Museum to view the antiquities collection.

The Heeresgeschichtliches had some interesting exhibits, including both the car in which Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated by the Black Hand and which began the first World War, and the exhibition of the Ottomon Turks and their relation to Austria throughout the seiges in 1529 and 1683. The lower level of the museum focuses primarily on Austria during World War I, with a small, slightly out of place exhibition at the end regarding Austria's involvement with the UN. There were many different cases of military uniforms, war medals, guns, etc. It looked much like one would expect during any time of war in the past, only with the uniforms and weapons emblazoned with the crest or flag of the nation they belonged to. The room containing Franz Ferdinand's car was amazing however. The car stood, bullet hole and all, to the side of the room, while the military jacket through which the bullet pierced him was lying in the middle of the room, along with the couch which he bled to death on (the blood is covered). It was definitely a different feeling than one gets when seeing the relics of an American war - to see the remnants of a nation during a war into which it was largely drawn into due to Germany's invasion of Belgium, Luxembourg, and France, one has mixed emotions.

The shelled bunker domes and the worn military uniforms give one a glimpse into the weariness of war and of the Austrian morale - a culture which went from complete control under an absolutist monarchy to a war into which they did not directly choose to become involved in.

This desolate mentality and utter despair - despair which any nation at war faces, but which is intensified in a nation with a suppressed culture - is so plainly displayed throughout this exhibit. The end, the exhibit displayed cars and engines used during the war and also displayed various large machine guns and weapons.

The UN exhibition was most definitely out of place within the museum, much less placed alongside the previous WWI display. The staged scenes of UN involvement and of cars and mannequins in mid-action looked cheap and took away from both the importance of Austria's relationship with the UN and from the dramatic display of WWI.

Walking through the various sculptures of military generals and important Austrian military figures, the upstairs is much more grand than downstairs. The marble walls with large frescos of Austrian rulers and war victories, the crests of the Austro-Hungarian empire, including that of Bohemia, inlayed into the marble, and the domed roofs and tall columns all lend to the power and show which the Habsburgs desired. Even though this building was built as an arsenal for military equipment and deliberation with no intention of being a public museum, it was in a sense built exactly for that - as a museum to show wealth. Like much of the Habsburg empire, the arsenal was built for pomp and show, a physical manifestation of power, wealth, and beauty meant to dominate and overwhelm any enemy or common citizen.

After the military museum, we headed over to the Kunsthistoriches Museum for a second visit - this time to see the Egyptian, Greek, and Roman antiquities. The Egyptian art and relics were amazing - most everything was in excellent condition and was in whole units, not broken and missing pieces. Most of the artwork or engravings which we saw involved some sort of matriarchal worship, blessing the gods for food and good harvests. The altar of Sety I, an Egyptian Pharoh reigning from 1290-1279 BC and most notable for having captured the Syrian city of Kadush, was also on display amongst the tombs and stone pieces. The most interesting thing for me, however, was the various tablets of writings shown, ranging from hieroglyphs to cuneiform. It is amazing to think that those were common ways of communication, and that somewhere in the world, some one can read these tablets! Also, to see the progression of language throughout the antiquities exhibition as a whole was interesting, noting the transition from hieroglyphs to cuneiform to Greek and then to latin. Having studied the latter two and their complex grammatical systems, I can appreciate the complexity of both hieroglyphs and cuneiform, especially without an auditory basis for each language.

After the Egyptian artifacts came the Greek and Roman artifacts, showing an almost uneven transition in the layout of early and later Greek art. I found it hard to establish a pattern in the exhibit's fluidity, or lack there of, and found much of the later Greek art to have been placed near the beginning of the rooms. Also, much of the Roman art and many of the Roman sculptures were interspersed with the Greek artifacts, making for an unclear and less informative exhibition. Also, referencing back to the progression of languages, many Roman tablets were placed before the Greek tablets, and many of the Greek tablets were near the end, showing an uneven and inaccurate formulation of modern languages.

However, for as much as fluidity lacked, the relics within the rooms were quite interesting. A lot of Roman busts were on display, although there were very few of actual emperors or generals - most were of figures not particularly famous. There was also a lot of preserved jewelry and potsherds - interesting, but after having taking 'Intro to Archaeology' my first quarter at Davis, my interest was lacking. The neatest things on display were the greek figurines of the various gods (these figurines showing a progression over time of both style and perception of worship) and the tablets inscribed with Ancient Greek.

