Last Thursday was Labour Day here in Austria. The day you're supposed to celebrate workers by not working. Since I was home, I thought it would be appropriate to dedicate the day to intense relaxation.
Appropriate and boring.
I quickly dismissed that idea and prepped myself for a hike up to Leopoldsberg instead. Leopoldsberg is a big hill just to the north of Vienna, clearly visible from the vicinity of Spittelau station. There are vineyards climbing up its side and an ancient church at its peak. According to the article on Viennese history we were assigned to read in German class last week, the first castle in Vienna was built atop Leopoldsberg by the Celts around 400 B.C. Vindobona, as the sprouting city was known, was overtaken by the Romans a few hundred years later.
Kaiser Leopold I ordered a church to be built on the hill in 1679. It was completed several years later, but had to be rebuilt after it was destroyed by the Turks. Leopold re-consecrated it in 1693, and since then, the hill has been known as Leopoldsberg. I can see the Leopoldsbergkirche every day as I'm coming home from work, and I've been wanting to pay my respects for over a year now.
The Church wasn't open when I got to the top, which was unfortunate, but the view was excellent. This is looking down into the valley from partway up the hill. I walked up that path last month on my way to Kahlenberg.
Appropriate and boring.
I quickly dismissed that idea and prepped myself for a hike up to Leopoldsberg instead. Leopoldsberg is a big hill just to the north of Vienna, clearly visible from the vicinity of Spittelau station. There are vineyards climbing up its side and an ancient church at its peak. According to the article on Viennese history we were assigned to read in German class last week, the first castle in Vienna was built atop Leopoldsberg by the Celts around 400 B.C. Vindobona, as the sprouting city was known, was overtaken by the Romans a few hundred years later.
Kaiser Leopold I ordered a church to be built on the hill in 1679. It was completed several years later, but had to be rebuilt after it was destroyed by the Turks. Leopold re-consecrated it in 1693, and since then, the hill has been known as Leopoldsberg. I can see the Leopoldsbergkirche every day as I'm coming home from work, and I've been wanting to pay my respects for over a year now.
The Church wasn't open when I got to the top, which was unfortunate, but the view was excellent. This is looking down into the valley from partway up the hill. I walked up that path last month on my way to Kahlenberg.
From Leopoldsbergkirche, I headed west through the maze of forest paths towards Habsburgwarte. At one point, the gentle tweets of birds and crinkling of inchworms dropping onto leaves* faded away, and the shrieks of primates took their place. I looked up to find the trees full of squirrel monkeys, much to my surprise! Monkeys of all ages were swinging about on ladders, dangling from ropes, and flying from tree to tree on zip lines or in wooden buckets.
I spent the next ten minutes mentally debating which of my friends, relatives, or acquaintances I could convince to come play squirrel monkey with me. Any takers? I'll probably have to resort to trickery and/or coercion, regardless of who I ask.
To get up to Habsburgwarte, a look-out tower buried in the middle of the woods, you get to choose between a steep path and an easy path. I chose the steep path, because I like making life difficult for myself.
To get up to Habsburgwarte, a look-out tower buried in the middle of the woods, you get to choose between a steep path and an easy path. I chose the steep path, because I like making life difficult for myself.
When I reached the tower, it didn't look all that tall, but I forked out a euro and climbed up anyway. And wouldn't you know, from the top I basically could see all the way to Prague. More or less.
I pretended I was Saruman for a bit and surveyed my domain. Then, concerned that I might start banging a staff around and ordering the destruction of that beautiful forest, I climbed back down and started heading home. I hiked down through forest and vineyards and somehow ended up in Sievering even though I could have sworn I had taken the road to Grinzing. Someday. Someday I will go for a hike and not end up on a random streetcorner a couple kilometers from where I want to be, turning my map around in circles and trying to figure out which town I'm in.
Sievering has a beautiful old church, as it turns out. Lovely green yard around the side with a lovely bench. A perfect bench for someone who has just walked 14 miles, most of them uphill. I made it home eventually, and capped off the day with a strawberry banana smoothie, a couple loads of laundry, and a hiking coma.
As is appropriate for Labour Day.
* Seriously, it's like an infestation. There were so many worms it sounded like it was raining.
As is appropriate for Labour Day.
* Seriously, it's like an infestation. There were so many worms it sounded like it was raining.