Vienna's Hofburg Palace - an insight into the Hapsburg Empire and a glimpse at its Treasury

The Hofburg formed the original centre of the Habsburg court, where the Imperial family lived, worked and ruled (and ate 13-course dinners). The complex is not a standalone palace in the sense of a Versailles.

Located in the old town at the centre of Vienna, the Hofburg area covers a collection of former imperial and court buildings occupied by the ruling Habsburg dynasty between the 13th and early 20th centuries. This article covers the Treasury only.

Instead, you get a series of opulent, interconnected buildings that grew from early life as the seat of the Duke of Austria in the 12th century to become the home and court of emperors. Some parts now house visitor attractions, but others have administrative roles or serve as venues for conferences, trade fairs and concerts.

The offices of the Austrian president, for example, fill part of the Hofburg’s Leopoldine Wing. That tract dates back to the late 1600s. You can wander around courtyards, parks and squares for free, but almost all the public attractions inside buildings need their own entrance ticket.

Text and photographs copyright of the author. No part of this article or photographs maybe transmitted or reproduced by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without written permission. Do contact the author on email -- helpthesun@gmail.com

Prague - A visit to Terezin's Jewish Ghetto Museum

After we finished our tour of the Concentration Camp, we visited the Ghetto Museum (Terezín Museum), Columbarium, Prayer Room (Hidden Synagogue) and the Magdeburg Barracks exhibition, 

We walk through the prison dormitory seeinhg the belongings of the people who resided here - their actual clothing, their poetry, their musical instruments and music sheets, their children's drawings, and other precious artefacts that have survived.

Audio visual displays and documentary films feature archive material from the era.

The tour presents a harrowing insight into the lives of the inmates, their hopes, and ultimately, their despair. You come out in a sad depressed state unable to believe what human beings did to each other. The fact is that since Terezin, massacres have still happened across the world and across religions.

 

Text and photographs copyright of the author. No part of this article or photographs maybe transmitted or reproduced by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without written permission. Do contact the author on email -- helpthesun@gmail.com