As a whole, the exhibit was interesting to see but hard to follow; individually, each culture within the exhibit was informative and relevant to an earlier Austrian history, when Vienna was in reality Vindobona.

Bratislava

After being in the Alps, we were able to enjoy a long three day weekend - enough time to visit Bratislava on Saturday! Sidney, myself, and two other girls decided to catch the train to Slovakia and explore its capital - easier said than done.

We left around 12, and didn't catch the train until 2 due to our lack of navigational skills, not to mention the fact that to get to the train station, one has to take the U-bahn (subway), then the S-bahn (city train) and then catch the OBB (Austrian train). Anyways, we got lost several times, but finally made it to beautiful Bratislava. The town itself (the historical district where we spent our time) is fairly small, but beautiful and quaint nonetheless. Small winding streets lined with cafes and stores lead to churches, fountains, and bridges. We found a small Catholic church, with the stations of the cross made out of wood carvings spaced along the interior walls. A plague statue of Mary and Jesus stood outside - in view of the whole town. The most interesting thing to observe, however, was that there was a line for confession. Unlike Vienna where most of the population is non-religious and where churches are more a tourist destination than a religious house, this church has people actively standing in line and going in to receive confession. It was also interesting to note the contrast in how the church was preserved versus the how the Viennese preserve their churches - in Vienna, only the most original materials are used, in hopes of restoration. In this church, plastic, vinyl, and fake flowers adorned the alters and floors.

After the church, we wandered through the town, walking under St. Michael's Gate, the last of the medieval fortifications standing within the city. It was built in 1300, but underwent baroque reconstruction which we can still see today. It served as one of the four gates into the fortified city.

It seemed as if most of the buildings had been grand palaces at one time; now they all house various national embassies with flags proudly waving out front. The American Embassy was especially interesting due to it being the only embassy with heavy gates and security; might this be a silent manifestation of how the world perceives us and how we perceive our role as a world police, or a comment on the state of American politics? Also, we passed by several buildings and even a gated courtyard adorned with the crest of the Habsburg empire - their influence was more extensive than mere Austria, Bohemia, and Hungary.

We also ventured up to the castle, a critical fortress overlooking the land in all directions and inhabited since recorded history. It stands as a key focal point within the amber route, between the Carpathians and the Alps, along the Danube, and as a center of trade between east and west. It was once owned by the Celts, then by the Romans (similar to Vienna's own early history), and then was eventually under the rule of Hungary, becoming the Hungarian King's main castle. Baroque reconstruction overran the Renaissance style, and when Maria Theresia became queen of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1740, she made her own rococo renovations. Eventually, the office of governor of the Kingdom of Hungary was abolished, leaving the castle in shambles and ruins. Today, it has been restored, and is only partially open to the public.

The differences between Bratislava and Vienna were many - I much prefer Vienna's business and size than the always quite streets of Bratislava. However, due to its proximity and historical overlap with Vienna, it was an interesting day trip behind the old iron curtain.

I did find it interesting in Reading Beller's Concise History of Austria, when cultural nationalism was discussed as being encouraged as opposed to the "political quietism" practiced under the politician Metternich. He talks of how nationalism came of age "while the government suppressed political life" (120). Beller takes this notion of cultural nationalism and its emergence before World War I and applies it to Slovakia, where Metternich played one ethnicity or nation off of another, using the Slovakians against the Hungarians. He states that this use of one nation against another "explains the occasional encouragement of cultural nationalism among the 'nations without history' such as Slovaks, so called because they were seen as peasant nations without their own ruling class or established high culture" (121). After reading this, I would have to disagree, or rather challenge Beller's statement regarding the emergence of cultural nationalism and the lack of Slovakian history. As I have discussed in previous blogs, the memory or history of Austria has been long skewed; unlike Slovakia, Austria had a ruling elite, primarily the Habsburgs, which included the Esterhazy family and the Liechtenstein family. However, the morale of the Austrian citizen and the definition of what it means to be Austrian has also been tarnished due to its long ruling absolutist government and then the suppressive and oppressive reign of Adolf Hitler. WWI and WWII depleted the Austrian sole of a heritage, and raped them of their culture.

