November 28, 2025

Yesterday we continued our trip along the Danube River to Bratislava, Slovakia.  Bratislava is the capital and largest city of Slovakia.  The city has deep historical ties to Hungary and served as its capital and coronation city for centuries and is now the capital seat of Slovakia.  Bratislava borders both Austria and Hungary, making it the only national capital in the world to have land borders with two other sovereign states.  After the Ottoman conquest in 1526, Bratislava (then Pozsony) became the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1536 until 1783.  Eleven Hungarian kings and eight royal consorts were crowned in the city’s St. Martin’s Cathedral.  “Bratislava” was adopted as its name following World War I (1919) after it became part of Czechoslovakia.  After an afternoon walking tour of the city and a lively evening of entertainment (dancers and operetta), we departed Bratislava late last night and continued our way up the Danube River toward Vienna.   

When I went online, I found Vienna is the capital and largest city (2 million inhabitants) of Austria.  Its larger metropolitan area has a population of nearly 2.9 million, representing nearly one-third of the country’s population. Vienna is the cultural, economic, and political center of the country, the fifth-largest city by population in the European Union, and the most populous of the cities on the Danube River.  The city lies on the eastern edge of the Vienna Woods (Wienerwald), the foothills of the Alps that separate Vienna from the more western parts of Austria.  The city sits on the Danube and is traversed by the Vienna River (Wienfluss).  Although surrounded by Lower Austria, the city lies 31 miles (50 km) west of Bratislava, Slovakia, 31 miles (50 km) northwest of Hungary, and 37 miles (60 km) south of Moravia (Czech Republic).  The Romans founded a fortress (castrum) at the site in the 1st century CE called Vindobona, which was elevated to a town (municipium) with Roman city rights in 212.  In 1155, Vienna became the seat of the Babenbergs (976 to 1246) and was granted city rights in 1221.  The Habsburgs succeeded the Babenbergs during the 16th century and Vienna became the seat of the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, a position it held until the empire’s dissolution in 1806.  With the formation of the Austrian Empire in 1804, Vienna became the capital of the Austrian and all its successor states.

Our morning in Vienna began with a panoramic (bus) tour of the major sites of the city followed by a walking tour of the interior.  This tour took us from the old city gates (no longer in existence) toward St. Stephen’s Cathedral.  We had toured St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Bratislava, but this was named for Stephen I, the first king of Hungary reigning from approximately 1000/1001 until his death in 1038 CE.  Although his parents were baptized, he was the first of his family to be a devout Christian.  Stephen led the Church in Hungary to develop independently from the archbishops of the Holy Roman Empire and encouraged the spread of Christianity by meting out severe punishments for those ignoring Christian customs.  He became the principal patron saint of Hungary.  St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna is named for the first martyr of Christianity according to the Acts of the Apostles (Chapter 6).  During the modern era, Vienna has been among the largest German-speaking cities in the world and host to major international organizations.  In 2001, the city center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

THOUGHTS: One excursion in Vienna is a concert by the Vienna Residence Orchestra that features some of Vienna’s most beloved music, including Strauss waltzes and Mozart’s The Magic Flute.  This is a bucket list for Melissa I am grateful to share.  Sharing each other’s expectations and hopes bonds relationships.  The more the better.  Act for all.  Change is coming and it starts with you.