Day 7--Willkommen bei Wienerwald!

As it is the weekend, we didn't have class, but some of us wanted to experience the Vienna Woods (Wienerwald). We took a bus to a small town called Baden, south of the city. It took about 40 minutes. Baden is s tiny resort town known for it's ancient Roman baths. Aristocracy and richer people would flock here to be "cured" by the salt baths. the baths are now run by full spas, and many Viennese come here to relax. We walked around the town, passing by shops and cafes. Then we walked toward the forest. We stopped to use the rest room, and only found one of those new pay-toilets. It cost 50 cents. It was like stepping into a booth and the door closed behind you. There was a warning: You had no more than 5 minutes, and the door would open automatically! After each use, the bathroom would be sprayed down and dried for the next person. Quite the experience. We stopped into the St. Stephen's church to see where Mozart composed his "Ave Verum" in 1791 for Anton Stoll.

 The Plague monument

 Downtown Baden

 A copy of Mozart's Ave Verum

The plaque that explains Ave Verum

Inside St. Stephen's Church

 The monument to Mozart

 The view from the monument toward the statue for Johann Strauss, Sr.

 The temple to Beethoven

The woods are rare because no other major European city has such a dense and protected forest so close. There were several threats against these woods and it slid right by, through development and war to survive to today. We may not have had the same music written or the same literature without them! The muse is close by. We walked to the entrance to the woods. There was a beautiful garden area with statues, one of Johann Strauss, Sr. and of course Mozart. There was also a small temple in honor of Beethoven. We hiked up into the wooded area. It was steep climb but well worth it! We came to a tower and climbed the seven flights to the top. We got a panoramic view of the town of Baden and could see for miles. Beautiful!!

 The hikers

For Dotty!

 A LARGE snail

 Hiking UP...very much UP

 After hiking up, we were rewarded with stairs!

We made it!

The View!

On the way down, our guide, and professor, Dick made us stop and just listen. It was so quiet, you could only hear the birds and the wind. Peaceful. No wonder why many people came to these woods to escape the city life.

After the hike down (which felt almost as strenuous), a few of us wanted to visit the Beethoven museum. In the Vienna area, many buildings boast having had a famous composer or artist stay there and usually signify with a plaque, even if the building has been renovated into a department store. Oddly, Vienna is obsessed with Mozart and Strauss. Tourism-wise, you'll find a Mozart-themed store on almost every corner, but almost no mention of Beethoven! Mozart lived here for 10 years and died here. Beethoven lived here for 30 and also died here! the only thing I can think of is that Beethoven was German-born and Mozart was Austrian. The Viennese revere all of the great composers who passed through the city, including, but not limited to: Schubert, Beethoven, Mahler, Bruckner, Haydn, etc. but Mozart is definitely the main man.

However, after all of this Mozart talk and Classical Era focus, I was craving some Beethoven! We visited the tiny museum on...wait for it...Beethoven Street. It was one of the apartments he rented while staying in Baden during several summers. This particular apartment is where he worked on his 9th Symphony. It was amazing just being inside the place where he lived. They set it up the way he might have had it with furniture and they had HIS PIANO THAT HE PLAYED (I touched it) and also a lock of his actual hair!! I was blown away, to say the least.

 Beethoven's bedroom

 A cloak in the style he would have worn.

He was very serious, apparently.

 His living room

 Beethoven's lock of hair (on the left) and his death mask

 Beethoven's Piano!!!

The exterior of the house

During the silence in the woods it hit me that today is the 25th. My mom passed exactly one month ago today. I miss her so much, and I want to tell her everything about this trip, but I know she already knows. Both my parents are with me.