Thus, to say that nationalism, particularly cultural nationalism emerged is true, since the entire region of Eastern and Central Europe was attempting to create a culture particular to its people. However, for Beller to say that the Slovakians lacked a culture, while failing to address the Austrian's own lack of heritage and implying that Austrian heritage was in fact stable and established is a bold and brazen statement to make on his part.

As it was interesting to compare the atmosphere and streets of Bratislava and Vienna, so too is it intriguing to study the differences in perception held by historians of the two cities' cultures.

Burg Forchenstein

13 August 2010

Friday as we headed back to Vienna from the Alps, we took advantage of our bus and stopped at another Esterhazy castle and a Liechtenstein castle. As stated by Beller in his Concise History of Austria, during the Habsburg rule "military and political success was accompanied by an economic expansion which favored the largest landholders"(75). Thus, the Esterhazy fortress was another building illustrating the prominence of a Hungarian noble family.

The castle is called Burg Forchenstein, used by the Esterhazy family as a treasury and arsenal since the Turks failed to capture it in their sieges and wars. Furthermore, the Turks never actually entered the region of this castle, making this castle one of the only castles not disturbed by the Turkish invasions. The medieval castle was originally built by the Mattersdorf Counts, but around 1450 the Habsburgs obtained the castle. In 1622 Nikolaus Esterhazy was given the castle by Emperor Ferdinand II as a reward for a military victory, giving Nikolaus both lordship of the town and the land itself. The castle was rebuilt into a fortress, with a moat and tall walls, looming over the the land and able to see enemies from afar. Paul, Nikolaus's son, expanded the fortress, and embellished its interiors and ceilings with frescos, creating a aura of power and might from within. Thus the military facade of the fortress gave way to baroque frescos, courtyards, and paintings. Upon the death of Paul, the castle was no longer used as a fortress, but, as previously stated, as a treasury and arsenal.

Our tour began in the baroque courtyard, just inside the walls. The archway leading into the courtyard is painted with frescos of leading Roman Emperors, including Nero and Caesar; the baroque colors, however faded, still seem to radiate from the deep reds, yellows, and blues used as dye. However, once inside the courtyard, the surrounding walls are painted with brilliant frescos of the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, many of those being from the Habsburg dynasty. Throughout the archway's and courtyard's frescos, the designs surrounding the Roman and Holy Roman Emperors include classical motifs and ancient symbols, including a bronze alligator which came from Egypt in 1704 and is said to be the 'defender' of the castle.

After we entered the castle, we were led around to see the various rooms, most involving the artillery and weapons used to defend themselves from the Turks. Many of the rooms also had paintings of the Esterhazy family and of nobles associated with military importance. There was a Prussian tent captured in war made entirely out of heavy silk, rifles and war guns captured from both the Prussians and the French. We were able to see the glass grenades used in war (one of the first versions of the modern grenade), the old map used for battles, and the various accessories employed during executions and public punishments (the chair for the guilty, the sword for beheading, the wooden neck and arm holders, and prices for beheading, etc). The punishment and execution instruments were some of the more interesting artifacts we saw, especially since I took Crime and Punishment as an upper division history course this past Spring, and execution rites and practices were discussed extensively.

The next rooms also contained grenade bags, muskets, holsters, artillery wagons, wooden saddles, flags with crests indicating the rider's military leader, and swords. The enormity of the arsenal collection that we were able to see and that has been recovered gives one a glimpse into the grandeur and wealth of the Esterhazy family, and how their wealth allowed them to ineract with both the Habsburgs, and the Roman Catholic Church (the two sources of power throughout Austria's history). The last rooms were the kitchen and the dining room - interesting to see, allowing one to see what life was like rather than providing deep historical meanings. Our last stop was at the well, dug by Turkish and Spanish prisoners of war - it is one of the deepest man made wells, and was propelled purely by man power.

After our tour at the castle, we headed home along the Panoramic Highway - through one of Austria's most dense wine regions, with vineyards on either side. On this highway we stopped briefly at Burg Liechtenstein, built during the mid 12th century by the Liechtenstein family - a large landholding family in lower Austria under the Habsburg rule. The castle was then destroyed by the Turks in 1529 and 1683 but was rebuilt and restored. Unfortunately, it is undergoing reconstruction and was only partially open to the public.

