I am adding photos and thoughts beginning July 9. Come back soon. We took the train from Prague to Vienna on October 2, 2023. We settled in at the Hotel Corvinus and then went to the nearby metro station which was only one stop away from the trams which circumvent the old city. The Opera House is a main attraction. We got off the tram and enjoyed our first dinner in Vienna at L'Opera restaurant across the street from the Opera House. EXCERPTS FROM EMAILS 10/3 email Yesterday, October 2 we took the train from Prague to Vienna. We rode a tram around the ring and began to get oriented. Today, unseasonably hot, we got to 2 museums and you will see photos from there. The first museum, Imperial Furniture Collection, is loaded with Habsburg furniture, paintings and more. O those Habsburgs. The second, Kunsthistorisches Museums according to Rick Steves "houses the family collection of Austria's luxury loving Habsburg rulers. Their joie de vivre is reflected in this collection -- some of the most beautiful, sexy and fun art from two centuries (c. 1450-1650). At their peak of power in the 1500s, the Habsburgs ruled Austria, Germany, northern Italy, the Netherlands. and Spain -- and you'll see a wide variety of art from all these places and beyond." We loved seeing many paintings by the Dutch painter Bruegel the Elder. 10/4 email The concert on Tuesday night at the wienerconzerthaus was wonderful. It was Vienna Pops with about 20 in an orchestra conducted by a flamboyant and fun man who played the violin superbly a couple of times. 2 opera singers, a man and a woman, were amazing. 2 dancers, a man and a woman, were also amazing. We were blessed by sitting next to our new friend Erhard who loved the concert and was quite knowledgeable about the music and the culture. Mary is with him in the first photo. Today we got to the two major palaces of the Habsburgs: Hofburg and Schoenbrun. We learned a lot of history as we went from one opulent chamber to another. The Schonbrun includes a huge and wonderful garden. The Habsburgs did not exclude the public from this garden, unlike the French royal family who kept Versailles to themselves. 10/5 email I stopped (Monument Against War and Fascism) and listened to an English Speaking Tour Guide discussing the horror of 7 years under Nazi rule. Mary and I were together most of the day but we did do some exploring of the city separately for a while. Prague and Vienna are 2 wonderful European cities with a lot of history and a lot of charm. In many ways they are quite different.