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2nd - 5th May 2002 |
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Vienna - Imperial Capital |
| Vienna was founded on the Danube where it had many branches. The modern city developed as a consequence of dredging the Donaukanal , which has itself now been by-passed. Despite the fact that Austria today is a far smaller country than formerly, Vienna still looks like an imperial capital and its development reflects the glory of the development of the Austrian Empire. |
| Our first morning will be in the commercial centre where the banks and shops again reflect the magnificence of the 19th century. Of particular interest is the Post Office Savings Bank designed by Otto Wagner in 1904. Its stark architecture of the Secession School reflects the cutting edge architecture of the time and its use of aluminium as a building material is also significant. One of Vienna's other glories is its Metro system developed at the end of the 19th century, again designed by Otto Wagner. The restored pavilions of the Karlsplatz station are not to be missed. Of course we will be visiting other stations too! In the same area is the Secession House where architects and artists displayed their work in the Austrian art nouveau style, as well as the Majolica House, again the work of Wagner. Tile and ceramic decoration were very popular and are to be seen all over the city, but the Majolica House shows this to splendid effect. |
| In the afternoon we will follow one of Vienna's other rivers, the Wienfluss back to the Danube. Much of its route has been culverted to allow for 19th century development, including ring roads with splendid buildings. However the portal where the river emerges once more into the Stadtpark is another 'must'. The Wien reaches the Donaukanal, close to an area nicknamed the 'Bermuda Triangle' due to the difficulty of navigating round the old winding streets. Our day will end here where we can find many tempting restaurants for later use! |
| Saturday takes us to 'Gasometer Town'. Vienna's public utilities developed at the end of the 19th century in Simmering on the edge of the city. Four enormous brick gas holders were built here. They have recently been completely reworked, each by a different architect, to incorporate shops, offices as well as housing. This will provide a contrast to the meat market and slaughterhouses close by which have yet to find a new use. Later we will visit the Technical Museum , where in a newly refurbished building, we can see a number of iconic objects, such as the Markus car, the world's first petrol driven car as well as displays on local manufactures as well as the work of various British engineers who lived and worked in the city. |
| Our last day will allow us to look at some of the social housing for which Vienna, especially in the days after World War 1, was justly renowned. We will see the Karl Marx Hof, a development of flats almost a mile long, as well as various attempts at 'garden villages'. Water supply was always a problem in the developing city and we will see a remarkable water tower, straight out of fantasy with and elaborately tiled roof. We will then travel to the sluices built at the end of the 19th century to regulate the flow of the Donaukanal. The whole complex was designed by Wagner, another triumph of the Secessionist style. |
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The Karl Marx Hof, Heiligenstadt, Vienna, from a photograph by Dan Hayton, (c) May 2002 |
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City Safaris are organised by Heritage of Industry Ltd, 80 Udimore Road, Rye, Sussex, TN31 7DY |