In all, it was a great break from Vienna, but the city is so beautiful it is hard not to miss it.

The Alps

12 August 2010

Thursday turned out to be a beautiful day in the Alps, allowing us to hike! We set out at 10, and ended up hiking for 7 hours! We were able to hike from house to house, eating lunch at one cabin, cake at another, etc. It truly was absolutely breathtaking - the mountains and green grass were never ending. I can understand how the Habsburgs gained power so quickly, and how they came to be seen as absolutist monarchs - invaders were unable to conquer the rugged Alps, and the wealth which the Alps provided the monarchy was crucial in their ability to become such prominent rulers over so many years.

Eisenstadt

11 August 2010

Wednesday we headed out on a bus for the Alps, but took a detour to learn more about a prominent hungarian ruling family. We stopped at Eisenstadt, a small town outside of Vienna, the capital of Austria's easternmost state, Burgenland ('land of castles'). Eisenstadt was the main center of power for the Esterhazy family, a Hungarian noble family who owned a considerable amount of land during the Habsburg's reign, obtained from redistribution of Protestant lands, redistribution of land of the defeated Turks, and through marriages. They appealed both to the Habsburgs and the Catholic Church, thus gaining notoriety and prominence in Austria and in Hungary.

Count Nikolaus was the first member of the family to become powerful, elected as Palatine of Hungary in 1625. Nikolaus's son, Paul was soon elected Palatine of Hungary as well as Prince of the Holy Roman Empire by Emperor Leopold I and a member of the prestigious Order of the Golden Fleece, thus yielding considerable power. Paul inherited his father's stature and land, and he continued his expansion of land through marriage. Paul was a devout supporter of the Catholic Church, having been raised by Jesuits, and thus became a major patron of the local church in Eisenstadt. His first marriage was to his niece, Countess Ursula, to prevent the division of the Esterhazy lands and thus uniting them - leaving his lands to his two oldest sons upon his death also ensured the unity of the lands.

In 1946, the Esterhazy family lost all of their fortunes, becoming Swiss citizens and losing all of their land to the state. 500,000 acres of land were lost to the Hungarians, but some of their Austrian lands were retained.

Paul I's devotion to the Church led him to build a Franciscan church on an artificial hill within Eisenstadt, naming it Mount Calvary Church; they also oversaw a hospital. The church was built by 15th and 16th century Franciscans, portraying imitations of Calvary due to the Turks' siege on Jerusalem in 1071. The church was built in thanksgiving for driving the Turks from Austria and Eisenstadt - freedom, an army, and faith were the building blocks of the church.

Outside of the church there is a plague statue, erected in thanksgiving for surviving the plague; another plague statue is found on the Hauptstrasse (main street), in memory of the last plague to have come to Eisenstadt. The church itself is built highly irregular, with an uneven roof and stairs climbing the outside. Behind the altar lies a door, leading those religious on a physical tour of the stations of the cross, with an altar or small alcove dedicated to a particular station. These stations begin inside the church, but wind around and lead up to the church's roof, where the crucifixion of Christ is portrayed.

The most famous association with this church, and with the Esterhazy family, is the composer Haydn. Paul II became a patron to the composer Haydn, and later Nikolaus I became a patron as well, beginning a lasting and close knit history between the family and the composer. Haydn was the first composer to earn a salary from music, performing mainly in Vienna and was hired as Kapellmeister for the Esterhazy court. Inside the church lays both the Haydn organ on which Haydn played his various compositions, and Haydn's remains. In 1820, a crypt was built within the church, and to this day Haydn's remains are found there. His music stands apart from other classical composers in that it is not overwhelming with grandeur and pomp but shows raw talent and creativity. It is easy to listen to and does not require a particular mood for one to be in upon hearing it.

The palace we saw was once a medieval fortress of 250 rooms, built to fortify the family from the threat of Turkish invasion. However, in the 1660s, Paul began renovations to transform the palace from medieval to baroque. Thus, not only were we able to see the domination and power of the Esterhazy family within the style of the palace, we were able to see the family's close association to both the Catholic Church and classical music.

