Schloss Schönbrunn

Since Vienna was once the imperial capital of the Hapsburg Empire (during certain periods known as the Austrian Empire or Austria-Hungary), there are remnants of this imperial heritage all over the city. The most beautiful that I've seen so far has been Schloss Schönbrunn. Schloss means "palace" or "castle," and this Schönbrunn palace served as a summer residence for the royal Hapsburg family. It's somewhat removed from the center of the city, and the grounds are enormous.

The front of Schloss Schönbrunn.

We took an audio tour (meaning: our guide was a set of headphones) through the rooms of the palace, which was very interesting. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take any pictures inside. Probably the most famous inhabitant of the palace was Maria Theresa, who ruled the empire in the 18th century. Many of the rooms in the palace were designed by/for her, and she was also responsible for the building of many of the structures on the grounds and in the gardens of the palace, which you'll see in a bit. But she was basically a beast: not only did her reign span 40 years, she also had 16 children (one of them was Marie Antoinette)! Another famous (at least for Austrians) inhabitant of the palace was Empress Elisabeth, affectionately nicknamed "Sisi." I had never heard of her before I came to Austria, and I feel like most Americans don't know anything about her (but maybe I'm wrong about this?), but she is an icon here, sort of a Princess Diana-like figure. She was married to Franz Joseph I, whom she didn't seem to like very much (it was an arranged marriage), and was stabbed to death in Geneva at age 60.. recipe for a tragic figure, I suppose? Even though she didn't have much power or do much at all, people are obsessed. There are books and movies and shows about her, and there's even a Sisi Museum here in Vienna.

After the tour, we walked around to the back side of the palace and explored the grounds. A huge rectangular garden (which I'm sure is much prettier in the warmer spring and summer) stretches back from behind the palace and ends with a large fountain. At the fountain the landscape begins to climb, and this hill is crowned by the "Gloriette," a big stone veranda-like structure.

View from the back.

View from behind the fountain.

View from the middle of the hill.

The Gloriette.

Under the roof of the Gloriette. Great view of the palace and the city from here.

Scattered throughout the palace grounds were many other smaller gardens and structures and monuments to be discovered, like the "Roman Ruin" in the picture below.

Interesting obelisk + fountain.

Close-up of some mysterious creature.