Austria, 2011

The imposing Salzburg Cathedral in Salzburg, Austria. It was Mozart's family church, and my favorite due to the ceiling design, elaborate white mouldings and vibrant colors incorporated throughout the design. Our tour did not go inside, but I skipped lunch to capture the following images.

The amazing Salzburg Cathedral in Salzburg, Austria. Built in 1628, the huge church is 466 feet long. A single WWII bomb fell right through the central dome, pictured. That damage was not fully repaired until 1959 .

Salzburg Cathedral.

Salzburg Cathedral in Salzburg, Austria. Mozart was baptized here, was the organist for several years, and performed some of his famous works here for the first time. "Coronation Mass" and some other works of his were written for this Cathedral.

Salzburg Cathedral. The left and right side domes are of similar designs, but with subtle differences.

Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria.

Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria.

Composite of statues on the front wall of Salzburg Cathedral.

Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria.

Salzburg Cathedral.

Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria. This is a super wide angle achieved by stitching two side by side photos together.

Dome of Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg.

Closeup detail of the ceiling of Salzburg Cathedral.

Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria.

Decorative organ in Salzburg Cathedral, Salzburg, Austria.

St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna was built from 1368 to 1433-rather quick in its day for a structure this large & ornate. The top of the steeple is 445 feet high. A retreating WWII German Captain ignored his orders to blast it to pieces with cannons. Ironically, it sustained severe damage later in WWII due to an accidental fire in the city caused by civilian looters.

St. Stephen's Cathedral inside. Temporary tinted light panels were placed over the windows for a TV special, which allowed this unusual color photo to be possible.

St Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna.

St. Stephen's Cathedral. The colorful tile roof was installed during the reign of the Hapsburg family in the 1800's.

side pulpit and stairs in St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna.

St. Stephen's Cathedral. Time and pollution have darkened the soft and vulnerable white limestone structure, but cleaning and restoration is underway. New techniques in restoring old buildings are allowing not only effective cleaning and color restoration without any abrasion, but they even keep the valuable patina of the original surfaces.

St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna. The church caters to tour groups and tolerates a constant flow of visitors in peak season.

The Ringstrasse, a wide boulevard that circles Vienna's inner city core along a path that used to be the site of the ancient wall which protected the city from invaders. Most of the historic structures, museums and churches are inside or bordering the Ringstrasse.

Schoenbrunn Palace, Vienna. Like many European Palaces, it was inspired by the incomparable Palace at Versailles, France, which we saw last year.

Schoenbrunn Palace in Vienna, one of two in Vienna for the ruling Hapsburg family, who ruled most of Europe for many decades. This residence was once considered out of town but now it is like a suburb in proximity.

Schoenbrunn Palace, Vienna. Mozart's ride to fame started right here at age 6. See following photo for more on that.

Schoenbrunn Palace, Vienna. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart started at the top- right in this room in 1762. On one of these couches, at age 6, he gave his first public concert (on the clavichord) to the head Lady of the land, Empress Maria Theresa. Word of his prowess spread quickly, and his legend had begun.

Though large, this was an amazingly detailed painting inside the Schoenbrunn Place on the outskirts of Vienna.

Grand Ballroom of the Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria. Camera was hand held and balanced on a rope stand.

Schoenbrunn Palace, Vienna.

Houses in rural Austria.

St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck, Austria. Built 1n 1717. Heavily damaged in WWII but beautifully rebuilt.

St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck at night.

St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck, Austria.

St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck, Austria.

St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck, Austria.

organ at St. James Cathedral, Innsbruck, Austria.

St James Cathedral

A quiet, early morning in Innsbruck. This is on a wide stone-paved plaza right downtown unlike anything you see in the U.S. Known as Maria Theresien Strasse, it has big statues, kiosks and open air shops in the middle like a pedestrian mall. No marked traffic lanes, but cars going on it at regular speeds, dodging people and everything else!

Statue of Emperor Joseph II at the Josephplatz, Vienna Austria in front of the Prunksaal. The statue faces the performing arena and stalls containing the famous Lippenzaner Horses of the Royal Riding School, which is just across the street .

The "Palais Equitable" stands proud over the Stephenplatz in the heart of the city as old faces new in downtown Vienna. The U.S. company Equitable Life Insurance built it in 1887 as an inner city office with palace-like flair.

Sculpture and museums are everywhere in Vienna.

The Prunksaal, the National Library of Austria. The interior is every bit as ornate as the glorious nearby churches, but access is more limited.

Our tour group moves along a side street in Vienna. Our first full view of the stunning St. Stephen's Cathedral was seconds away.

This street went right through our hotel in Vienna. Behind me an elevated walkway passed over it and connects one side of the hotel to the other.