After our tour of the Esterhazy palace, we were given time to walk through the town, and then we were off to the Alps. We arrived at dusk, and had to take a gondola from the mountain's base to the top in order to arrive at the inn. The place was extremely neat, perched on the top of a mountain, and surrounded by amazing views. The inn is used as a ski resort in the winter, and as a popular hiking destination in the summer. Seeing the

beauty and grandeur of the Alps for the first time made it very clear the power of the Habsburgs and their intimidation to other nations - the sheer amount of land, impenetrable land at that, made the Habsburgs politically and financially powerful.

Kunsthistoriches Museum and Butterflies

Vienna was beautiful today - sunny again after the rain we have had. Class was cancelled due to logistical problems, allowing us to sleep in and explore on our own until our tour at the Kunsthistoriches (art history) Museum at 2. However, while the rest of the students were sleeping in, Sidney and I decided to get a head start on the day - we are bound and determined to get as much out of this city as possible, and to visit as many cafes as we can!

Our first stop of the day was Cafe Diglas for a morning melange. The cafe is a traditional Wiener Kaffeehaus with the red velvet cushions, situated a block away from Stephansdom but considerably low in tourist traffic. After our morning coffee, we made our way to the

Schmetterlinghaus, the imperial butterfly house in the Hofburg. It was a small greenhouse on the side of the Hofburg palace, close to our classroom. It was the neatest thing - butterflies were everywhere!!! It was humid and the place was relatively small, but there were waterfalls and ponds and bridges to walk across and see the butterflies. It was definitely worth the euros to get in. After the butterflies, we bought sandwiches and ate in the park - I believe we are starting to look more like locals (or at least students) and less like tourists.

We met our group at 2 in front of the Kunsthistoriches Museum, housed in the palace built by Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1858 to house the Habsburg's art collections. The Baroque period in Vienna, in which style this building was built, was one of opposites - enormous wealth versus grinding poverty (Parsons 173). However, the Kunsthistoriches Museum was built in 1891, in the period immediately preceding the Ringstrasse period which was marked by historicism (neo-classical, neo-baroque, neo-renaissance).

Following the baroque period was the Enlightenment in Vienna, defined through Maria Theresia and her son Joseph II. Joseph II was a radical reformer, imposing new sanitation laws, granting his Edit of Toleration regarding religion, and closing down unproductive monasteries to shift his focus to efficient secular institutions. Maria Theresia and Joseph also were large proponents of cultural enlightenment, with Joseph II embracing the notion of "Enlightened idealization of 'the people' thus prompting him to cultivate parks, theaters, and a musical culture (Beller 94). Under Maria Theresia, "artistic patronage made Vienna a magnet for a host of hopeful artists, composers and poets in addition to architects...[thus] entertainments, particularly theater and opera, flourished" (Spielman 202, 206). With the public and cultural reforms having been established by Maria Theresia and Joseph II, Emperor Franz Joseph I was only continuing in this 'Enlightened idealization of the people' with the construction of the Kunsthistoriches Museum, allowing the public access to another form of culture.

The museum is broken up into three main collections but is only large enough to show 1/3 of the artwork to the public: Greek and Roman Antiquities, Baroque art, and Renaissance Art. Our tour with Dr. O. today was a 3 1/2 hour combination of the baroque and renaissance collections, highlighting the main artists and one of their major works each. It was interesting to compare the baroque from the renaissance artwork since yesterday's church, Stephansdom, contained many architectural pieces built at this time of change between gothic, baroque, and

renaissance cultural styles (Anton Pilgrim's pulpit).

The main differences between the two forms of the art involve both the time period and the incorporation of religion, but most importantly, the differences lie in the use of motion and light.

Baroque art is characterized by religious symbolism, heavy, intricate details, vibrant colors and lighting. Movement, symmetry, and excessive ornamentation were the focus. The artist's aim was often to communicate religious messages and to depict emotion and passion between the characters. Shading was used heavily and light was used creatively.

Comparatively, the Renaissance was a turn away from religion and God and a turn toward humanism, man, and enlightenment. The paintings were more static, with less light and shading. The human form rather than the glory of God was depicted, and the paintings involved intricate details of the human form and its various abilities to contort itself.

The first paintings we stopped at were by Albrecht Durer. Durer was considered the Leonardo north of the Alps, with an intellectual curiosity and a menagerie of hobbies and careers, although he was trained in the medieval way of painting. His interest lay in the deconstruction and anatomically correct portrayal of the human body, shown in his Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand. It is innately in the renaissance style, due to the curves and contortions of the bodies depicted; baroque artists would never have included so many figures, nor would they have been able to depict such a detailed landscape. It shows 10,000 Christians being massacred by the enemy (Roman Hadrian); since Durer didn't know what the enemy had looked like, he painted them as Turks due to the prominent threat of a Turkish invasion in his day. The painting shows a mastering of the human body, and thus Durer included himself within the painting (an extremely renaissance feature).

His second piece, the Adoration of the Trinity, shows Christ crucified on the cross with God (here, an emperor) and a dove above Him.

Again, the landscape on the bottom shows renaissance technique, as does the inclusion of both himself and the donor of the piece. Durer had originally constructed a wooden altar piece to hold the painting, but it was left in Nuremberg when the painting was transfered to Vienna. The copy at the Kunsthistoriches shows an evident theme of good versus evil, with Christ in judgment above.

After Durer, we saw Pieter the Elder Bruegel's (Netherlandish Renaissance painter) The Fight Between Carnival and Lent. There was so much religious symbolism in this painting it was overwhelming. The painting shows Carnival on the left, with drunkenness, partying, and excess. On the right is Lent, with emaciated characters, symbols of the poor, and people streaming out of church. In between the two is a couple following a jester. It is unsure to which side they will go, for the symbolism they carry could imply either side, but it is clear that Bruegel desired to show that there is a time and a place for each (excess and fasting); it is rather hard to show that Bruegel is taking sides.

Next we came to Peter Paul Ruben, a Baroque Flemish painter. His use of movement, color, and light separate his paintings from the Renaissance paintings around it. He was a busy man, fluent in six languages and running a large studio with the greatest of the Flemish painters in its employment.

He rarely painted the entirety of his paintings - only if the painting was commissioned by royalty did he undertake the painting. Often, his painters in his studio would paint his sketch, one specialized in flowers, one in animals, etc. The Christian message within his paintings, such as The Miracles of St. Francis Xavier, and The Miracles of St. Ignatius of Loyala, were quite evident. He communicated the holiness of religion and its power through these two large paintings, as well as through his others. His use of light and shadowing allow the painting to come to life, transferred from the original sketch to the larger than life wall painting.

Caravaggio was next. His use of emotions, passion, and an extreme talent of using light classifies him as Baroque. His paintings are darker, with a spot light effect, allowing the center of the painting to take precedence over all else. Another Baroque artist shown to us was Jan Vermeer. He was a Dutch painter, whose paintings often depicted domestic life inside the house rather than action outside of the house. His use of color and light also classify him as Baroque; his sole use of shades of blue and yellow constitute his painting The Art of Painting.

Finally we came to Raphael's The Madonna of the Meadow. As a high Renaissance painter, Raphael valued serenity and harmony - symmetry - thus reflected in this painting. Aong with Michaelangelo and Da Vinci, he embodied the greatest of the high Renaissance's talent. The bold colors, the static characters and calmer emotions show a stark contrast to the impassioned characters painted by the Baroque artists.

After Raphael, our tour ended - but there is still so much we did not see. It is definitely on our list to revisit.

After the museum, we headed over to Cafe Landtmann for some much needed coffee. We then walked over to the city hall, which looks more like a gothic church than it does a government building, where during the summer each night there is a movie shown and booths of food line the sidewalk. Alcohol is served from every booth, food is everywhere (although their idea of exotic food is everything that can be found in a college town, including fried chicken), and everyone is dressed in summer dresses and slacks. It is neat to see such a large city sponsor such an interactive event for each night of the week.

Tomorrow we leave for the Alps - Wednesday we have several tours on the drive up, Thursday we spend hiking and relaxing, and on Friday we have more tours scheduled on the drive home. It will be a busy trip, but a nice break from walking all over Vienna. We'll have no service at the inn, so check back this weekend for blog updates!

Today's German Word:

Autobahn - 'highway'